Gleaners Class Golden Jubilee Reunion

GleanersT he much-prayed for, much-looked forward to,

a once-in-a-lifetime- event finally came and

we were not even prepared for the surprises it

brought. The convergence of openness to the leading of

the Spirit among the leadership of the attendees, the

readiness to serve mind-set of the school administrators,

the generosity of donors, the willing and joyful

participation of faculty, staff and students of BBC brought

about the singularly blessed celebration of the first golden

jubilee reunion of a class in the history of BBC.

Even with preparatory efforts to locate eighteen

survivors of the class starting in 2009 we succeeded in

bringing together only nine members of the class. From as

far as the USA to as close as a few kilometers from BBC,

the Gleaners came to renew the bonds and gratefully

acknowledged the providence that brought their lives

together in dear old BBI in 1960, to the place where their

spiritual formation took firm roots and flourished strong

enough to sustain them for the last 50 years of their faith

journey.

Ed Valladares took the first steps on sacred ground

on Feb 2 to pave the way and make final logistical

arrangements for the celebration. Lory Panaguiton came

next from far away Mindanao and the rest of the

attendees trickled in by Feb 5. Dr. Fermin

Bercero made available gratis the green guest

house and another guest room for the Gleaners.

He assured us that more accommodations could

be made available if there was a need for it. The

final count was: from USA: Teofe Cubangbang

Bala, Tina Sulpico Isaguirre and Ed Valladares;

from Northern Luzon: Vangie Avarientos Arizo

and Andy Rebucal; from Metro Manila: Lolit

Bercero Balista and Pely Tagarro; from the

Visayas: Angie Arellano Ababat; and from

Mindanao: Lory Panaguiton. The geographical

areas where the Lord of the Harvest scattered the

Gleaners are the USA, Malaysia and regions

covering the three major geographical divisions

of the Philippines.

While the celebration officially started on

the evening of Feb 5, the streamer announcing

Golden Jubilee Reunion

the celebration already greeted people coming on campus

before the date. Thanks to the maintenance crew who set up

the streamer before the event under the baton of the El

Presidente. During Feb 5 Chapel Period Ed Valladares shared

his faith journey through a reflective “going back to Bible

School” after 50 years in the field. After the chapel period,

there was a continuous flashing of cameras as people

attempted to document this rare celebration in different poses

for posterity. There was a lot of greetings from people who

have not seen each other for years and attempts at catching up

with lots of queries reverberating around the campus. The

Gleaners made an informal courtesy call on the President after

lunch with the students and before the start of the opening

night ceremony.

The Opening Night Ceremony was the most formal event

of the celebration when the Gleaners wore their barong and

Filipino dress. The faculty, staff, students and guests gathered

in the dining hall to celebrate this momentous occasion. As

most celebrations start, the kitchen staff made do of our limited

funds to produce a delectable combination of Filipino cuisine

fit for the occasion. Dr. Rose Engcoy, the AG historian, armed

with a video camera was a roving cameraperson ready to

document this once-in-a-lifetime occasion for posterity. At the

time of writing the video is still getting some finishing touches

before distribution. Pely Tagarro was master of ceremony. Ed

Valladares gave the rationale for the occasion, a brief history of

the class, the impact of the AG on the members of the

Gleaners Class and the struggle to locate eighteen survivors of

the class. Andy Rebucal and Lory Panaguiton shared their

faith journey in the ministries where the Lord led them. The

Gleaners sang their class song written by Nestor Salvatierra

and set to music by Vic Gabuay. After the conclusion of the

ceremony, more poses for posterity were done, more

conversations with friends, faculty, staff, students and guests

before we retired for the night.

The morning of Wednesday was done in catching up

with what was missed during the 50 long years of separation,

sharing of family pictures and bonding. The Door of Faith was

the arena of service that day. This Church which was founded

by Rev. Pol Mazaredo, a Gleaner who passed away two years

before the event and also before their Golden Wedding

Anniversary. This would have been a double Golden Jubilee

Celebration for the Mazaredos. The Door of Faith is the largest

church founded by a member of the Gleaners class and we

rejoice with Pol in the expansion of his ministry to other parts

of the country and the establishment of Bible Schools for

training people for the ministry. Ed Valladares shared with the

students the theological and biblical basis for a holistic

ministry with practical pointers on how to do it. The depth of

the questions raised by the students during the sharing and

after dinner shows much promise for the students who attend a

very minimal period of training. Teofe Bala and Vangie Arizo

shared their faith journey to the delight of the students. Pely

Tagarro remained for the night service where his anointed

preaching brought down the blessing of the Lord on the

church. Much to the appreciation and gratitude of the

leadership of the church.

Thursday was one busy day. The Gleaners took charge

of the chapel period. After the worship team led the worship

in soul-uplifting songs, Lory Panaguiton introduced the four

lady Gleaners who shared their faith journey. While each told

her story from different family backgrounds and from different

parts of the country, each acknowledged the spiritual

formation that they imbibed in BBI which sustained them in

their ministries. The faith that carried them through their

ministry took firm roots in BBI.

Part of the plan for this celebration is to donate something

of perennial value to the school. Since the school has been

doing well on its infrastructure, and the need is to help with the

book drive for CHED accreditation, a book donation was

decidedly the best contribution to the school at this time. A box

with over one hundred books from Ed Valladares’ collection

was shipped to BBC in time for the reunion. This book donation

was turned over to the school during chapel period and was

received by Dr. Fermin Bercero on behalf of the school. Esther

Javier prayed for the class donation, for the school and for the

members of the Gleaners Class.

As part of our immortality game, Pely Tagarro purchased

ten calamansi seedlings to plant on campus for the future BBC

family to benefit from. With each fruit plucked from the

Gleaners calamansi trees future residents of BBC will remember

that the Gleaners Class planted those trees for them. It will not

only cool their mouths on a hot day, it will also nourish their

body. At lunch, the students were treated to ice cream after

having been exposed to the sun for sometime.

In appreciation of the spiritual formation experienced at

BBC and in the desire to be helpful to ministerial candidates, the

Gleaners invited the faculty and staff for an informal

conversation on theological education over dinner. While

several issues sprung up, the conversation seemed to revolve

around funding for students. Students come from families who

cannot afford to support them through Bible School. BBC is

often forced to find sponsors for them and also to involve them

in work scholarships. Even then, the funds that come for this

purpose are not sufficient to cover the expenses of the working

students. The students end up with back accounts. The

churches must wake up to the reality that the ministerial

students are church workers who will benefit the churches with

their services when they finish their studies. The churches’

investment in the students’ education now would benefit

churches later. Theological education is not only the

responsibility of the Bible Schools. It is the responsibility of the

whole church and should involve the General Council, the

District Council and the local churches. The leadership of the

denomination should make theological education a matter of

priority in their agenda. It is a worthy effort to visit and revisit

these issues until the churches see the need to support

theological education.

The last day of the celebration was cut short because three

classmates had to attend to their commitment at home. Instead

of a closing night ceremony, the Gleaners ended the celebration

during the chapel period with the students on Friday, Feb 8.

Rev. Joe Ababat offered the closing prayer for the Gleaners class

as the members kneeled and the BBC family laid their hands on

them. As a token of appreciation for the presence and

contribution of the class, the faculty presented the Gleaners

Class with multiple gifts. The Gleaners really appreciated this

gesture. Everyone proceeded to the Dining Hall from the

chapel for lunch. The kitchen staff prepared a beautiful and

delicious cake complete with decorations to commemorate this

glorious occasion. Rev. Isaguirre led in closing prayer and the

celebration ended with lunch.

The celebration started with prayer and dinner and ended

with prayer and lunch with an overflowing of authentic

koinonia, a foretaste of, a longing for and anticipation of that

Great Homecoming when we meet to part no more. Even so

come Lord Jesus.