The only low of the long weekend was getting the news that Dr. Leddy Cariño passed away Friday morning.
Dr. Cariño is an esteemed professor of UP. But to me and thousands of others, she will always be the "Mother" of the Ugnayan ng Pahinungod.
Sometime in the 90s, UP got a lot of criticism. It started with an article published in a daily - "Has UP lost its soul?" The University was being accused that its students were losing a sense of "service to the nation." To prove the article wrong, then UP President Emil Javier, together with Dr. Cariño, the Ugnayan ng Pahinungod was formed. Several faculty/constituents from the other UP campuses who believed in the thrust of the group came forward and helped build the Pahinungod program in the autonomous campuses. Dr. Padilla, Dr. de Villa, Prof. Cuevas, another Dr. de Villa were some of them.
Pahinungod is a Cebuano term and it was the closest to the word "oblation." I was still in high school back then but I knew about Pahinungod because my family did several catering services for their functions.
Pahinungod rekindled the spirit of volunteerism within the University like a forest fire. Hundreds, thousands of Iskos and Iskas got themselves immersed in volunteer work. I'd like to clear something here. I've always believed that (a huge chunk of) UP students have always been dedicated to community work/service. In UP Manila, I've heard of the stories of Dr. Bobby I forget his last name, Dr. Mario de Villa, among others who went to the communities to provide medical service. I'm betting my diploma that the other student organizations/faculties also had similar endeavors.
If I remember correctly though, what Pahinungod provided was several more venues for Iskolars ng Bayan to be a living oblation. It was the first time a University-wide volunteer program was implemented, and for several years (and even until now), UP students are getting bitten by the volunteer bug through Pahinungod.
I was lucky enough to be part of the group after college. It was close to being the best work experience. I loved what I did so much that I didn't even want to call it work. Pahinungod and its leaders like Dr. Cariño have taught me so much about volunteerism and things that I wouldn't have learned within the four walls of the classroom. For that alone, I would always be forever grateful.
Pahinungod volunteers have a private joke. They say that once you become a Pahinungod, some kind of chip is installed in you and when the need for volunteers arise, that chip is activated and you'd know exactly where to go and what to do.
Last Friday, that chip was activated again. After getting the saddening news from Marian, we agreed to meet today. As I have expected, the chips of the other Pahinungod volts were also activated. People I haven't seen for so long were there at the Church of the Risen Lord to pay tribute to Dr. Cariño one last time. People who have been an inspiration to me.
The service was a really beautiful one. There was a some sadness in the air over the loss of a great person, but more than that, one could really feel the celebration of the beautiful life she lived and how she touched the hearts of so many people. Former Pahinungod directors from the different campuses shared touching stories about Ma'am Leddy. Pres. Javier was also there to pay tribute to her. It was really a wonderful gathering.
Thank you, Dr. Cariño for everything. Your memory will live on in every Pahinungod volunteer.
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