We are reprinting the letter of Ms. Rebecca Pacag to Fr. Romy Seleccion, that all of us who graduated from La Salette of San Mateo may be made aware of, and get interested on what are being planned for the celebration of our alma mater’s 50th Golden Foundation Anniversary, as well as on the immediate needs of our beloved school.
Christmas has always been and will always be an occasion and time for giving - giving love, cheers, smiles, goodwill and gifts. A computer/internet connection is #1 on the wish list of the school. #2 is contributions to the scholarship fund for poor but deserving students. Be a Santa Claus for LSSM this Christmas. Whatever number on the list that you want to contribute to will certainly be appreciated. Please send your generous gifts to Fr. Romy Seleccion, M.S. at 25075 Cottonwood Avenue, Moreno Valley, CA 92553.
Letter from the LSSM Principal
Dear Fr. Romy,
Greetings of good cheer!
There’s always that time when we reminisce our high school days with pleasure and try to look back and say “How’s La Salette of San Mateo? Where are my friends and what’s happening nowadays? What’s in and around back home?”
Yes, we felt very proud when we were scanning the list of World Alumni Directory - Philippines - for La Salette of San Mateo. I can’t believe that we’ve reached the stage where communication is so easy, fast and enjoyable through the Internet.
Your school was elated upon hearing all of your activities. We appreciate “The Rose” which is the newsletter of USA-Canada based LSSM alumni. Thanks for being in ouch with us and keeping the Salettinian spirit alive wherever you are.
Well, as for the alumni activities, class ’73 will be the Silver Jubilarians and class ’58 the Ruby Jubilarians. It was approved by the alumni association last December 1997 to present awards to jubilarians every December 30.
As to the 50th Foundation Anniversary of La Salette of San Mateo in 1999, working committees were organized and activities are scheduled to highlight the affair. To wit are the activities:
Creative Eucharistic Celebration Representing the Different batches
Motor Parade by Batch
Cultural Presentation: La Salette 50 Years hence
Search for LSSM Golden Boy & Girl
Booth Fair
Indoor & Outdoor Games Competition
Recognition Night
Finance Committee - we will indicate the USA-Canada Alumni as member. Kick-off will held on January 1999.
These are just some of the activities we intend to accomplish.
How we wish we could have an internet connection the earliest possible time so we can have direct access to all of you there. It is quite expensive and one more thing, life here in our place is very difficult due to typhoon Iliang and Loleng coming one after the other. Can our alumni do something to help us get connected to the Internet, or help us fund scholarships to poor but deserving students in our school?
Hope you can be of assistance to your Alma Mater and be proud of its accomplishments too. La Salette of San Mateo will be accredited level III by January 11-12, 199 when the PAASCU accreditors visit our school. This means that La Salette of San Mateo is official and due recognition as one of the performing schools with regard to educational standards established by the PAASCU in the Philippines.
So, how about it, Fr. Romy? May we hear from you soon? Thank you and warm regards. More power!
Very truly yours,
REBECCA B. PACAG, Ph.D.
Principal
Christmas: Birth or Death!
The paradox of Christmas is that God became a man like us because he loved us. But the tragedy of Christmas is that we have taken the birth of Christ and made a mockery of it. We have refused to accept on its own terms – unselfish love – and have twisted it beyond all recognition. We have never really understood what God was trying to tell us when he sent His Son among us as a man.
T.S. Eliot has a poem about Christmas in which he asks whether Christmas is a birth or death. “Did we come all this way,” the Magi in Eliot’s poem ask, “to see a birth or a death?” There was a birth for them, of course. But there was death for them at Bethlehem too, for they were to accept the child in the crib and all He stood for. It meant that they would have to change their lives. They would have to become new men. They would have to die to their old ways and their old beliefs.
If we accept Christmas and the Infant in the manger, we have to die too. If Christmas means anything to us at all, we can never be the same again. We have to change. We have to die to sin. We have to accept the reality that Christmas is a spiritual event. It is not a materialistic celebration, but a reaffirmation of everything that is not material. Christmas has to be something inside of us.
Everyday of our lives, Christ must be born in us again. But that is not an easy thing to do because we are so unlike Christ. We are selfish and petty. We are full of pride and anger. We forget everyone else because we are so wrapped up on ourselves. In order to make Christ’s birth mean something in our lives, we have to die a little bit every day of our lives. When we are willing to die to ourselves, a holy birth will take place in us. It is painful but a creative pain of a mother. (Fr. William Kaliyadan, M.S., former LSSM Chaplain and Director)
Message from Fr. Romy Seleccion, M.S. (Class ’72)
Peace and every blessing!
The 50th Foundation Anniversary of La Salette of San Mateo in 1999 calls us to relocate ourselves to the birthplace of our education. It invites us to come home and say “home sweet home”.
As alumni, we are thumb-marked with the La Salette catholic education. Wherever we go, we carry with us the spirit of reconciliation – the charisma of the La Salette Missionaries who have planted the seeds of faith, hope and love in our lives. It is love which opens our hearts to revisit where we were before, and sincerely say “thank you!” Our faith recalls our grounding in the gospel values, which molded our character. Hope ushers us to where our home before and connects us to dream articulated in a question: “How can we help to build a school that will be ready to face the challenges of the next millenium?"
Let the Golden Anniversary be the common ground where we can unpack the promising dream of our alma mater that will benefit the next generations of Salettinians. Let us exert an effort to be involved in the celebration of this monumental event in our school’s history. Let’s share with love our time, talents and treasures to La Salette of San Mateo. Let us journey towards a fruitful homecoming.
As we prepare ourselves for the coming of Jesus in our hearts in this season of Advent, rest assured that you will all be remembered in my masses and prayers, most especially on Christmas Day. Merry Christmas to everyone!
Aida and Nestor Domingo Celebrate Silver Wedding Anniversary
“For I am certain of this: neither death nor life, no angel, no prince, nothing that exists, nothing still to come, not any power, or height or depth, nor any created thing, can ever come between us and the love of God made visible in Christ Jesus our Lord …”
And so Aida and Nestor Doming reaffirmed their wedding vows last December 12, 1998 at a mass celebration of their 25th Wedding Anniversary at the Holy Spirit Church in Fremont, California. Reception followed at the San Ramon Royal Vista Country Club in San Ramon, California.
Christina Espidol and Joel Ladores Exchange Marriage Vows
Christina and Joel recently received the Sacrament of Matrimony officiated by Fr. Steve Munar, M.S. at the Hearts of Jesus and Mary Church in Quezon City, Philippines. Reception was held at Albergus in Quezon City.
Thelma Ladores-Marcelo and son attended the wedding. Typhoon Iliang prevented mother and son from making a side-trip to San Mateo.
La Salette of San Mateo News Tidbits
La Salette of San Mateo won 2nd place in the science quiz bee and 1st and 2nd places in mathematics during the Math and Science District Contest held at Daramuangan Sur, San Mateo, Isabela.
In the culmination of the nutrition month celebration, La Salette of San Mateo once again garnered 1st place in both the slogan and poster making contests, district level. These achievements qualified the winning contestants to vie in the provincial level held at Roxas National High School, Roxas, Isabela where LSSM won the 3rd place in the slogan making contest.
Did you know that there is now a San Mateo West Central School? And, did you know that LSSM has an elementary department? No kidding! The 1997 Palarong Bayan was held at the San Mateo West Central School where LSSM elementary athletes participated in the different events. Some were qualified to compete in the District Area Meet in Cauayan, Isabela last October, where again LSSM elementary athletes were selected to compete in the Provincial Meet at the Alibagu Sports Complex in Ilagan, Isabela.
The student activity program of LSSM now includes educational field trips to the hydro-electric power plant in Ramon, Isabela, Jaka Feed Mills in Echague, Isabela, Coca-Cola Plant in Ilagan, Isabela, and the world famous Rice Terraces in Banaue.
To date, La Salette of San Mateo’s High School Department has graduated 5,539 students while the Elementary Department has graduated 248 pupils.
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Notes:
Please forward or make copies of this newsletter for distribution to fellow alumni and friends.
Visit our web site at http://geocities.datacellar.net/tokyo/palace/6949/
Kindly e-mail me any news/ photographs you want to share with fellow alumni.
My e-mail address is OneTalk@aol.com (Del Burgos, Class ’62)