DLSU Green Going 100 Homecoming on March 6

When                          :  March 6, 2010 (Saturday)

Host Class                :  Silver Jubilarian DLSU Class of 1985

Special Recognition:  Golden Jubilarian Classes GS'60, HS'60 and DLS College'60                                               

Activities                     :  4p Mass @ DLS Chapel

                                        5p - 12mn Dinner, Variety Show, Raffle & Fireworks

Below is the article by Homecoming Chair Albert Villadolid posted on BusinessWorld Online on Feb. 17, 2010:

DLSU Homecoming 2010: March To Taft, Be The Change!

Twenty-five years ago, I had the honor of delivering the valedictory speech during one of the commencement exercises of De La Salle University. I quoted Reinhold Niebuhr to describe my university experience: "Nothing worth doing is completed in our lifetime; therefore, we must be saved by hope. Nothing true or beautiful makes complete sense in any immediate context of history; therefore, we must be saved by faith. Nothing we do, however virtuous, can be accomplished alone; therefore, we are saved by love."

I thought it was an appropriate quote at that time, when DLSU was about to celebrate its 75th anniversary, as the lines reminded me of the people, the sacrifices and the struggles, the honors and the glory, the colorful history, and the beliefs and values of my alma mater.

Today, our batch is one of the College Silver Jubilarians hosting the Alumni Homecoming Events of 2010. Elected as overall chair of the homecoming council, I am joined by Atty. Roy Villasor (BA 1984) as vice chair; Mylene Abiva (BSC 1985) as Homecoming Committee chairperson; Rene Banzon (BS Che 1985) as Fellowship Committee chair; Ariel Driz (BS ECE 1985) as Sponsorship Committee chair; Ricky Dagelet (BS IMM 1985) as Golf Cup Committee chair; Nobel Tieng (BS ECE 1985) as Souvenirs Committee chair; Meggie Jose (AB-BSC 1985) as Finance Committee chair; Elaine Friend (BSC 1985) as council secretary; Maryrose Gatmaitan-Macapagal (BSC 1985) as Publicity and Advertising chair; Harvey Campos (AB BSC 1983) as Pastoral Committee chair; Arthur Chung (BSC 1985) as Golf Cup Committee vice chair; Dr. Anthony SF Chiu (BSME 1986 and DBA 2004) as Recognition Committee vice chair; and Karin Ting (AB-BSC 1987) as Souvenirs Committee vice chair. I have also asked my wife, Ma. Rowena Lozon-Villadolid (AB-BSC 1987), to help me in various activities. We are assisted by the De La Salle Alumni Association, headed by its president, Henry Atayde (BS 1982), and Benjie Uichico (BSC 1979), its executive director, and the DLSAA team. Special mention goes to Ma. Concepcion "Chona" Gana (BSC 1982), DLSAA’s VP-Homecoming and Reunions; Bambie R. Picazo (BSC- MMG 1995), Business Development Unit head; and Vincent "Bing" Capuno, (BSC-MMG 2001), Alumni Services Unit head. They have all been coordinating with our council.

The theme for this year’s homecoming celebrations is "March to Taft. Be the Change." It is in recognition of the call for genuine national transformation, which begins with oneself. We in the Homecoming Council hope that the DLSU alumni will renew the spirit of our Lasallian Faith, our zeal for Service, and our Communion in mission (FSC for short).

Our opening salvo in a series of alumni homecoming celebrations for this year was a fellowship night on Jan. 25, 2010, at 7th Note Restaurant/Bar in Makati. More than a hundred alumni from various jubilarian batches attended the event, which was held to generate momentum and solicit support for the celebrations. A "Lasallian Alumni Got Talent" competition coaxed a number of alumni to show their singing and band prowess that night.

The next event is a Lenten Recollection on February 20 that will culminate with an anticipated Eucharistic Celebration at the LS Main Chapel and will also serve as a Memorial Mass for our dearly departed fellow alumni. Then, on March 1, the 7th Br. Benedict Golf Cup will be held at the Alabang Golf and Country Club. Interested alumni golf players are requested to register early for this exciting event, which has a Toyota Fortuner as one of the hole-in-one prizes.

The culminating event, Alumni Homecoming Day on March 6, Saturday, at the DLSU campus in Taft, Manila, will recognize the Golden Jubilarians (Batches Grade School 1960, High School 1960, and DLS College 1960). It will start with a Eucharistic Celebration at the LS Main Chapel at 4 p.m., and end with a bang with a spectacular archery and fireworks show. Attendees can win prizes, including a round-trip, business class ticket from Manila to any point in Europe, courtesy of Etihad Airways.

As I return to the hallowed halls of my alma mater, read up on its history, and interact with its people, I am led to paraphrase Reinhold Neibur: Whatever I do, I will do it with others who share my vision and mission of a just and humane society and a God-fearing and God-believing nation. Even if this will take longer than my lifetime, and even if the truth and the beauty of the causes I pursue are not fully clear, I will not lose hope but will have faith, knowing that others whom I love and who love me will carry on the good fight.

To all my La Sallite/Lasallian brethren: Remember to "March to Taft and be the change we aspire to be." Animo, La Salle!