BLESSINGS IN MY LIFE AS AN EX-SEMINARIAN

I was feeling like a stranger when I first went out into the world without wearing a cassock, which I used to wear when I went out. Fortunately, I met some ex-seminarians at the University of Santo Tomas when I enrolled to finish my bachelor’s course in Philosophy. Among them were Mr. Romeo Gatan, Mr. Wilfredo Maguigad, and Mr. Elpidio Durian. These three contemporaries of mine in the seminary helped to make me feel at home in the world. They brought me to parties and introduced me to friends and acquaintances. Gradually I got adjusted to the outside world.

The first job that was offered to me was a teaching position at Letran College in ReligionIntramuros, Manila. Having gone as far as third year theology in the seminary, I was given a load in Religion at the High School Department and Apologetics at the College Department. The pay then was just enough to provide for my basic needs.

Later on, I ventured into insurance underwriting with the Insular Life of the Philippines and into sales promotion for a Catholic Book Division of an American Book Company. While the income in these companies was quite good, it was not, however, steady – being on a commission basis according to one’s productivity. Since I already had a family to sustain, I prayed for a steady job. God, in His infinite goodness, led me to the Knights of Columbus Headquarters in Intramuros, Manila, where a brother knight introduced me to the KC Territorial Deputy, Rev. Fr. George Willmann, SJ. For a few months Father Willmann enlisted my services as a member of the staff for the CROSS Magazine, a monthly publication of the Knights of Columbus. Then on September 9, 1958, the Knights of Columbus Fraternal Association of the Philippines, Incorporated (KCFAPI) was organized and they offered me the position of Office Manager. As manager I served the Association for a period of six years (l958 – l964). Being quite bored with office work I finally decided to go back to the teaching profession. Having graduated with an MBA degree from the Ateneo de Manila University, I applied at the University of the East and was taken as a full-time Instructor of Finance subjects. It was at UE where I met Dean Santiago de la Cruz, Head of the School of Business Administration. Dean de la Cruz edified me with his wholehearted dedication to work and his very effective managerial skills.