Religious group hailed as Aurora’s ‘cleanest, greenest’ Church

BALER, Aurora, September 22, 2912-A religious organization based in the municipality of Dingalan in southern Aurora, which is long known for its humanitarian outreach program, has emerged as the cleanest and greenest church in the annual Gawad Punong Lalawigan para sa Kapaligiran (GPLK) Clean and Green search.

          The Holy Place Pentecost Church Tabernacle, Inc., led by its president Mrs. Ruth G. Sanchez, was bestowed the award in the non-Catholic category during awarding ceremonies at the Sangguniang Panlalawigan session hall at the provincial Capitol grounds Wednesday.

          A plaque and a cash prize went with the award which was handed by Gov. Bellaflor Angara-Castillo, assisted by Vice Gov. Gerardo Noveras, Environment and Natural Resources Officer Ma. Teresa de Luna and Philippine League of Local Environment Officers representatives Erlinda Creencia, Oliver Gonzales and Raquel Naciongayo.

          Established in 1976 by Mrs. Sanchez’s late husband, Rev. Eustaquio G. Sanchez, the HPPCTI has congregations in Guiguinto, Bulacan; Project 8 in Quezon City, Sto. Tomas in Pampanga, Olongapo City, Cabanatuan City in Nueva Ecija, Davao City, Barangay Caragsacan, Dingalan and in Hong Kong.

          It also has outreaches in Marikina City; San Miguel, Baliuag, San Rafael and Bustos in Bulacan; Candaba in Pampanga; Binangonan, Rizal; Barangays Camp Tinio and Kalikid in Cabanatuan City; Gabaldon, Nueva Ecija; and in Barangays Umiray and Dikapanikian in Dingalan.  

          One of its notable projects was the “Operation Tulungan” gift-giving project which reached out to thousands of families in Central Luzon, Southern Tagalog and in Mindanao. In Dingalan, the program has been providing relief to impoverished families since 1983.  

          The GPLK is a pet project of Angara-Castillo in line with a province-wide search she launched in 2005 for the cleanest and greenest municipality, barangay, school, church, store/food establishment, hotel, recreation center and best Capitol implementer of the Ecological Solid Waste Management Program (ESWMP).

          She also issued Executive Order 1-2005 creating the provincial search committee.

          The St. Vincent Ferrer Parish Church in Ma. Aurora stood out as cleanest and greenest church in the Catholic category.

          Adjudged as the cleanest and greenest municipalities were Ma. Aurora, San Luis, Casiguran and this capital town in the urban category while Dinalungan, Dipaculao, Dingalan and Dilasag won in the rural category.

          Standing out as the cleanest and greenest barangay was Calabuanan, Baler (urban category) and Barangays Zone 1 (Dinalungan) and Puangi (Dipaculao).

          Emerging as cleanest and greenest schools are Diomes Elementary School, Estonilo ES, Leon Diaz Sr. ES, Bazal ES and Dimanpudso ES, all of Ma. Aurora; Mucdol ES and T. Molina ES, both of Dipaculao; Paulino Bautista ES (Dinalungan), Diagyan ES (Dilasag) and Suklayin ES (Baler), in the small ES category;

          San Luis Central School, Ditumabo ES, Dinalungan CS, Casiguran CS and Baler CS (big ES) category;

          Canili National High School, Don Mariano Marquez NHS, Juan C. Angara Memorial NHS, Dipaculao NHS, Ramada NHS, Aurora National Science HS, Calabuanan NHS, Borlongan NHS, Lual NHS and Dilasag NHS (high school category) and Mt. Carmel College in this town (college/university category).

          The Punta Sierra Verde in Dinalungan and the La Cez Food House won as cleanest and greenest hotel/recreation center and store/food establishment, respectively.

          The provincial tourism office, provincial social welfare and development office and the provincial cooperative office stood out as best office implementer of the ESWMP (without compound category) while the provincial veterinary office and the provincial empowerment and advancement center for employment won in the with compound category.

          The best utility ESWMP implementers were Rhealyn Santelises, Evelyn Samonte, Eufemia Bonifacio, Felicidad Hampit, Ronnel Gelen Dumandal, Jefferson Caruluan and Wengard Quisote.

          Special awards were also handed out to Dinalungan Mayor Tito Tubigan (most environment-friendly mayor), Dinalungan environment and natural resources office (most environment-friendly municipal office), Umiray ES (small elementary), Ditumabo ES (big elementary) and Canili NHS (high school) as most environment-friendly schools and the members of the Provincial Task Force Sagip Kalikasan (PTFSK).     

          For this year’s search, the provincial government gave out a total of P331,000 worth of cash prizes and plaques.       

          This year’s GPLK search committee was composed of Department of Interior and Local Governments provincial director Renato Bernardino, De Luna, Josephine Leander, Cristina dela Cruz, Domingo Gonzales Jr., Rosanna Querijero, Myrna Adeva, Geroldo Custodio, Melchito Romero, Sherylle Bernadette Natividad, Rommel Lombres, Roderic Torre and Andrew Catipon.  

          The awarding rites were graced by Department of Environment and Natural Resources provincial environment and natural resources officer Benjamin Mina, Land Transportation Office chief Renato Macalisang, Aurora Department of Education Superintendent of Schools Dr. Teresa Mababa among others.  (Manny Galvez)