In remembrance of Pedro Aranas

I was fortunate to have been invited to the celebration of the 100th birthday anniversary of the late Pedro Aranas, a well-known Industrial Arts educator in Dumaguete City. Many well-placed residents, relatives and friends from the city and nearby towns, Manila and the United States,  came in full force to honor the memory of the gentle, fun-loving man who valued his God and family above all else.

Pedro was born on Oct. 23, 1912, and attended elementary school in  Camanjac, Dumaguete, in the lovely farm where the family celebrated his birthday with singing and dancing the other day. Pedro, or Tatay Pendoy or Engko or Pete or Don Pedro — names he was called by, obtained his Bachelor of Science in Industrial Education at the Philippine College of Arts and Trades in Manila. He won several scholarships and passed every government exam he took. He then joined the Department of Education as an Industrial Arts instructor. He would become well known as a fine carpenter, using his innate talent and excellent training in math and physics.

Returning to Dumaguete from Manila, his first assignments took him to Siquijor, then to far-flung Vallehermoso where he met and married a beautiful lass, the former Lucila Llenos Matanug of Dumajug, Cebu. 

The couple produced eight children. The eldest, Coleta is a well-known trial lawyer and the first lady City Prosecutor of Dumaguete. The other children, who are retired, are Leonarda, an educator; Gamaliel, a mechanical engineer; Wilhelmina, a pediatric nurse; William, an educator; Blandina, an educator, George, an anesthesiologist in Germany, and Gloria, an obstetrician-gynecologist.

Pedro was appointed Division Industrial Arts supervisor during the regime of President Carlos P. Garcia when the Executive Secretary in Malacanang was Henry Quema, who was close to Pedro’s father-in-law, Vicente R. Matanug of Dumanjug, Cebu. He served in that capacity until he retired from DECS in 1977.

His daughter Colette said her father loved carpentry so much, he imparted this talent not only to his sons but to his daughters as well. So Colet and her sisters learned to fix broken chairs and kitchen cabinets. “Papa should have been called Joseph,” said Colette, but his parents had him baptized as Pedro, not knowing that their son would be a good carpenter, and his talent would catapult him to the top of the construction and furniture business. The Aranas Furniture Shop was quite popular in the city for fine furniture designs in the ’50s and ’60s. Pedro built houses and apartment buildings in Dumaguete, including the house of his principal, Antonio Ascano. When he travelled to the US in 1986 with his daughter Colete, he built a rose garden for his son, Gamaliel and his wife Ching, in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

He was an incurable romantic. Early in 2002, he took a sentimental journey to Vallehermoso, a few towns away from Dumaguete, to visit the garden where he proposed to Lucila Matanug. A few months later, he passed away, joining his wife, who had died five years earlier.

A lover of music, Pedro made his first three kids — Colette, Nards and Gamaliel — to study piano at the music school of St. Paul College. On Saturday mornings, he would sit down beside each one of them for a one-hour practice before proceeding to their piano lessons with Sister Peter.

He loved to dance. He was graceful with the tango, but his preference for the cha-cha made his children call him the “cha-cha prince.” He liked to sing such songs as “Usahay,” “Matud Nila,” “Till,” and Fascination.” These songs were sung at his funeral service. They were also sung by a professional singer at his 100th birthday celebration the other day.

On July 23, 2002, he was in the Intensive Care Unit of Silliman University Medical Foundation. He was in his last hours, and as the last of his children came home from the US to be at his bedside, he suddenly opened his eyes wide, looked and searched into their eyes, as if saying, “Can I go now? May I say my last goodbye?” He then smiled and heaved his last breath. Then he was gone.

The Aranas youngest child, Dr. Gloria (“Bebot”) de Guzman, director of a maternity hospital in Marikina, said that since they had no household help and Mrs. Aranas was teaching in an elementary school, her father would seat her in the front basket of his motor bike and sped away to the Negros Oriental High School where he was teaching. “His classroom became my nursery. I had my own play pen filled with building blocks from the pieces of wood used in his carpentry shop. At times he would carry me and put me on his lap while giving lessons to his students.” Even when Bebot was a medical student, each time she came home, her father would let her sit on his lap.

“Tatay taught us the value of labor and work,” said Bebot. “Every time I came home for the summer break, while my classmates were spending their vacation in Europe, my brother George who was also in medical school, and I were assigned to help in the farm. I helped cook the food of the laborers and George drove the truck to bring the cut sugar cane to the Bais sugar central. After the milling season, there was enough money for our tuition fees.

“Best of all, Tatay taught us the value of education. He would proudly say to his friends that he was able to produce a lawyer, two doctors, an engineer, a nurse and three teachers.”

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The teleseries “Big Love” put this church in a bad light, i.e., of its practicing polygamy. An Elder of the Church of Jesus Christ of the Latter-Day Saints, Michael John V. Teh, told the Bulong Pulungan sa Sofitel audience recently that the church has long outlawed polygamy, and members who still practice it are removed from the roll of membership.

Michael gladly answered questions about the church’s history and beliefs. Founded in 1830 in New York but establishing its headquarters now in Utah, the church has 14 million members worldwide, 6 million of them based in the United States. The church believes in God the Father, Jesus Christ as the Son of God, and in the Holy Spirit. It holds that its members live Christ-like lives, which is why its members are considered Latter-Day Saints. It believes that Jesus died and was resurrected. It considers Mary as the earthly mother of God, but does not worship her, and that Jesus is the only direct intercessor between God and man. It upholds the sanctity of marriage, and it partners with the World Health Organization, the Department of Health and Catholic Relief Services in humanitarian activities.

In the Philippines, the church was established in 1961, and has now a membership of 626,435 members, and 1,121 congregations.

The familiar sight of pairs of young men in clean white shirts and neat ties carrying Bibles going  about teaching about Christ, volunteer their services (not compelled by the church) for two years to countries the church assigns them to go. 

They don’t have a pope, but their hierarchy consists of 12 elders, the oldest of them in terms of years of service becomes their leader. Michael Teh, a volunteer, became an elder of the board of the church in the Philippines. He is married to Grace, another active church member. No woman sits on the Board of Elders.

The word Mormon, which is popularly used to refer to the church, is actually the name of a church historian.

There are two temples in the country and several smaller chapels. The bigger temple is in White Plains, Quezon City serves as the national headquarters. On Dec. 3, a huge Christmas tree in front of the temple is  beautifully lit up — a spectacular sight to see. I must add that another lovely tradition of the church is the music rendered by the Mormon Tabernacle Choir.

The Church is not supporting any political candidate.

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E-mail: dominitorrevillas