The Inauguration of Marie Serendipity Aeta School, 2008
Click here for Peter's moving description of his trip to the Inauguration of Marie Serendipity school. A pictorial description of the day is shown below.
2008 inauguration of Marie Sernedipity School Visit to Marie Serendipity school stuck in the mud traveling to volcanoe site
Here is Alain Antonio, Vice-President of EVACF; Dr Ramos of NCIP RIII; teachers; local representatives of NCIP; and Joe, our local police captain accompanying us. Joe told Peter where the church, school, clinic, road, and a bridge had been before 1991, now completely buried under in the lahar field. We have loaded up our Japanese weapon carrier from 1940s with food and school supplies and are ready to take off from Botolan, Eastern Zambales. Peter with a grateful Botolan Mayor Rogelio Yap. He had requested NCIP RIII for the Aeta school.  NCIP then requested EVACF which responded and built their 41st school, the very one we were on our way to officially open and hand over to the locals for their own maintenance. Now it was time to shift into 4 wheel drive. We were approaching the lahar river which we crossed no less than 12 times. The worst, longest, and deepest crossing was the first one going up. Going down late in a dark and cold evening, we were to walk for 3 kilometers through this crossing since it was decided that at night time it is not a good idea to get stuck in a vehicle in the lahar flows.
lahar flows in action stuck in lahar flows perhaps a bullock cart would hve been better carabao in its natural habitat
Two American weapon carriers from the 1980s were also part of our convoy. Happy young man helped with putting metal grids under the wheels so the wheels could get a better grip in the muddy flows of the lahar flow from Mount Pinatubo. Now we were really stuck. It took us about 5.5 hours to get to the Aeta village, a trip that should have taken 1.5 hour. Anyhow, no one complained. We were glad that we finally were going to hand over the school which had been ready since November 2007. Being pulled by a Carabao bull is a more appropriate way of traveling than going by a vehicle,  but normally a slower alternative. Carabao is how the villagers around Mount Pinatubo transport their goods, bringing vegetables and wild rice down to Botolan City and tools and cement up to their remote homes. Sometimes they need a rest!
EVACF helping indigenous peoples in volcanoe region of philippines EVACF building schools for indigenous villages in teh shdow of mount pinatubo volcano
We are happy that we managed the most dangerous, longest, and deepest crossing. Time for rest stop for us as well.

Alain and Peter with some of the 78 school children who through the joint efforts of NCIP and EVACF now had a fine school building.

 The proud school children are showing Peter their new school. This is one of the two class rooms and two toilets the school has.
evacf volunteers building schools for aeta children the aeta children perform a dance in celebration of their school opening Signing the school open for aeta children eva charity foundation supplying school bags to indigenous children
Now it was time for Peter to help the village elder man to go around the school and bless it by throwing rice from a coconut shell.

The boys performed very nice traditional Aeta dances to some quite modern music played on a cassette player powered by a small generator.

Signing over the school to the local village administration. The boys got blue rug sacks with educational materials. The girls got some more colorful ones. Suddenly there were more than 78 schoolchildren. Also children barely being able to walk lined up for rug sacks. Anyhow, you are never to young or old to start your education.
marie serendipity evacf school for aeta children Here we are with the official document giving the school to the Aeta villagers to look after. The school is the best building centrally located in the village with 150 households and about 1,000 persons. It is also used for offical meetings and social gatherings. Now it was time to return back to Manila. It took us 24 hours to get to the Aeta village and back to Manila. It was well worth it.