WHERE ARE THEY NOW? Fernando M. Garces

Fred at the Fuente Towers, Club Ultima in Cebu City. He is passionate about sharing his Christian faith and spiritually guiding other people especially children. Now involved in aquaculture, Fred also deeply cares about the environment and ecological balance. Pristine beaches on Mactan Island in Cebu and Panglao Island in Bohol.

FERNANDO (FRED) DEL MAR GARCES divides his time between Lapu-Lapu City (Mactan Island, Cebu) and Bohol where he hails from. Lapu-Lapu City occupies most of Mactan Island, just one kilometer southeast from Cebu City. After obtaining his D.V.M. from the University of the Philippines College of Veterinary Medicine, Fred worked in veterinary pharmaceutical marketing (both active and technical sales) for Eli Lilly and Company, Motivated Marketing Co. (MOMARCO), and Life Resources for several years. Fred is now involved in aquaculture business. He is engaged in prawn and milkfish (bangus) farming, and exports prawns to Japan. Fred also helps local farmers by selling veterinary pharmaceuticals directly to them. An avid supporter of environmental and ecological causes, Fred plants mahogany seedlings in his land in the lush and verdant island of Bohol. This effort is in keeping with the reforestation program in the region, evidenced by the thousands of mahogany trees that make up the “man-made forest” along the road that leads to Chocolate Hills. Although Fred had been enthusiastic about things of God since his college days, it was years later when he found his true calling in Christian evangelism and church planting through the Christ is Coming Ministry, a fast-growing Christian group in the Philippines. In 1986, he became an ordained pastor in Bohol. He finds joy in building a church which he calls “Prayer House” in his home province. His ministry includes spiritually teaching and nurturing about 40 children, 3-12 years of age every Saturday at his church. He has attended believers’ conventions including the one involving the Kenneth Copeland Ministries that was held in Brisbane, Australia. Fred considers being a pastor a fulltime ministry and has dedicated his life to serving God, helping others and sharing his faith.

IN MEMORIAM Teresita Hernandez-Sollano

Tess with classmates at the UPCVM in their freshman year in 1975, commencement in 1979, a small reunion in Manila in 2002, and the 25th anniversary reunion in Los Banos in 2004. One of the angel figurines that Tess gave away as gifts to her classmates during the 2004 reunion. Her children Katherine, Salvatore, Jr. and Michael together with some of the batchmates who went to the wake and celebrate Tess' life .

TERESITA (TESS) MARQUES HERNANDEZ-SOLLANO passed away on January 9, 2007 following her brave battle with breast cancer. She was 52. A single parent for many years after the demise of her husband Salvatore Sollano in 1995, Tess contributed to the financial resources for students of the University of the Philippines College of Veterinary Medicine. The Dr. Teresita Marques Hernandez-Sollano Veterinary Student Loan Grant provides funding for the educational needs of deserving veterinary students at her alma mater. She successfully led and managed the Aqua Technologies Inc., a company that provides water treatment equipment, service and supplies including filter housing, UV water sterilizer, chlorinators, water softeners, iron removals, ozonators, sulphur/nitrate removal, water filters, and reverse osmosis. Her faith, courage, generosity, positive outlook and profound attraction to concerns of the soul inspired many of her peers. Known to have a penchant for angels that she believed have always watched over her, Tess is finally brought home by her angels. Tess is survived by her beautiful children Katherine, 19, Salvatore, Jr., 17, and Michael, 15, and her brothers Vic, Jesus, Gabriel, Dominador, Baldomero and Rudy.

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In addition to text messages that many of us received from Tess, she posted email messages in our yahoogroup sometime in June 2006. Below are segments from a couple of email messages that reflect her passion, commitment and her faith:

“Next year I plan to help a mayor in one of the islands in Aklan to set up a water system and a retirement village. Please help promote our country to gain revenues by promoting our country's tourist spots for our old kababayans to spend the rest of their precious time here. Help us in this project. Thanks a lot.”

“Thank you and thank you and thank you. God heard all your powerful prayers. I'm just for HIM alone for the rest of my life.”