By Joseph B.A. Marzan
The University of San Agustin (USA) inaugurated two improvements to its campus in General Luna Street, Iloilo City on Wednesday, March 1, that will add symbolisms of its core values and increase its non-core revenues.
The first was the unveiling of the pelican mosaic in front of the Urdaneta Hall, with University President Fr. Frederick C. Comendador and other Augustinian priests observing the installation of its eye.
The mosaic was made of granite and basalt tiles and was designed by University Archives and Museum director Fr. Dominador Besares.
Besares said the mosaic “gives face” to the three Augustinian core values of “Unitas” (Unity), “Caritas” (Charity), and “Veritas” (Truth).
He added that the ceremonial installation of the mosaic’s “eye” was meant to “give life” to his work.
“Legend has it that the mother pelican wounded her side to treat her young in order to survive, and later on the mother pelican died. I think that is the most ultimate way of giving charity, of giving life to others. According to St. Augustine [of Hippo], the roots of our fruits are our works, and overall above is charity,” said Fr. Besares.
“I spent my Christmas and New Year doing this design. There is a lesson that I have learned in doing this, to have that ‘pelican effect’ on our lives. So, whatever you are doing, whatever endeavor you are in, even when you are working with faces, or anything, you would really have that ‘pelican effect’. A lot of people would think when they see this work, ‘Masyado ka uti, (It’s very intricate)’ but uti, when done, is that pelican effect,” he added.
The mosaic unveiling was followed by the blessing of the new lobby of the College of Pharmacy and Medical Technology, which also houses the university’s latest business offering, Café SanAg.
Non-Core and Allied Business Operations (NCABO) Director, Fray Stephen Ong Tan, said the new café was inspired by a conversation with some Augustinian priests in another café in Iloilo City.
He described the café as a venue not just for gatherings, but a place where “fearful” students can calm down as they journey into and within the university.
“This café venue is not just an ordinary coffee shop. It’s where we start the venue in the encounter of our students, students who feared their dream, feared to enter [the] electronic turnstiles, fears of what the future will begin. Therefore, to give venue to converge and cool down their thoughts[,] feelings[,] and body, Café SanAg will be their venue,” Tan explained.
“[Café SanAg] is where we express our Caritas [charity], where what happens in the coffee shop, we share our blessings, we share our discoveries, we share our learnings, we share everything. But along the educational process, we also share our difficulties, our challenges, our tribulations in life that can be answered by our educational endeavors, therefore Café SanAg will listen,” he added.
Leolette Hubag, Assistant Director of the university’s Philanthropic, External, and Alumni Relations (PEAR) also mentioned that donors to the further improvement of the CPMT building may merit having the rooms named after them.
These events were coincidental with USA’s University Week, which also celebrates its 70th anniversary as a university, from March 1, 1953, the first tertiary institution with university status in the Western Visayas region.
