On a breezy Saturday morning last week, a group of batch mates from our high school class of 1969 were invited to meet in a familiar setting and share reflections on “How does Don Bosco continue to affect you?”

Hosting us was Don Bosco School of Theology (DBST) President, Rev. Francis Gustilo, SDB. We were classmates in DB Makati in the mid-sixties. He went on to become a priest and head of the Salesians’ Philippine province. We gathered in a small circle at one of the school’s meeting halls. DBST is nestled within a two-hectare campus in Better Living Subdivision in Parañaque that is reachable either from Sucat Road, or from the Bicutan exit of the South Luzon Expressway (SLEX).

We were joined via Zoom by classmates living in Canada and southern California.

Our meeting had three movements: first, listening to each other; second, listening to the Other; and third, responding to the Other. “Other,” of course, refers to God.

The year 2025, according to Fr. Francis, marks the 150th year from the launching of Don Bosco’s first mission to China in 1875 and its outreach from Europe to the rest of the world

Giovanni Melchiorre Bosco was born in Italy’s Piedmont region on Aug. 16,1815 and died on Jan. 31,1888. A follower of the spirituality of St. Francis of Sales’ philosophy, he founded the Salesians of Don Bosco and the Daughters of Mary Help of Christians. It was while working in Turin, a center of industrialization and urbanization, that he was drawn into launching an apostolate for the betterment of streetchildren and other disadvantaged youth.

He developed a unique system of education that emphasized healthy interaction among children and youth through sports, vocational training, daily mass and prayer, and frequent reception of the sacraments of confession and communion. This became known as the preventive system of Salesian education.

Our cohort of Bosconians witnessed and participated in the transformation of our school campus. In our third year, we worked hard to help raise funds for the school’s water system; in our fourth year, a swimming pool was built, also from the proceeds of our min-carnival fair that was held in one of the erstwhile football fields of our campus.

In my early formative years as a Catholic, our family went to church in San Ildefonso Parish along Pasay Road, in barrio Pio del Pilar. My parents enrolled me in Don Bosco Technical Institute which was built on land donated by the Zobel de Ayala family that was bounded by Pasong Tamo and Pasay Road, and along a creek alongside Amorsolo street in San Lorenzo Village.

This Google backgrounder is instructive: “St. John Bosco Parish in Makati was established on March 2, 1976. This was decreed by His Eminence Jaime Cardinal Sin, Archbishop of Manila, to serve the zealous villages of San Lorenzo, Salcedo, Legaspi, and the residents of Barangay Pio del Pilar (Dulo). The Salesians of Don Bosco heeded the call by building the parish church at the DBTI property along Arnaiz Avenue.” Arnaiz Avenue became the new name of Pasay Road from the corner of EDSA and westward until the Makati-Pasay boundary.

Each of us recalled and shared cherished moments of our youth and preadolescent years.

A common theme emerged during the second movement of our reflection. Being shaped and formed by a Salesian education has brought us to a personal relationship with Christ.

According to Manny, God “is the co-pilot of my life.” While encountering hardships, he feels continually encouraged that things will get better. He underlines the primacy of integrity, a sense of wholeness or completeness that comes from knowing that God is ever-present in our lives.

Jun describes it as a “humbling experience” that guided him toward sublimating himself:

“Yung walang ere o pagmamalaki” (shedding off pride).

Butch says he begins and ends his day by talking with God, asking to be enlightened and protected from harm, and being grateful for life’s blessings.

Larry says he is always mindful of God’s presence, sharing that this manifests especially when he’s driving and his concentration is raised to higher levels of alertness.

Dennis, who was my classmate in grades one to four at St. Mary’s Academy in Pasay City and my school mate in DBTI from grade five to fourth year high school, reflects on his being a Bosconian as the basis for his spiritual upliftment, through the daily regime of prayers and Holy Mass. He affirmed that these lifelong guideposts served him in good stead as we went on to study and play for De La Salle in college.

Fr. Francis set the stage for the third movement: responding to the Other, that we realized, involves our need to connect and be immersed in the life of our community, country, and the world. At this point, he connected our earlier reflections with the need for a Christian perspective to better understand the unfolding developments in our world.

After witnessing the severe devastation brought on by Typhoon Yolanda (Haiyan) during his visit to Leyte in January 2015, Pope Francis wrote Laudato Si (Praise Be to You), his second encyclical, in which he addressed economic development issues such as environmental degradation and global warming, and urged “swift and unified global action.”

This call resonated with Fr. Francis. He wondered: who will take care of the earth, our common home? What is God calling us to do? He realized it is our call as human beings to serve as stewards. He coined the word Tecology — the convergence of theology, ecology and economy — as he sought to carve pathways for taking action on the formidable and multi-faceted problems at hand.

First, DBST used solar panels as main electricity source, driving down Meralco’s share to 10 percent. Next came biochar production that turns out charcoal blocks used to cover building roofs. A rainwater collection and filter system was set up at the gymnasium. Hydrophonic walls abound.

What’s our compelling vision?

In the year 2033, we will mark the 2,000th year since Christ’s Ascension. Fr. Francis views this as a vital milestone, and hopes that by then, the global environment would have become substantially healthier and sustainable.