UV Chorale concert to raise funds for church in Oslob

The University of the Visayas Chorale will be holding a concert in SM Cinema One on May 24 to raise funds for the restoration of the Oslob Church which was gutted by a fire last March 27.

Dubbed “Bulawanong Dalit alang sa Oslob”, the concert’s proceeds will be turned over to the parish for the restoration and rebuilding of the church.

The fire in the church was started by faulty electrical wiring, said the Oslob Fire Department.

The fire allegedly began in the room of the parish priest, Fr. Valentino Gemelo, located on the second floor of the convent, which was adjacent to the church.

No people were hurt or killed in the fire but the 13 cats and kittens adopted by Gemelo perished.

About P2 million worth of property inside the convent went up in smoke but church officials could not place any value on the 19th-century structures and antique furniture destroyed in the fire.

Reverend Msgr. Joseph Tan, the archdiocesan economic officer, said the moment Cebu Archbishop Ricardo Cardinal Vidal heard that the Oslob Parish burned, he then thought of ways on how to rebuild it. 

He decided to create a committee to coordinate with the people from the Oslob Parish on what to do about the remains of the parish and on the reconstruction.

The people of the Oslob parish conducted an assembly that was attended by the presidents of the different chapels.  They created a Committee on Church Construction/Reconstruction to initiate ways to generate the needed income. 

As one of UV’s efforts to extend help to the needy, its Executive Vice President Jose Gullas offered the services of the UV Chorale to the Oslob parish through the Cebu Archdiocese as one way of expressing their gratitude for all the blessings that they have received.

Atty. Pat Acabodillo of UV said that the proceeds will be personally turned over by Gullas on June while the UV Chorale will regale residents of Oslob with a mini-concert.

The UV Chorale has competed in different local and international competitions, the most recent of which was the November 2007 Busan Choral Festival Competition in Busan, South Korea, where the group won silver and bronze medals in both the ethnic and classical categories respectively.

Tickets for the May 24 concert can be bought at the Archbishop’s Palace.  — Rizzi Ann Cerera, UP Tacloban intern/BRP