Note: This is second feature article in the series.If you are counting, three of our founding members were or had been presidents of recognized SU alumni chapters in the US. One of them is Bayani E Pioquinto. We call him Pol. If The Rev Dr Frank Somera is the divine counselor and Sammy Tomale is the finance guru, I could ascribe Pol as the structural engineer of our group - you know - structure, protocols, procedures, policies, by-laws - he is our go-to-guy in these matters.
Altho' a pure Ilonggo gid in terms of his roots, yet he is vernacularly more Cebuano kaayo, don't you think? He was a martial law Sillimanian - that is, he entered Silliman during that year the infamous dictatorship was proclaimed. Being a Sillimanian during mid 70's - he must be down the hill already, as you can imagine. His Silliman years were very eventful indeed. Not to mention that he met his life partner there, it was also during his time, as a BBA student, that they (CBA) "invaded" and converted the memorable Oriental Hall as their College of Business Administration building. He was a Faurot-trained Men's Glee Club member - a distinct honor indeed because it was a very select group. In fact, his glee club singing experiences are no doubt reasons for his penchant for church choir singing - where he is still actively involved. Way to go, Pol!!! He graduated in 1976 with a bachelor degree in business management. Not contented, he took further studies at UP-Cebu and got his Masters degree. After school, he had a short stint working with National Steel Corporation (NSC) in Iligan City. Transferred to Dole Philippines, Inc. in Polomolok, South Cotabato and spent more than 2 years there working as a Job Analyst. He later joined the Atlas Consolidated Mining and Development Corp (ACMDC) in Lutopan, Toledo City from 1979 to1986 and held such positions as: Procedures Analyst, Management Specialist, and Compensation/Personnel Specialist.
AYK, Pol is married to fellow Sillimanian Haydee Velez (BSN '76 -- currently working as a Nurse at the Veterans Administration Medical Center in San Antonio, TX). They have 2 girls -- Sarah Jo (2007 graduate from the University of Texas in Austin) and Janice Mae (currently a student at the University of Texas in San Antonio).
Pol's journey to Texas was through the heart of wife Haydee then on to Miami, Florida, Northern Virginia and then to the Metro Washington, D.C. area where they lived and worked for over 12 years. To be closer to Haydee's sister Hannah (another Silliman alumna), they decided to move to San Antonio, TX in June of 2000. However, Pol recently moved back to the DC area again to accept a federal position with the National Technical Information Service of the U.S. Department of Commerce. He comes home to San Antonio during long holiday breaks -- he is thus our roving ACTS member.
Aside from being an active member of a church choir, Bayani is also involved in organizations like the masonry. He is a member of the Springfield Lodge #217 Ancient Free and Accepted Masons (Life Member), Springfield, VA; C. W. Anderson Lodge #1413 AF&AM, San Antonio, TX; Valley of Alexandria, Orient of Virginia Scottish Rite, and the D.C. Travelers (organization of Filipino Masons in the Washington, D.C. area).
As an alumnus of Silliman, he served as Past Vice President (Virginia) and Past President of the SUAA of the National Capital Region (Washington, D.C., Maryland and Virginia). DYK that he was the original signatory of the Stony Point Agreement (1998) that paved the way for the creation of the SUACONA? Currently, he is a member of the SUAANCR and PRO of the recently organized Association of Central Texas Sillimanians (ACTS).
Kind of a dual citizen, huh? The ACTS is certainly blessed to have Pol and Haydee as founding members!!!
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