MAGALANG, Pampanga –Preparations are thick in this bucolic town that lies on the slopes of the fabled Mt. Arayat as an estimated 75,000 pilgrims or more could flock to the so called “Banal na Bundok” this coming Holy Week.
The Banal na Bundok is Mt. Arayat itself in Barangay Ayala here where life-sized Stations of the Cross were built from its foot at the First Station until the 14th Station which is some 1.6 kilometers towards the summit.
Led by Bing Feliciano and the Soroptimist International of Magalang who spearheaded the project since its inception in 2012, the construction of the 13 Stations of the Cross were finished in time for the observance of the Holy Week last year.
However, some P2.5 million is still needed to finish the 14th Station which is a 35-foot statue of the Risen Christ overlooking the other stations. According to Architect Edward Gallardo, the 35-foot statue will have a concrete foundation and will be made of steel and wrapped in fiberglass materials.
During a planning session held at the Fresh Water Fishing Village in Barangay Ayala here on Monday, Gallardo also said some of the problems which entail a lot of cost are bringing the workers to the site up the mountain as well construction materials.
Department of Tourism (DOT) Regional Director Ronnie Tiotuico said his office has recorded some 75,000 pilgrims last year. For this year, Tiotuico said the DOT Region 3 will offer a “Pilgrim’s Certificate or Diploma” for every visitor which will be sold for P20 to help raise funds for the project as well for the upkeep of the pilgrimage site.
Tiotuico said the certificate or diploma will make a wonderful souvenir just like the ones given to pilgrims in the
Holy Land in Jerusalem.
For his part, Mayor Romulo Pecson acknowledged that generating funds for the project is hard to attain as he encouraged for more donations from the private sector beginning with his own fresh donation of P100,000 from his company Roel’s Food Products and vowed to pour in government help from the resources of the municipality.
Feliciano said Pecson is the first person to donate funds for the construction of the project. She said the construction of the 13 stations cost around P150,000 each. Residents of this town donated the land of the first seven stations while the property from the eighth station up to the 14th is forestry land is owned by the government under the Department of Environment and Natural Resources.
Feliciano recalled that after completing the construction of the 13 stations and partially constructing the 14th, the Soroptimist made the pilgrimage led by their 83-year old chapter president Winda Serrano and made it in about four hours because they are mostly senior citizens and needed to rest and sit from time to time.
She recalled that an unfortunate incident happened when the 14th station was partially destroyed by fire and several weather disturbances prevented its further construction. But she said this year “with God’s grace,” they are set to complete its construction.
