Shrine of the Brown Madonna 33rd anniversary kicks off Silahis ng Pasko

 BEHIND THE SCENES

Alfred Dizon

(This week’s piece is by the Baguio City government information office) 

TUBA, Benguet – The 33rd anniversary celebration of the Shrine of the Brown Madonna on Oct. 27 officially kicked off  the 46th year of the Silahis ng Pasko, which will be staged this year sans its Santa Claus, Narciso Padilla.

                A mass, native rituals marked the special day as it will also honor Padilla, who died last March 3 after a massive heart attack. He was 87 years old.

The shrine at Km. 7 Asin Road in sitio Pacac of Barangay Tadiangan here is a tourism area and place of worship.

Padilla, a former Baguio councilor and tourism officer, started developing the area in 1986 and was opened to the public in October of that year after having the 12 foot statue of the Virgin Mary inside the 50 foot deep cavern that is about 35 feet high and 28 feet across.

By sheer “labor of love”, said son Fritz Gerald, the late Padilla built a casing with stained glasses, a Santo Nino accompanied the statue, as well as an altar, candle stands, concrete benches for 60 people, cemented aisle, a 10 foot steel gate and a 20 foot entry paved with bricks.

The entrance has also concrete benches as well as a landscaped garden where a marker has been placed.

At the entrance, a marker was placed in Dec. 16, 1990 to celebrate those who helped in the rescue of victims after the July 16, 1990 earthquake.

The younger Padilla has for two weeks refurbished, cleaned and painted the statue and fixtures within the shrine for the October 27 celebration of the shrine, just four days off the birthday of his late father.

The 50-year old Padilla said the shrine will be venue of several of the Silahis ng Pasko events which will take off on December 1 that will also start the city’s Enchanting Christmas in Baguio celebration.

The Children’s Mardi Gras will see more than 4,000 pre-school learners garbed in Christmas attire in a parade. It is staged in coordination with the City Social Welfare and Development Office.

On December 7, the OCSWADO will select the Lucky Christmas Family, an indigent family who will be given a Christmas package and will be guest during the mass of Immaculate Conception on December 8 at the Shrine.

A special Olympics for the blind and paraplegic and concert are slated  on December 15.  The Lucky Christmas Baby will be selected on December 25 and New Year Baby on January 1 at the Baguio General Hospital.

On Dec. 30, the TALA for elderlies and KISLAP awards for the outstanding athletes will be staged at a hotel yet to be identified.

“               We are introducing improvements like staging the awards at a hotel instead of the Sunshine Park to protect our awardees from rain and cold,” the young Padilla said. Last year, rains did not stop the late Padilla from staging the event at the park with awardees that included national artist Ben Cabrera and chess GM Eugene Torre as guest.

               Calling it SNP – Legacy, the younger Padilla said he will not let what his late father has worked so hard to establish and sustain that left him at times penniless.

“I found out that he only had P11 to his name in his bank and the money he used to get from my siblings were withdrawn during the SNP programs,” said the young Padilla.

“He died literally penniless,” he added.

The younger Padilla will be donning the Santa costume in most of the events or a Manila-based nephew who is bigger and heftier.

“We will continue his works, while also adding new ones but first we have to get things moving,” added the security consultant.