—June 5. Expected Start of Half-Unit Intensive CPE. Six weeks total time.
—June 10. Webinar series on Servant Leadership continues
—June 15. Commissioning for CPE Summer Intensive. To be held at PBTS.
—August 15 (approx.). Beginning of CPE Extended Full Unit.
—August 15 (approx.). Possible start of CPO (Clinical Pastoral Orientation)
Other Updates:
—Our landline number continued to cause problems so we let it go. Our cellphone still works. However, for most situations, it is better to use one of the following:
a. Message us from our FaceBook Bukal Life Care Page.
b. Use the Contact Form from our website (www.bukallifecare.org)
c. Email us at bukallife@gmail.com
—Online CPE. Dr. Lyn Montecastro just completed supervising a CPE last month and is looking to start an online CPE group. Contact us (see the note above) if you have questions.
—CPSP-Philippines Plenary gathering. Hoping we will be hosting this event in October. Hopefully we will have more information next month.
We have recently expanded our chaplaincy work at Baguio General Hospital (BGH), in partnership with KABSAT, and are just starting regular chaplaincy duties at Saint Louis University Sacred Heart Medical Center (SLU Hospital). Supervisor Vo is overseeing this work in conjunction with our three Supervisors-in-Training..
Supervisor Celia and Doc Bob just got back from Palawan celebrating commissioning of Supervisor Lyn’s CPE group. Yesterday, they did their first webinar on Servant Leadership with their CPO training group. These will continue monthly for the next few months.
Moving into June, here are a few things to look forward to:
JUNE 15. Commissioning of our trainees for Summer Intensive CPE. It is planned to be at 10am with Ptr. Mike Dizon (a CPE alumnus) to provide the inspirational address.
LATE JUNE. Tentatively, we hope to have a Half Unit Intensive CPE held supervised by Supervisor Vo.
MID-AUGUST. We plan to have our next CPE batch starting at that time. It is not certain yet if it will be Intensive or Extended. This will be run by our CPE SITs, with oversight of Supervisor Vo or Supervisor Celia (or both).
MID-AUGUST. We are planning to hold Clinical Pastoral Orientation (CPO) in partnership with Philippine Baptist Theological Seminary (PBTS) and led by Supervisor Celia.
As always, we are flexible and open to new opportunities and change. Feel free to contact us at bukallife@gmail.com if you have any questions.
Dr. Lyn Montecastro’s CPE batch completed their unit, and held commissioning at Faith Baptist Church in Quezon, Palawan.
Dr. Bob Munson joined the celebration, as did Chaplain Celia Munson who acted as the inspirational speaker. Earlier we all went to Villa Esperanza Hardin for rest and refreshment.
We are blessed to have a door open to serve at Saint Louis University Sacred Heart Medical Center. In a few days our chaplains will start serving there, working with Fr Embry, the head chaplain of the hospital. The formal MOU is being worked on with signing coming soon.
We believe this is a great new opportunity for our chaplains, our chaplain trainees, and for the patients and staff of SLU Hospital.
Chaplains, Maricel, Vo, Celia, and Crista…. with Bob (administrator at Bukal)… and Dr. Quitaquit, hospital administrator, and Fr Embry, hospital chaplain.
SLU Hospital Foundation Day. It was great for the team to be invited.
Themed Floors at the Hospital during the Foundation Day Open House
On Monday, May 1, 2023, KABSAT, a holistic ministry organization based in Baguio City, held its first anniversary celebration. As a major partner of KABSAT, we have been working with them in counseling patients at Baguio General Hospital Cancer Center. We are thankful to KABSAT for the group’s focus on caring for the needy in Baguio.
Realized suddenly that we have not updated our brochure in about five years. We did not make major changes— just replaced the things that are no longer true, with things that are.
April 15, 2023 the Philippine Mental Health Association (PMHA) Cordillera Chapter held its seventh Family Support Group (FSG) session. In the spirit of the season of Lent, the theme of the FSG session focused on “spiritual wellness”. Mr. Fritz Gerald M. Melodi attended the session as resource speaker and spoke on “Shame, Vulnerability, and the Psalms”. The presentation centered on how vulnerability, as taught by the Psalmists, contains potential to mend the controlling power of shame. After the presentation, attendees shared their experiences and reflection on the presentation. The theme of spiritual wellness is part of PMHA’s thrust of holistic care for mental health. The session was attended by educators, mental health practitioners, and family members of individuals with mental health concerns. PMHA holds monthly FSG sessions mainly for psychosocial support of individuals who provide care for family members with mental health challenges.
Chaplain Fritz Melodi with Staff members of the Local Chapter of Philippine Mental Health Association
Crisis Care Training
The Para sa Bata/Kabataan Project is a partner of ours in Baguio and is holding a training in Crisis Care Training April 28-29. This is being organized by one of our CPE trainees and pray it will be a valuable activity for all participants. The Venue is still to be determined (at the time of this posting).
CPE Training
Our Summer Intensive CPE, with 9 trainees, and 3 supervisors-in-training is in full swing. It will finish in early June. Late June we hope to start a half unit intensive unit of CPE in Baguio. If you have any questions, contact us at bukallife@gmail.com.
Other News
— In late April, Bob and Celia Munson will be back in Baguio after several months in the United States. They were able to attend the CPSP Plenary in Virginia Beach, VA March 12-14. Supervisor Vo was also in the US for a shorter trip but is back to work in Baguio now.
— Dr. Lyn Montecastro, formerly of Bukal, but now forming her own CPE training center in Cebu City, is holding a commissioning service in mid-May.
— Chaplain Renato Eustaquio, another graduate of Bukal, just held a CPE graduation in Bocaue on April 15.
Bob Munson, the administrator of Bukal Life Care, recently met Robert Charles Powell and based on their conversations decided to read and review some of Powell’s writings.
He started with a classic. This is the book that Powell originally wrote almost 50 years ago regarding the history of the Clinical Pastoral Movement. The review can be read by clicking below:
Our CPE team (Summer Intensive) was able to join with our partner, KABSAT, to be trained in LIFT. This is a training for working in a palliative care setting. It was led by Lalaine Cerdeno-Clark, who works with Ruth Foundation. We are thankful for the help in our training.
Bukal Life Care 