Immaculate Conception Quasi-Parish
Barangay Concepcion, Arteche, Eastern Samar
Diocese of Borongan
The Immaculate Conception Quasi Parish in Barangay Concepcion, Arteche, Eastern Samar started in 1983 as a mission of the Canossian Congregation. An Italian priest, Fr. Giuseppe Lanzalaco came to the barangay and found it without roads or electricity, with subsistence farming as the only livelihood of the people. While his primary goal was to establish a church, he soon realized the absence of formal education for the youth. The public school only had levels Grade 1 to Grade 3! Beyond that, the children would go the route of their parents, tilling what little land they had. Going out of the barangay for further schooling was out of the question since the nearest school would be a 4-hour river boat ride away.
Fr. Lanzalaco saw education as the only way to break the cycle of poverty, and so he set out on the difficult task of building a school, looking for donors and securing a Dept. of Education permit to operate a school. Initially, he put up Grades 4 to 6, and in 1989 was able to operate a complete high school, the St. Magdalena of Canossa Catholic High School. In its over three decades, the school has produced many professionals. Fr. Lanzalaco was able to send many of his graduates to college in the city through the support of Italian benefactors. But he grew old, got ill and had to return to Italy.
And so in 2012, the mission of the Canossians was turned over to the Diocese of Borongan under Bishop Crispin Varquez. The current parish priest is Fr. Emmanuel Carilla, a native of Eastern Samar. He assumed the position in 2024 and is the fourth parish priest since the turnover from the Canossians. Aside from the pastoral work that is his basic responsibility, Fr. Emman is also tasked with keeping the school going.
Fr. Emman gamely says that being young is a big asset to his work as he has to walk three hours one way to reach some of the chapels in the eight barangays of his parish. Like in many of COPA’s adopted parishes, the chapels are a key resource in the work of evangelization, as the people cannot come to the main church. On weekends, he makes it a point to set out for the chapels right after early morning Mass so he can cover more ground. During these visitations, he administers the sacraments and talks to the different households. These visits also reinforce the lay ministers of the chapel in their tasks such as catechism for the youth and teaching them basics like how to pray.
A bigger challenge for him is sustaining the school. From the very beginning, all students were admitted for free. Currently there are 180 students between Grades 7 and 12. Fr. Emman shares that he recruits teachers who are fresh from college and aside from paying the DOLE-mandated salaries, he provides board and lodging to entice them to teach in a very inaccessible place. It is a constant struggle, and a constant knocking on doors of prospective donors that is keeping the school alive. Fr. Emman shares that he even goes to the extent of asking for the in-kind Sunday Mass offerings in a prosperous neighboring port town to augment the food rations of his convent as well as the food for his teachers. The parish itself is running on a deficit as the collections cover only half of its bare minimum expenses. COPA’s financial donation is used partly to cover this deficit for expenses such as procuring boots needed to walk through frequent floods, and repairing their boat which is used to reach some barangays along the river.
Nevertheless, the school continues to produce quality graduates, such that last year it was awarded “Most Inspiring Small School” by the Catholic Education Association of the Philippines. Many graduates are able to continue to tertiary education in a tie-up with Caritas Manila. So in this remote little corner of Northeastern Samar, one of the five poorest provinces in the country, hope is very much alive. In the words of Fr. Emman, “Financial problem is just one part of the story. The bigger picture is the necessity to proclaim the message of God to this community.”
Our Lady of the Immaculate Concepcion Quasi-Parish is one of COPA’s adopted parishes under its Adopt-a-Parish Program. This program extends financial assistance to needy parishes all over the country to support them in their evangelization efforts. Since its establishment in 1998, COPA has helped over 600 such parishes and continues to reach out to those needing assistance, as there are over 1,000 parishes in the country whose communities live below the poverty line. If you want to adopt a parish or extend support to COPA in this project, please get in touch with Ludy Barcelona at tel. no. 8842-6369 or visit us at the COPA office at the lower level of St. James Church.
