The Gullas Family, builders of UV, my beloved alma mater

This year, the University of the Visayas, founded by the great Don Vicente A. Gullas, is celebrating its 100th anniversary. And we, the alumni, hundreds of thousands of us, from all over the world, are coming home, to pay homage to the institution that molded our character and prepared us for all of life's many challenges and opportunities. UV is already a family for us. It is where we learned the fundamentals of life. It is where we imbibed the many positive values that helped us succeed amidst too many odds and paradoxes that came our way. It is where we learned how to value our family, respect our elders, obey the laws and love our country. UV helped mold our character, guide us in our outlook in life, and gave us inspiration and moral and ethical guidance.

The founder of our beloved institution, Don Vicente Arandia Gullas was the true and lasting example of the values of vision, mission, and the values of determination, hard work, excellent human relations, and passion for education and learning. From practically nothing, Don Vicente founded the Visayan Institute, which, by his sheer sacrifices and persevering work, patience and commitment, earned the distinction to have been the first educational institution in the whole of Cebu City and Cebu Province to have been conferred the status of a university. Don Vicente was a lawyer, a writer, but most of all, an educator, who was the first to believe that education is the key that would transform a life of poverty, ignorance, and hopelessness to a life of success and happiness.

Don Vicente A. Gullas was lucky to have a brother, Don Paulino A. Gullas, who was a Bar topnotcher and an excellent writer, journalist, and visionary. He founded the Gullas Law School, with his elder brother, Don Vicente, and also The FREEMAN. But the more significant blessing to Don Vicente was having been married to Lady Josefina Rivera Gullas, whose family helped Don Vicente put up the wherewithal for the founding of the Visayan Institute. I met the grand lady personally, and I saw in her my own mother, very frugal, hardworking, and very honest, loving and warm, compassionate and kind, and who treated the UV students as her own sons and daughters. She allowed students to take exams even with promissory notes. UV is for education, not for business.

The greatest blessings from the pioneering sacrifices of Don Vicente and Lady Josefina are the children; Gliceria, Inday Sering Gullas Lucero; and the best Cebu governor we ever had, and first district congressman (the only one who beat Tony Cuenco), the founding father of Talisay City, the honorable Eddie R. Gullas; and of course, our beloved The FREEMAN chairman, Dr. Jose “Dodong” Gullas, patron of the arts and music and religious pillar in the Archdiocese of Cebu. Their children, the grandchildren of Don Vicente are now managing UV. It is indeed very inspiring to be among the UV alumni and to be associated with a family whose names are synonymous with integrity, compassion for the poor, and a passion for education.

In my own life story, the Gullas Family occupies a very important chapter. The Gullases are my models and my inspirations to be good, to be true, and to be godly. If I have to go back in time, I would really choose to be in UV again.