San Fabian. In a meeting by the members of the Parish Pastoral Council of the Parish of St. Fabian, Pope and Martyr, held last 20 May 2009, Wednesday at the Parish Rectory Hall, the PPC identified and resolved to finish the following projects, in line with the Vicariate III celebration of the solemnity of Christ the King in which the parish is the host: the repair of the Parish Rectory Roof and the construction of a covered pathway which will link the parish church, the parish center and the Mt. Carmel Chapel.
The parish rectory was destroyed during the bombings by the American forces in the battle to liberate the Philippines from the Japanese forces. In a short article about the history of the Parish of St. Fabian, Msgr. Rafael S. Magno, Jr, a f
ormer parish priest of San Fabian, wrote: “The naval bombardments during the American-Japanese war for liberation in the early days of January 1945 significantly damaged the church and practically destroyed the convent; the bell tower crumbled in ruins.” (click here for the full article).
In 2003, after almost 58 years after the destruction of the belfry in 1945, the bell tower was fully restored. The restoration of the belfry was the project decided upon by the PPC when the Parish of St. Fabian hosted the Vicariate III celebration of Christ the King in 2003. The PPC would like to continue the full restoration of the church and the convent with the repair of the convent roof as it hosts once again the vicariate celebration of Christ the King.
The convent roof had been in disrepair for a while. After its destruction in 1945, the convent was repaired. But the roof that was in place was not in the design and structure before it was destroyed by the bombs. In 2008, during the onslaught of Typhoon Cosme, the convent roof was blown away by the strong winds. Hopefully, when the PPC undertakes the repair of the roof, its original design will be restored. Engr. Santiago Alhambra together with his committee members will supervise the repair of the convent roof. Since 1955, Engr. Santiago Alhambra, one of the parish lay leaders, does much of the planning and the supervision work of the parish projects.
