Gerry, Dinggoy busts unveiled in Roxas City

The Upsilon Sigma Phi and the Upsilon Sigma Phi Alumni Association recently unveiled in Plantanan, Roxas City the busts of former Senator Gerardo Roxas and his son former Capiz Rep. Gerardo "Dinggoy" Roxas Jr.

In simple ceremonies at the Plantanan Park, the University of the Philippines-based fraternity presented the statues to the Roxas family in celebration of Dinggoy's birthday.

At 26, Dinggoy was the youngest member of the House of Representatives in the first post-EDSA Congress in 1987. He would have turned 64 on October 21.

The busts of the late former senator and the late former congressman done by sculptor Priscillano Vicaldo Jr. will be placed in a bigger project by the fraternity—a park with walkways, a circular bench, and a solar-powered water fountain.

The park, which is seen to be incorporated as a planned extension of the Roxas City Museum, will embody the core values the Roxases represented: public service, humility, and a deep sense of duty to the Filipino people.

Gerry Roxas joined the fraternity in 1946, Dinggoy in 1983.

Dinggoy's nephew Paolo Roxas, son of former Senator Mar Roxas; Roxas City Mayor Ronnie Dadivas; and Capiz Rep. Emmanuel Billones thanked the fraternity for the initiative.

Also in attendance were USPAA chairman Roel Castro, UP Alumni Association President Robert Aranton, Illustrious Fellow Franz Legazpi and about thirty Upsilonians from Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao spanning the generation of the 50s to the present. —NB, GMA Integrated News