Adelaido A. Bayot Memorial School, Inc.

Host School of Blessed Teresa Language
and Education Consultancy Services:
Adelaido A. Bayot
Memorial School, Inc.

Enrolment starts on April 10.
Classes start on April 23.

It was Holy Wednesday, April 4, 2012. My sister-in-law, Mrs. Luz A. Cochingco, and I walked half a block to the Adelaido A. Bayot Memorial School, Inc. on J.P. Laurel Street, Nasugbu, Batangas. We had a 10:00 a.m. appointment with Mrs. Sharon Bayot-Padilla, the school principal.

Mrs. Padilla had asked me the day before to prepare a draft contract for the short-term rental by Bl. Teresa Lang-Ed Consultancy of a classroom at A.A. Bayot Memorial School. I was hoping to launch the language education consultancy by way of summer classes on speech and written communication.

Would Mrs. Padilla and Mrs. Lea Bayot-Solano, the school's finance officer, sign my draft contract? How much would they charge for the duration of the summer classes? Would I be able to afford it?

The day before, they said they didn't know how much to charge me, if at all, because they'd never rented out a classroom to anyone. Actually, I wasn't sure how our meeting would go.

After reading the draft contract for a few minutes, Mrs. Padilla said, "Let's sign it now."

Mrs. Solano said the management of A. A. Bayot Memorial School had agreed to charge me a certain amount. She told me, "If that amount is fine with you, then let's sign the contract now."

I said yes.

Mrs. Padilla wrote the amount on the blank in the draft contract, then signed the two copies. I signed next, then Mrs. Solano and my sister-in-law signed as witnesses.

Mrs. Padilla said she'd like to join Blessed Teresa's teaching team for Summer 2012 and Mrs. Solano said she'd enrol her children. They exhorted me and my sister-in-law to hang tarpaulin banners and to distribute flyers immediately.

We shook hands and said goodbye very warmly.

See you all at Bayot Memorial School starting on Tuesday, April 10. I'll be around to advise students on which course to enrol. Also, I'll be mentoring the teaching team .

By the way, there are free orientation talks for students and parents. I'll give you the schedule in another post.

See you all soon!

Blessed Teresa Language and Education Consultancy Services

Blessed Teresa
Language and Education Consultancy Services

What's in a name? Specifically a business name?

After 10 years (2000 - 2010) as an OFW in Taiwan and in Singapore, I have come home for good. In fact, I've been home for a year. My immediate plan was to organize a language and education consultancy while teaching part-time in a mainstream school.

I sent in an application to several schools which offered me part-time teaching stints. To my great surprise and delight, my former school, De La Salle University-Manila, offered me a one-year full-time teaching position at the Department of English and Applied Linguistics. It was too good to refuse.

Now that I'm 60 and 'retired' from the hustle-bustle of university life, I decided to go ahead with my plan of putting up my own language and education consultancy. The first step was to register a business name so that I can have a legal personality.

And so on Monday, February 20, 2012, I went to the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) office in Trece Martires City, Cavite. The waiting and processing time took two hours. But the wait was worth it because when I left the DTI office, I already had with me my business name certificate!

And my business name is Blessed Teresa Language and Education Consultancy Services.

It was not my first choice. It was a name I made up while waiting for my turn. I thought my first choice was the best. But it was too popular and too many businesses already carry similar versions. So it was disapproved. My second choice was similarly too popular and was also disapproved.

Musing upon my new business name, it dawned on me that it has been inspired by the Holy Spirit. I had never thought of it at all while brainstorming all sorts of business names. And I had been brainstorming for years.

I still don't fully understand the implications of my business name. I do know that Blessed Teresa, known as Mother Teresa of Calcutta while she was alive, lived her life as a flickering flame in the wind. She kept the flame lighted so that those who were in the dark might feel the love of Christ.