REV. LUIS DANIEL ALBA PANTOJA 

Dann's academic journey at Febias College (B.A., 1979), at the Asian Center, University of the Philippines (M.A., 1982), his 20 years' work as an international Christian ministry leader, and his theological reconstruction years at the Vancouver School of Theology, University of British Columbia (Th.M., 2002) made him aware that genuine peace is cosmic—that is, harmony with the Creator, harmony with one's Being, harmony with Others, and harmony with the Creation.  His current passion is to help multiply effective, cross-cultural peace-building leaders in the context of 21st century realities.  He does his leadership mentoring while actually doing field work.

Dann is our Founding President and Chief Executive Officer.

Asked what fuels his excitement and positive outlook in life despite the negative stuff happening around him:  It's the positive influence of Jesus—a 1st century Palestinian carpenter who was executed by the imperial power of his time.  He said: "Whoever tries to keep his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life will preserve it."  He defied death—the ultimate negative factor in our cosmos.

daniel@peacebuilderscommunity.org

JOJI FELICITAS BAUTISTA-PANTOJA 

Joji's initial training was in Food Service Administration from the University of Santo Tomas (B.Sc., 1979).  She also studied International Relations at the Asian Center, University of the Philippines.  She moved to Canada in 1986 and since then developed a successful career in the investment and financial industry.  After 20 years, she decided to return to the Philippines, realizing that a sustainable economic development is crucial to our people's search for just-peace.  She believes that genuine, effective peace advocacy must be economically-sustainable.

Joji is our EVP for Global Partnership Development and Livelihood Training Specialist.

Asked why she left her career in Vancouver, Canada for Mindanao: I can't imagine having a summary of my life printed on my tombstone as: "Spent her life managing rich people's money."  I want to be remembered as: "A person who walked with the people as they find dignity through sustainable economic development."

joji@peacebuilderscommunity.org

BENNETTE GRACE TENECIO 

With her master's degree in Clinical Psychology, Benette has various experiences working with children. She was once a SPED teacher, a freelance psychometrician in a Family Court in Quezon City, and a member of an organization working with children at risk.  Bennette has been living and working in Manila for more than 15 years.  Now, she has decided to serve in Mindanao where she was born, the place she considers home.

She is our Director of Support Operations, Trauma Healing Specialist and 
University Peace and Reconciliation Team Organizer (PARTO).

Asked about her motivation for returning to Mindanao, she said:  My heart goes out for the people in Mindanao especially the victims of armed conflicts—children and youth alike. May the Lord extend his arms through me, to let them know that they are not alone in their struggles, that they are loved by the Heavenly Father, the God of peace...

bennette@peacebuilderscommunity.org

KRIZ CRUZADO 

"Kriz is an excellent research staff," commends a professor at the University of the Philippines.  "I would definitely hire her again."  During our first year as a registered non-profit organization, we invited Kriz to help us start a new kind of peace advocacy.  She immediately grasped that what we're building was not just another NGO but more of a salam-shalom community that also does what many NGOs do.  Kriz's creativity helped us develop the two-pronged features of our office system--support operations and field operations.  We consider her as a fellow-pioneer at PeaceBuilders Community.

She's our Acting Director of Field Operations and Extension Education Specialist.

Asked why she joined a small peace-building outfit like us instead of joining a big international NGO:  I think working with PeaceBuilders Community is not just about employment.  It's about learning and growing up spiritually, mentally, socially, culturally and emotionally...

kriz@peacebuilderscommunity.org

DR. SAMUEL C. EVANS 

Dr. Sam was raised in Ozark County in southern Missouri, USA, where he received his calling to become a medical missionary at the age of 14.  In preparation for this, he first studied to become an ordained minister and then attended college and medical school.  He was a Clinical Teacher, Collaborating Physician, and Preceptor for the master's program for the University of Arkansas Medical School (UAMS) Nurse Practitioners, and Adjunct Assistant Professor at the College of Nursing, UAMS, Little Rock, AR.  Before coming to the Philippines in January 2001, he had worked more than 16,000 emergency room hours in addition to his 10 years of experience at his primary care clinic in Arkansas.

Dr. Evans serves as our Medical Director.

Asked about his current journey as a medical missionary in Mindanao:  My educational background and experiences prepared me for providing outreach clinics to places where there is no doctor, but more importantly, my vision and passion is to train local healthcare workers in those remote areas.

docsam@peacebuilderscommunity.org

MEI SOLOCASA 

Mei is a lively, creative and diligent Registered Nurse whose task is to establish and multiply Peace and Reconciliation Teams in Mindanao.  Her PAR Teams will develop a healthcare training in the context of peace-building that will empower people from the grassroots level to use their own resources in responding to their healthcare needs.

She's our Peace Building PARTO in Mindanao and Health Care Training Specialist.

Asked what her dreams are as a PARTO:  My dream is to develop PAR Teams composed of Bangsamoro, Lumad, and Migrant healthcare workers in the conflict areas.  These healthcare workers would be trained to be the front-liners in health education and services for their respective communities.

mei@peacebuilderscommunity.org

DARNELL BARKMAN 

Darnell was our intern whose primary task was to complete his academic papers on Peace Theology.  Most of his materials were gathered from his field experiences including fact finding missions, emergency medical and relief operations, and conflict transformation processes.  He's a wonderful, relational, culturally-flexible person.  He's a budding peace-building leader.

He's our Canadian Volunteer Coordinator

Asked what is his prayer for Christians in the middle of this war-torn global reality: My prayer is that the members of the Church of Jesus Christ will be full of scripture and committed to acting out the commands of Jesus.  I pray that we will live lives of active, indiscriminate love for all people of all ethnicity, religion and age.  All of the laws, all of the prophets and all of the New Testament hang on the command to love all people.

darnell@peacebuilderscommunity.org

CHRISTINA BARTEL BARKMAN 

Christina started as an intern doing Peace Education.  When our leadership team read her reports and reflections about her experiences in the field, we appointed her as our Acting Communications Coordinator.  She has learned to articulate the historical context and the socio-political dynamics of the conflict in Mindanao.  Her writing is well-received by key leaders among the peace-building advocates in our network.  Christina has been doing a great job!

She's now our Global Communications Coordinator

Asked how she sees her role at PeaceBuilders Community:  PBCI is not just a Mindanao peace movement, but a global one.  I want to help bring international awareness to the Mindanao conflict and support the people affected by the war through advocacy on a global scale.

christina@peacebuilderscommunity.org

REGINA MONDEZ 

Reg grew up in a Filipino Mennonite community and has been dreaming of becoming a Christian worker using her training in Development Communications from the University of the Philippines in Los Banos (2010).  She was exposed to the disaster response team-building of PeaceBuilders Community during the floods caused by Typhoon Ondoy in September 2009.  Her application and training process with PBCI include the blessing of her parents and of her home church through a commissioning service.

She's our Church Resourcing PARTO Trainee in Luzon and Development Communications Specialist.

Asked about her vision for Luzon:  My vision is to communicate the message of peace (harmony with God, harmony with the self, harmony with others, and harmony with the creation) to assist in the development of the individual potentials of pastors, youth leaders, and the students of Central Luzon State University.

regina@peacebuilderscommunity.org

ARJAY FREG BALABAG 

Arjay started as a barista at the Coffee for Peace when it was still under the management of Peacebuilders Community.  He began showing his competency in analyzing data and graphic arts.  The people in our Support Operations Team gave him a six-month trial period as a technical assistant.  Arjay has won the trust and confidence of PBCI's field workers and volunteers because of his growing efficiency and work ethic.

He's our Technical Support Staff.

Asked how he sees his role at PBCI:  I see my role here as an ordinary and quiet person who wants to make an extraordinary impact in the livelihood of my family, the welfare of my community, and the peace of my larger society.

arjay@peacebuilderscommunity.org

CONNECT WITH OUR STRATEGIC ADVISERS

THE HON. DATU KHARIS M. BARAGUIR, SR.

Datu Kharis was the first elected Vice Governor of the Province of Maguindanao.  He is a devout Muslim and a respected elder coming from the Maguindanao's traditional leadership family.  He is a man of peace whom we look up to as our adopted father.

Datu Kharis is our Strategic Adviser, Bangsamoro Historical Narrative and Culture.

Asked what motivates him to work with a Christian peacebuilding community like us:  Islam is a religion of peace (salam). It is consistent with Islamic teaching to be friends and co-workers of the People of the Book who truly practice the ethical principles of their faith.  I am a Muslim member of Peacebuilders Community.

datukharis@peacebuilderscommunity.org

USTADZ ABDULKADIR ABUBAKAR

Ustadz Abdulkadir is the Executive Director of the Bangsamoro Development and Resource Center (BDRC), our partner in Values Enhancement Training (VET) among the Islamic leaders around the Ligawasan Marsh.  He is also the Chairperson of the Bangsamoro Secretariat, Mindanao People's Peace Movement (MPPM).

Ustadz Abdulkadir is our Strategic Adviser, Islamic Values.

Asked about the importance of the Values Enhancement Training (VET) in the context of Mindanao: The unbearable situation due to constant war gave birth to the Values Enhancement Training program. The continuous war heightened the biases and prejudices between Muslims and Christians in Mindanao. This grim and morbid scenario of war leads to the theoretical framework of first VET to delve on the Muslim-Christian Dialogue.  VET provides space for wider understanding, analyzing and interpreting the tenets of Islam and exerts positive and harmonious relationship between Muslims and Christians especially in the conflict affected communities.

abdulkadir@peacebuilderscommunity.org

AIZ MARIE SANTIAGO 

Aiz graduated last April 2008 from the University of the Philippines—Diliman Campus with a bachelor’s degree in Political Science.  She worked with us as a Field Researcher.  Aiz immersed herself in a Bangsamoro community to pilot a year-long research for Ginis, a fair-trade handweaving program of the Maguindanaoan women that aims at reviving the Maguindanao culture through arts and crafts.

She now serves as our Public Relations Volunteer—Metro Manila.

Asked about why she chose Peacebuilders Community for this voluntary assignment:  For me, working for PBCI would be a very valuable learning experience.  It’s a great opportunity to gain firsthand experience in peacebuilding in Mindanao and the Philippines as a whole.

aiz@peacebuilderscommunity.org

MARIA MULLENS-BURGESS 

Maria graduated from Oxford University with a degree in History and Economics.  We enjoyed the time when she first worked in our office as a Trauma Healing Program Assistant.  We enjoyed her cross-cultural skills.  She adapted well to our way of accomplishing things within the context of harmonious relationships.

She now serves as our Public Relations Volunteer—United Kingdom.

Asked what she expects to gain while working with our community:  I'm very lucky to have this opportunity to work at PBCI.  I know there's a lot for me to learn here about human communication and interaction, about different cultures and about sustainable conflict resolution.

maria@peacebuilderscommunity.org