La Loma Chapel's facade conservation will be done by March

In just eight short months, the La Loma Chapel conservation program looks to be completed by month's end.

Begun in June 2021 in partnership between the Diocese of Kalookan and Escuela Taller de Filipinas Foundation, Inc (ETTFI), the conservation program saw the removal of destructive vegetation that's crept up the masonry stones, the rehabilitation and replacement of damaged and deteriorated masonry units; removing the hazards in the cupola, and the repair of the wooden dowel atop the right pilaster.

The project employed 16 graduates of ETTFI, who already has experience and training in masons and other heritage projects of ETTFI, including Malate Church and the ossuary of Paco Park.

“ We are pleased that we are able to deliver our several missions at once; one is that Escuela Taller is being able to contribute to the preservation and conservation of our nation’s cultural assets and then realize our equal aims to keep a dying craft alive while giving employment to our heritage conservation workers and make our projects effective platforms on our advocacy on proper and mindful care of our built heritage," said Jeffrey Cobilla, architect and head of Escuela Taller's conservation team.

According to Fr. Paul Woo, Director of the Diocesan Commission on Cultural Heritage of the Diocese of Kalookan, "more and more people now become appreciative of these signs of faith and history. Though inanimate, these tangible pieces of history are not just structures that show 'antique' features nor are those simply stone-made chapels.”     

La Loma Cemetery was built as a response to environmental and health concerns in the Spanish period. It was completed in 1884 amid the cholera outbreak of 1882.

During the Philippine-American War, the chapel was used as a fort by Filipino fights and was partly shelled by a bomb named Dewey. — LA, GMA News