ShareThisA California-based singing group will hold a concert on September 11, 2011 at the Living Water Community Church (LWCC) in Bolingbrook to benefit homeless youth and students in the southwest Chicagoland communities of Bolingbrook and Romeoville. The award-winning group that calls itself “The Mizpah Quartet” was formed by young men in their early twenties in 1963 in Manila, Philippines. The foursome went on their separate ways after their last concert at the Cultural Center of the Philippines in January 1971. But fate brought them all to California where they reunited in 2008 and continued their life’s mission of singing the gospel together.
The concert, called One Voice, is being hosted by the Living in the Word Ministry (LWM), a Filipino American church under the LWCC. It serves as the kick-off event for the launching of a big fundraising project being undertaken by Emerging Life Solutions (ELS), a non-profit organization dedicated to the creation of housing and life-balancing opportunities for homeless students of local school districts. ELS was founded by Rev. Chrystal Hansen of LWCC. She is a board member of the Valley View school district. The mayors and other concerned officials of the villages of Bolingbrook and Romeoville are expected to attend the concert.
The Mizpah Quartet members are Romy Dinglas, Reuben Barruel, Benjamin Barruel, and Jose “Pepeng” Candelaria. Romy committed his life to serve the Lord Jesus with his singing voice in 1961. His family persecuted him because of his new-found faith. He did not fight back, but instead prayed for their salvation. God answered his prayers, he asserts. Both his father and his older brother who used to punch him accepted Christ as Savior and became pastors. Reuben was born with a love for music. He decided to use his singing voice to proclaim God’s message. He relinquished his profession as a chemist and became a full time pastor and singing evangelist. Reuben’s ministry brought him to many countries in Asia, North America and Europe. Benjamin, brother of Reuben, went to Manila to represent Central Visayas in the National Grand Finals of Tawag ng Tanghalan in 1962. Reuben invited him to a revival meeting at the Manila Bethel Temple in that same year which eventually led him to do full time ministry of sharing the gospel through singing and preaching the Word of God. He has ministered in the Philippines, Asian countries, and North America. Peping is a preacher’s son who has been singing in the choir all his childhood years. He was invited to join the Mizpah Trio to provide the bass voice which gave birth to the name Mizpah Quartet. His addition to the group gave a better blending.
Why “Mizpah?” The quartet explains that the word “Mizpah” is from Genesis 31:49 which reads: “…the Lord keeps watch between you and me when we are away from each other.” They said that the name Mizpah is meant to be a testimony of God’s safekeeping between the four of them after they each went on their separate ways to raise their own families. “Peping” left the Philippines for Canada in 1971 to marry Vicky, a Filipina nurse. Romy was hired by Far East Broadcasting Company, a Christian radio station in Manila. He organized the Papuri (praise) musical ministry and became known as the “Father of Papuri.” He migrated to the U.S. with his family in 1992. Reuben married Clarita and pastored a church for six years in the Philippines before migrating to California in 1977. Benjamin married Carmelita and pioneered a church in the Philippines until he migrated to the U.S. in 1988. Peping and Romy reside in Southern California while the Barruel brothers found homes in Northern California. But their passion to minister through music has never left them. Despite the distance, they decided to reunite as Mizpah Quartet “in humble recognition of God’s protection and preservation of their voices and lives.” Now in their golden years, they all vowed to spend the remaining years of their lives to be a blessing to both Christians and non-Christians alike. They have fully embraced the great commission: “Go into all the world and preach / sing the gospel to all creation.”
Tickets to the concert are priced at $20 (general admission); $50 (for 4 front row seats); and $10 (for students and seniors 65 and up). Living in the Word Ministry is pastored by Rev. Noni Abad Santos. Ministry coordinators are Edith and Tony Amante. For more information about the concert and LWM, please call Edith’s cell at 630-742-21661; Tony at 630-202-9824; and Pastor Noni at 209-242-4356. For information on the project, you may log in to www.emerginglifesolutions.com or call ELS at 630-805-0547. For info on LWCC you may log in to www.lwccil.org or call 630-759-5799.