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By Narayan Mitra
AFTER a 26-year career with Telus, Willy Ulanday felt it was time to take early
retirement and devote his remaining energetic years to serving his Lord.
Ulanday, an immigrant from the Philippines, has lived and raised his family of
three children in Kamloops for 41 years. His wife, Felicia, has taught school
there.
With the prospect of an empty nest, Willy said the couple found an irresistible
calling: to “do the simple tasks of helping native Filipino missionaries” with their own hands and their personal savings.
Even before retiring, they were making annual trips to their home country at
their own expense, often taking with them such useful items as a generator and
auto parts, equipment that national missionaries could ill afford to buy
locally.
“Our first stop was in Cebu City in 1991, helping build the Suran Evangelical
Free Church.”
Every October, when they left for their six-month trips, their baggage was full
of supplies for national Christian workers. They took very few personal
belongings. Each of the annual trips have cost them $10,000.
Along with son Victor, they were part of a 1997 Canadian working team
constructing a dormitory building for the Evangelical Theological College of
the Philippines, also in Cebu.
“Upon retiring in 1999, we visited the poor and the homeless people in a
sub-division at Rizal near Manila. Poverty breed crimes. It was our joy to
spread the good news of Jesus among the slum dwellers, and even to help the
local church in formalizing weddings of many couples living together.”
A brief association with Abbotsford-based Manna Ministries took them to the
island of Palawan, where Manna runs orphanages and a Bible school. Willy and
Felicia volunteered to support two Bible school students until their
graduation.
Like most Filipinos, the missionaries are heavy users of water transport. The
Ulandays have outfitted a 21-foot mission boat with a motor, provided part of
the food ration for the school students, and even supplied fish finders so that
proceeds of fish caught and sold could support mission projects.
Ulanday spent one season doing direct evangelism with New Tribes Mission
workers. He climbed mountains with them to visit unreached tribes whose dialect
he didn’t understand.
But he found it easy to give away the love of God to the “people of the hills,” by distributing Bible pamphlets.
Overseas Missionary Fellowship (OMF) has been another group which has been the
recipient of his behind-the-scenes service. He is earnest in seeing national missionaries stand on their own feet and expand God’s kingdom in the Philippines.
Willy’s servant-like demeanour impressed a relative so much that he donated a piece of
property to OMF, which would house workers living with their families. Some of
the buildings on this property on Palawan are to be used to house single
mothers.
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Ulanday’s transdenominational outlook has endeared him to evangelicals across the board.
During 2004 and 2006, he helped with the construction of the Nazarene Church in
Puerto Princesa City, Palawan.
Felicia works alongside her husband, and enjoys teaching kids. She has helped
with women’s conferences.
“I encourage illiterate ladies to learn how to read and, in the process,
introduce them to Jesus,” she said, noting: “Some of them are Muslims, but as friendship develops they trust us enough to
accept the Bible picture books.
“We blend easy with them, and seek to be all things to all. What we take from
Canada we share, as it is better to give than to receive – a teaching legacy derived from my mom.”
To this, Willy added: “My mom was an orphan raised by American missionaries in the Philippines. That’s why I feel for orphans and missionaries. My life mission is to continue to
serve the Lord, as long as he gives me strength.”
Speaking about the dedicated work the Ulandays are doing in the Philippines,
Renata Johnson, missions committee chair of Kamloops Evangelical Free Church,
said: “They are doing an incredible job on their own accord, without expectation of
anyone giving them extra. All they want is that people pray for them.
“Willy hangs out with the rich crowd to lead them to the Lord, so that they can
support their own people. The church prays for them regularly, as updates go
out to a list of about 40 members on a regular basis. We love them to death – and wish them to keep doing what they are doing.”
For more details, call the Ulandays at 250. 376.7691 .
September 2009
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