Halls Inside The Walls Of PMA
Inside the walls of Philippine Military
Academy are halls full of history. Most of these are untold. It will be a very
good experience for anyone visiting PMA to unfold the stories behind these
halls. As you go along the avenues inside PMA, you can feel the nostalgia by
just looking through the designs and reading inscriptions posted on the walls
of these historic halls. The data for
the following halls were lifted from the records of PMA Corps Publication
and PMA Scribe written by Cadet
Calusor, a member of PMA Class of 2017.
The
Administration Building was named after General Vicente P Lim, the first
Filipino to graduate in West Point and the Commanding General of the 41st
Infantry Division of the Philippine Army. The building houses the office of the
Superintendent and his staff. It was constructed through the committed efforts
of Brigadier General Arturo T Enrile, Rear Admiral Virgilio Q. Marcelo and
Major General Rodolfo S. Estrellado during their incumbencies as Superintendent
of PMA. It was inaugurated on 17 September 1994 by the AFP Chief of Staff,
General Arturo T Enrile.
MELCHOR HALL
Melchor
Hall, the Academic building was inaugurated on May 24, 1950 in honor of Col.
Alejandro Melchor, the first Academic Department Head. Melchor hall currently
houses the different model classrooms of the Academy, the Speech Laboratories,
Computer Laboratories and the Lecture Halls. The top floor used to be a Cadet
Clubroom until it was renovated into an Officers Lounge in 1986. This hall
stands as the symbol of a great institution whose members will always be proud
of.
YAP HALL
Yap
Hall, designated on September 15, 1959 to serve as the cadet mess hall, was
named in honor of Captain Conrado D Yap, Class 1943, in recognition of his
intrepidity, gallantry, valor and sacrifice for the cause of democracy in
Yultong, Korea. Recently, Yap Hall was renovated in the year 2016 and other
features were added that adds life to its atmosphere. Chandeliers were
installed as additional lightings, brick stones were used as decorative to the
OC’s porch and the surrounding walls and glasses that depict cadet’s life were
scattered all throughout the hall.
JURADO
HALL
Jurado
Hall, completed on May 15, 1953, was named after Major Enrique L. Jurado, member
of PMA class of 1938 who is the first Master of the Sword and the first Head of
Department of Physical Education. This is the Sports Gymnasium of PMA and
houses the Department of Physical Education. Together with the swimming pool
that is built in 1962 and PRTC (Progressive Resistance Training Complex)
formerly called Cunanan Hall built in 1959, the whole area is called the
Athletic complex with Jurado Hall as the center. At the present, it is situated
behind the rampart that holds PMA’s three most important values-Courage,
Integrity, and Loyalty.
LOPEZ HALL OF LEADERS
The
Lopez Hall of Leaders is dedicated to the past, present and future cadets of
PMA by the Lopez Group Foundation, Inc. as an act of commitment to leadership,
excellence and passion for selfless service to the Filipino People. The hall
stands as an enduring legacy of the Lopez family’s devotion of being one of the
academy’s stakeholders. Nowadays, Lopez hall is used in various activities of
the corps like class meetings, guest lecturing, seminars, hops and other cadet
functions.
If you want to see more whats inside the walls of PMA, discover it. For sure you will have more than you have expected . There are more halls inside the walls.
REFERENCES:
-CALUSOR MS,
(2016, December 19), Personal Interview
-PMA
Corps Board and Staff, (Photographer). (2016,December 19), PMA Scenic Views, Retrieved form Academy Scribe and PMA Corps
Board records
