The Blue Captain
By: Alice Abuzo (IV BS Chemistry)
Bienvenido Avarez Santos, or Bien, didn’t have an exact plan on how he wanted his life to turn out. He did imagine himself working in industry and building a family of his own. But for all he knew, he had a lot of studying to do before he actually got anywhere. He was not one of the lucky people who were born into privileged lives. He came from a poor family and his education, he knew, was his only solid investment.
Early on,
his brilliance was already hard to miss. Not only was he able to top his
class in the race for honors, but he stayed in this position for the rest
of his schooling years. He graduated as valedictorian from Caniogan Elementary
School and from Pasig Catholic College (High School). He was also awarded
a college scholarship by the then National Science Development Board.
Unlike most of his peers, he was one of the few who were interested in the Sciences, particularly Chemistry, and was choosing between taking up Chemical Engineering at U.P. Diliman and Chemistry at the Ateneo de Manila University. Eventually, an added scholarship from Ateneo won him over and he enrolled himself as a BS Chemistry freshman.
Although his early success might say he must have done nothing but study, he firmly believes this was not so. He did have a few things up his sleeve when he was younger, and they were not chemistry books. It was during his college years that he met people who would eventually become his friends for life. Up to now, he still keeps in touch with them (including Fr. Ting Samson, S.J., now President, Xavier University, Cagayan de Oro).
Predictably, in 1972, Bien became magna cum laude and received the Chemistry Award. In 1973, he placed 2nd in the Chemistry Board Exams. After college, he proceeded to take an MS Chemistry degree. He originally planned to finish an MS degree and find a well-paying job in industry, but an ad from Procter & Gamble was the detour sign that plucked him early out of graduate school, perhaps for good.
He is currently a Section Head in Product Development for North America Fabric Conditioners, based in Cincinnati, Ohio. Product Development is a team that oversees the innovation work to create new products or improve existing ones that can form the basis of continued company growth. They identify new consumer needs and then develop new technology and products that best meet these needs. His work has allowed him to do extensive traveling to different parts of the world: Asia, Europe, and the United States. Through this, he was also able to know and experience a diversity of cultures. He was formerly based in India from 1989 to 1991. After that, he was assigned in the U.S., and has stayed there since.
In the midst of the frenzy of his work, his family proves to be his solid anchor. Bien proudly declares that he draws his inspiration and drive from his family. He and his lovely wife, Resurreccion, live together in the U.S., where they also built their home. He met his wife in the Philippines, while she was working for Procter and Gamble, and they got married in 1979. Now, their eldest daughter, Katherine, has already graduated from Harvard University with a BS Chemistry degree, and has plans of going to medical school. Christine, their second, is a junior BS Chemical Engineering student at Stanford University, California. Their youngest, Michael, is still a freshman at Sycamore High School.
A smart person who knew what to do with what he had, Bien could say he is now where he wanted himself to be.
