Ateneo de Davao University (AdDU) has offered full scholarships up to college for the six siblings of the late basketball player Rene Clert “Bobet” Baterbonia, who died in a drowning incident during an Ateneo de Manila University team-building activity in Aurora.
The announcement was made by AdDU president Fr. Karel San Juan after the 6 p.m. Mass on Saturday at the Christ the King Chapel of Ateneo de Davao University Senior High School-Bangkal Campus, where Baterbonia’s wake is being held.
San Juan said the scholarship fulfills one of Baterbonia’s dreams of helping his family through education.
“Isa sa mga pangarap ni Bobet ay matutupad. Yung pangarap na nagdala sa kanya sa Maynila at iwan ang kanyang pamilya rito sa Davao,” San Juan said.
He said all six of Baterbonia’s siblings would receive scholarships from AdDU, adding that other Ateneo institutions, including Xavier University in Cagayan de Oro, are also ready to extend assistance.
According to San Juan, Baterbonia’s parents preferred that the children study in Davao because it is closer to their hometown in Agusan del Sur.
“Kahit na sobrang lungkot natin dahil wala na siya, bubuhayin po natin si Bobet sa pamamagitan ng pangarap niya para sa kanyang mga minamahal sa buhay,” he said.
The announcement drew applause from mourners gathered at the chapel despite the rainy weather.
During the Mass, Fr. Eric Anthony Escandor remembered Baterbonia as a young man whose passion for basketball defined him.
“Bobet lived the maxim ‘mens sana in corpore sano,’ sound mind in a sound body, in his own beautiful and unmistakably unique way,” Escandor said.
He noted that while academics were not Baterbonia’s strongest suit, he came alive whenever he stepped onto the basketball court.
“Bobet was a young man whose mind came fully alive the moment a basketball was in his hand,” Escandor added, urging the faithful to celebrate not only his passing but also the life he lived and the people he touched.
Meanwhile, lawyers representing the Baterbonia family said an apology alone is insufficient and called on Ateneo de Manila University to provide a detailed account of the events surrounding the fatal incident in Aurora.
Atty. Israelito Torreon said the family seeks answers regarding the sequence of events, the safety measures in place during the activity, and the circumstances that led to Baterbonia and another student-athlete, Divine Ugochukwu, drowning.
Torreon also called for a formal acknowledgment of institutional responsibility and urged the university to extend proactive and unconditional support to the victims’ families.
Investigations by the National Bureau of Investigation and the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group are ongoing.
The CIDG earlier said it had issued subpoenas to players and coaching staff who attended the team-building activity and had identified persons of interest in the case.
Sunday marks the final day of the public viewing for Baterbonia’s remains before they are brought to his hometown of Talacogon, Agusan del Sur.
