Special Feature

Faith, Fire, & A Decade of Dreams: The Story of BCI Marikina

Deryn Theone L. Hipe | March 30, 2025

Ten years ago, BCI Marikina was just a vision—a dream fueled by faith and perseverance. Today, that dream has grown into something greater than anyone imagined.

 

On February 26, 2025, the BCI Marikina community received its biggest news yet—the move to a new campus. Shouts of joy erupted from the students as they had a glimpse into their new home: a five-storey building with a basketball court and a spacious yard, located only five minutes away from their current campus.

 

This milestone also marks a new chapter for BCI—a chance for the school to widen its horizons, expand its opportunities, and innovate new ways to uphold its mission: to nurture and inspire learners to be the best versions of themselves as God wants them to be.

 

However, for the school’s founders, Rev. Raul Caguin and Mrs. Concepcion Caguin, this achievement is more than just growth; it is a realization of fervent prayers, unwavering dreams, and dedicated service.

 

Humble beginnings

 

Although BCI was only established 10 years ago, the concept had been formed decades earlier.

 

“The idea of a Christian education ministry first came up when I needed to uproot my family to be with me for a long-term foreign banking assignment in Vietnam during the late 1990s. My two older daughters were just finishing college, and my two younger boys were just in their elementary levels. And even though God had graciously allowed them to enroll in [an] international school, over the years we realize[d] how critical Christian character and values should be inculcated in their early education,” said Rev. Caguin.

 

“Looking back at the providential acts of God in our lives, I believe the key factors that further inspired our vision for a Christian education are His divine plan to put our family [in] a place where we will really see the need for a Christian education to be made available during early childhood  and His gracious preparation for our family to get involved in the discipling ministry of a newly formed church.”

 

“Over the past decade, this vision evolved in a major heart decision of our family to focus on engaging in Christian Education and its allied undertaking as a ministry calling, individually and as a family,” he added.

 

Around two decades after its ideation, the Caguins finally established BCI Marikina in the year 2015 amidst challenges and struggles, welcoming an estimated 250 students with 60% being transferees from the school that the family previously managed. For the founders, this was purely an act of God’s grace.

“We fully believed BCI Marikina was established by God—we were only willing instruments. When the school/church leaders of the former school we were managing decided to take over its operations in June 2014, many school parents were telling us that they were willing to transfer to where we will be going. We knew even at the time the difficulties in starting a new one. However, God opened the way for us to even start operating the year after,” they shared.

 

Reflecting on their journey in school management, Rev. Caguin recognized the importance of embracing each individual’s gifts to work together in their shared calling.

 

“When our family resolved to heed God’s call to our family to pursue Christian Education as a ministry,” Rev. Caguin said, “part of our commitment to one another is to embrace the unique gifts and talents which Christ has apportioned to each member of our family and to properly steward those gifts for the common good.  We have our own ups and downs in this area, due to our individual human frailties, but we continue to strive to live by this principle day by day.”

 

“Every success or failure in our endeavor is shared by all, and God always gets the glory,” he concluded.

 

Faith-filled journey

 

From the very beginning, faith was not just a guiding principle for the family—it was the foundation of their journey and the rock that kept them steadfast amidst challenges.

 

When asked about the biggest challenge of BCI Marikina, Rev. and Mrs. Caguin replied, “We believe the single biggest challenge year-to-year is to be able to deliver the best quality education to every one of our students within the tight space/facility they can be accommodated. Through fervent faith-based prayer, God provided added land space and later extension facilities when we need[ed] them most, at a negotiated price we can afford. He is truly a prayer-answering God!”

With financial and space-related issues having been a constant in the school’s first decade, the founders emphasized the dependence they had on God’s grace.

 

“During all those times, we remain fully reliant on the grace of God for everything. This is evident to our school community because we are transparent to them in this area. When the going gets rough and when we’re at the end of the rope, God always bailed us out. Always. He’s been doing that for 10 years now,” they shared.

 

However, no challenge tested their faith and resilience like the COVID-19 pandemic. As schools worldwide faced uncertainty, BCI Marikina had to navigate uncharted territory while holding firm to its goal. Yet, the school still found silver linings in the dark clouds of the pandemic.

 

“I can honestly say today that [the] COVID-19 pandemic was the most faith-stretching four years in BCI Marikina. But, as we completely rely on God’s sovereignty,” Rev. Caguin reflected,  “this season turned out to be God’s perfect timing to promote uniquely upgraded and polished Christian learning delivery modes called Berean Onsite (BOS), Berean Online (BOL), and Berean Homeschool (BHS), together with the various learning delivery apps and modules addressing the various online needs of the families during many times of disruptions in learning deliveries.”

 

As BCI Marikina celebrates a decade of faith and grace, Rev. and Mrs. Caguin reflect on the school’s journey: one filled with trials, perseverance, and God’s unwavering provision. Looking back, they recall how a single Bible verse became a guiding reminder of their mission.

 

“On our first year anniversary of BCI Marikina, we chose this verse in Isaiah 40:31 as our theme verse: ‘..they who wait for the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint.’ Going through the first decade is such a challenging task that has put so much strain to the management and staff of the school.”

 

Despite these difficulties, Rev. and Mrs. Caguin stated that their journey has been a testimony of God’s sustaining grace.

 

They testified, “We can stand today after 10 years, to testify that for every test, for every difficulty, every adversity that we experienced during those years, God’s promise in Isaiah 40:31 is more true than ever. As we wait on God, as we depend fully on Him, He has renewed our strength to go on the next step! Truly a decade of God’s grace alone. In the journey of Faith in Christ alone. Glory to God!”

 

Into the new chapter

 

As BCI Marikina steps into its next chapter, the journey is far from over. With a new campus, new possibilities, and new challenges, one thing remains unchanged—its unwavering faith and commitment to shaping future leaders.

 

“[We pray] that God will continue to uphold His vision for His school and His church to help families develop Godly leaders and our goal to nurture and inspire individuals to be the best versions of themselves, as God wants them to be. Methods and applications may change, but it is our utmost prayer that the succeeding generations will embrace God’s vision, so that our goal will remain,” Rev. and Mrs. Caguin shared.

 

While staying rooted in Christian values, BCI Marikina is also embracing innovation to equip students for the future.

 

“Even as we speak, our children, who are now looking after BCI’s day-to-day operations, are already exploring potential partnerships with current technologies, like Cerebry which is AI-enabled. Our learning approach remains the same. We are Bereans. We are always on the lookout for what’s best there is to offer as God would enable us to according to His plan. As Bereans, we never stop learning new things.”

 

“BCI Marikina remains faithful to God’s Word, the Bible. We believe God’s Holy Scripture is infallible and inerrant and any other source of data or information must pass under the scrutiny of and is subservient to the Bible,” they added.

 

Through every challenge and triumph, BCI Marikina has remained steadfast in its calling—to provide an education that is both academically excellent and spiritually grounded. As the school steps into its next decade, one thing is certain: its foundation is firm, its mission is clear, and its faith is unshaken.

 

For Rev. and Mrs. Caguin, this truth has guided every step of their journey.

 

“BCI Marikina exists only for the Glory of God. He established it. He sustains it. For His ultimate glory and honor. From God. By God. For God.”