From the farming town of Llanera, Nueva Ecija, 22-year-old Midshipman 1st Class Marc John Castañeto has emerged as the valedictorian of the Philippine Merchant Marine Academy’s (PMMA) Kawal ng Dalampasigan, Liwanag ng Karagatan (“Kadaligtan”) Class of 2025, according to a report by Inquirer.net.
In his valedictory address delivered on Friday, Castañeto paid tribute to the resilience and sacrifices of his parents — his mother, a retired teacher, and his father, a former bus conductor who later worked as a welder and street vendor to keep the family afloat.
“My Mama taught me patience and kindness — the power of words. My Papa taught me grit — how to work with your hands and how to stand tall even when life bends you low,” he said.
Coming from a family with no maritime background, Castañeto admitted feeling like an outsider when he first entered PMMA. “I had no clue about ships or how things worked at sea. I was surrounded by people who spoke like they’d been born on a ship. I wasn’t one of them,” he recalled.
But over time, he came to understand that the academy was not only about seafaring skills but also about leadership. He told his fellow graduates that true leadership was about “standing firm when the waves get wild, staying calm when everything’s shaking, and lifting others when they’re down.”
Castañeto’s journey was marked by academic excellence and determination. A consistent honor student, he once served as a student leader at Llanera National High School and later graduated senior high school as valedictorian at Midway Colleges Inc. in Cabanatuan City. To ease his parents’ financial burden, he joined competitions that offered cash prizes and applied for scholarships, ultimately choosing PMMA because of its free education and the stability it promised.
At PMMA, he represented the academy in local and international events and recently passed the MARINA Officer-in-Charge of an Engineering Watch Examination. He was also selected as a company scholar through PMMA’s partnership with Crossworld Marine Services Inc.
For his outstanding achievements, Castañeto received the Presidential Saber Award, personally conferred by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., who led the commencement rites.
The Kadaligtan Class of 2025 produced 252 graduates under the Bachelor of Science in Marine Transportation and Bachelor of Science in Marine Engineering programs.
