The University of the East condoles with the family of one of its renowned alumni, Ms. Teresita “Tisha” Dominguez-Abundo, who passed away last August 13, 2023. She was 74 years old.
Ms. Abundo earned her degree of Bachelor of Science in Education major in Physical Education and minor in Teaching from the UE College of Education in 1971.
Dubbed as the Queen of Volleyball during 1960s and ‘70s, she was the youngest Filipina to become a member of the Philippine National Team when she competed in the 1966 Asian Games in Bangkok, Thailand, at age 17. She played in the Summer Universiade in Tokyo, Japan in 1967, and in the Asian Games anew in 1970, also in Bangkok. She also played in the 1974 Asian Zonal Volleyball Championships in Manila.
In 1969, Ms. Abundo won a Philippine Presidential Award as the Most Outstanding Female National Volleyball Player.
In December 1972, she began teaching under UE’s Department of Physical Education. She would be part of UE’s faculty until 1988. In 1990, she was appointed as the P. E. Director of PSBA.
In 1998, she was appointed by then President Joseph Estrada as Commissioner of the Philippine Sports Commission. It was during her PSC term that she co-founded the National Capital Region Athletic Association, an interschool competition that consisted of 19 educational institutions, as well as the Commission on Higher Education National Games. She also helped establish the Federation of School Sports Association of the Philippines (FESSAP) in 1999.
In addition to these leagues, Ms. Abundo pushed for women-focused advocacies during her term as PSC Commissioner. In 1999, she represented the Philippines in the International Olympic Academy in Athens, Greece, where she delivered a paper on “Women, Sports and Development: Towards Empowerment and Equity in the Philippines.” Among her projects was the first-ever “Palarong Kababaihan” in 2000.
Even after becoming a private citizen in 2001, Ms. Abundo continued to be involved with sports through various fora, even serving as FESSAP’s Vice President for NCR in 2009.
In 2006, on the occasion of UE’s 60th Foundation Anniversary, Ms. Abundo was recognized by the University as one of its Diamond Jubilee Alumni Achievers in the field of Sports.
Ms. Abundo was married to Atty. Mel Paulino Abundo, himself a UE alumnus and a former editor of the Dawn, UE’s student publication, who passed away in 2011. She is survived by her four children: Michael Patrick, Mark Paul, Melvin Peter, and Michelle Pauline.
Rest in peace, Warrior Volleyball Queen and former PSC Commissioner Tisha D. Abundo, and thank you for your warrior contribution to the University and to the country.