The present St. Raphael Archangel Parish Multi-Purpose Cooperative (SRAP-MPC), a
primary cooperative, started as a lending institution among parishioners within the
parish a couple of years before it was registered with the Cooperative Development
Authority (CDA) on January 26, 1998.
SRAP-MPC responded to the pastoral challenge of Lipa Archdiocesan General Pastoral
Assembly (LAGPAS), which was first convened in April 1996 by His Eminence, Most
Rev. Gaudencio B. Rosales, D.D., and Archbishop Emeritus of Lipa, who saw the
“critical necessity of an apostolic vision for a church in pilgrimage back to the Father.”
Transmitted to the local level as Parish General Pastoral Assembly (PAGPAS) under
the guidance of then Parish Priest, Rev, Fr. Cecilio M. Arce, whose endearing advocacy
to respond to the community’s problem of poverty and ignorance prompted him to
spearhead a parish-based cooperative.

In spite of a number of dilemmas and failures experienced during the first year of
operation, the interim board of directors who came from the rank of several religious
organizations managed to overcome the situation and the rest are now part of its
milestones to wit:
 Prior to formal registration of the cooperative with the Cooperative Development
Authority (CDA) in the year 1998, its initial capitalization was about Forty
Thousand Pesos (Php 40,000.00) , which now reached more than Two Hundred
Fifty Seven Million Pesos (Php 257,000,000.00) due to various programs and

policies adopted by the cooperative, such as intensifying membership campaign,
which in turn increased the cooperative’s loan portfolio and ramifying to other
business ventures. The certificate of registration was granted by the Cooperative Development Authority (CDA) on January 26, 1998 and on March of the same year , the First Annual General Membership Assembly took place and contemporaneously, it opened its Quasi-Banking business to encourage thrift and saving mobilization programs to members, which now reached more than Seventy five Million Pesos (Php 75,000,000.00) deposits from 3,000 members.