IT’S A slow-burn romance for Dean Rey Donne Papa and Prof. Donna May Papa of the College of Science — one that started in the halls of research labs in 2002, when Rey was a graduate student while Donna was a teaching assistant.
“Since we became colleagues in the department, we saw each other often. Our workstations were next to each other, so during breaks, we would naturally talk. We also had the same circle of friends, so we spent a lot of time together,” Rey told the Varsitarian.
For years, the two remained colleagues and friends, often finding themselves in the same academic circles.
“I actually called her Ate Donna because she’s three years older than me,” Rey said. “Since she was assisting our professor in the lab, we treated her as a teacher.”
But, as with any great discovery, time allowed their relationship to deepen.
By 2006, both were pursuing their doctorate degrees and became researchers at the Research Center for the Natural and Applied Sciences (RCNAS) — Donna specializing in microbiology and Rey in biology. Rey’s focus was limnology, the study of freshwater ecosystems, while Donna worked on bacteriophages — viruses that target bacteria — as alternatives to antibiotics.
“In a way, we inspired each other to do better,” he said. “We had different research areas, we had separate projects. Still, it helped that we could understand each other’s struggles, whether they were related to research or work.”
By 2007, five years after they first met, their relationship became official. Two years later, in 2009, they tied the knot.
For Donna, their shared love for science became one of the strongest foundations of their relationship. Whenever one became consumed by research, the other was there to provide support.
“Working in the same university did strengthen our relationship as we got to understand each other’s work,” she said. “‘Yon ‘yong advantage of being in the same field and work. It strengthened as we were able to understand each other and support each other.”
“Mas naiintindihan namin ang isa’t isa because we share the same love for science.”
Today, both Rey and Donna are working on separate research grants of P5 million each, both focusing on the diversity of the Cagayan River — one on microbes and phages, the other on fish and plankton.
“We may have different fields but we usually find the common ground. He usually co-authors in some of my papers. We found a common ground where even if we have different working fields we get to work with each other,” Donna said.
Beyond thriving as a couple, they have also excelled individually in their respective careers.
In 2020, Rey was appointed dean of the College of Science and has since taken on major roles outside the university, including chairing the research council of the Protected Area Management Board (PAMB) for the Taal Volcano Protected Landscape and serving as president of the Philippine Society for Freshwater Science.
Donna, meanwhile, has earned prestigious recognition, including being named the 2023 Rosalind Franklin Society Special Awardee for Science.
Their love story, in many ways, is thanks to science. And forget hypotheses — the Papas have proven love is real.
Though their love began in the lab, it was the effort beyond it that allowed it to grow and evolve.
“After 16 years of marriage, I can say that love evolves. The way you express it changes over time, but as long as there’s something that binds you together, you’ll be okay,” Rey said.
