Pagtama, who joined MMSU in 1983 as a casual employee, has, on several occasions, returned lost items ranging from wallets containing thousands of pesos to calculators and watches.

One of the students Pagtama has helped is Alyn John Soriano, a fifth year electronics and communications engineering student, who lost his wallet containing Php 5,000, an amount he borrowed from a student loan facility so he can pay his tuition fee. Pagtama saw the wallet in a classroom he was cleaning, and immediately submitted it to the Dean’s Office.

A high school undergraduate, Pagtama, says his decision to return lost items comes easy. He says that, as a parent, he knows how difficult it is to send one’s children to school. All of his three daughters—Sheryll, Leizl, and Rubielyn—are graduates of MMSU. Leizl took up BSBA-Management and is now working in a company based in Metro Manila. Sheryll and Rubielyn finished civil engineering and are now employed in a construction firm in Quezon City.

A few months ago, this writer published in The Ilocos Times and in a blog (www.riknakem.wordpress.com) the article, \"Pitaka ng pag-asa: Isang pagpupugay kay Leoncio Pagtama at sa lahat ng tulad niya.\" Almost 20,000 Internet users have viewed the article, many of them asking for more information about their newfound hero.

In the Internet, Google searches for \"Mga Pilipinong nakagawa ng kabutihan sa kapwa\",  \"Mga Pilipinong nagsauli ng pera o gamit\", \"Larawan ng kagandahang ugali ng mga Pilipino\", or \"Mga tapat na tao sa Pilipinas\" yield results that point to Pagtama, who turned 52 last Sept. 12.

With the Philippines being considered as one of the most corrupt economies in Asia, Filipinos seem to search for a ray of hope for this benighted land by looking for individuals who chose virtue over greed even in times of great personal need.

Mary Jane, a blog visitor, left a comment, \"Congratulations, Mang Leoncio Pagtama..Thank you..! You make us proud to be Ilocano…Sana madami pang Leoncio Pagtama ang maipanganak sa mundo.\"

Diana Jean, a blog visitor from the Visayas, thus remarked, \"Despite the crisis, may mga tao pa ring mabubuti ang kalooban. I’m proud that an Ilocano is now in the roster of honest persons. Mahirap man ang buhay, di pa rin siya nasilaw sa pera. That’s what Ilocanos are.\"

Emie of Canada, is surprised to know that \"there are still people who exist like Mr. Leoncio.\" Hoping that that all people in government will replicate Pagtama’s good deeds, she wrote, \"I’m proud of you. It only shows that despite the financial crisis, Filipinos still possess the value of honesty. GO PINOY. Itaguyod niyo lahi natin… Ipakita natin sa buong mundo kung sino talaga tayo!\"

Prior to his joining MMSU, Pagtama, a resident of Brgy. Baligat, Batac, was a full-time farmer. He continues to tend his small farm during weekends.