It was a night of fun, laughter and renewed friendships as the “ Bisaya” retirees trooped together on a busy Friday of 20th December 2019 to our favorite Christmas rendezvous at Laguna Garden at the Ayala Terraces, Cebu Business Park.
A total of around 44++ registered members accompanied by their better halves or for those elderly Senioras with their respective personal chaperones exchanged pleasantries, yuletide greetings with warm hugs and kisses manifesting the good rapport and camaraderie of the club members built in through the years.
I personally coined this year’s theme : Throwback Dekada ’80- Celebrating the Gift of Youth “ . Firstly- because- it was one the most exciting times in our Shell Life Journey- as majority of us in the Visayas Chapter are babyboomers who were just starting to paddle our way into the Shell Corporate World in the ‘80s.
We started the night with a Thanksgiving Mass officiated by our “ suki “ priest celebrant – Fr. Ian Fel Balankig, who is currently the Vice Rector of the San Carlos Seminary College. He aptly captured in his homily the deeper essence of our theme when he said – “by reminiscing the fun times of our Youth, we learn to value and live our present moment like a youthful child in complete surrender to the will of God in our lives.” Ven Lacustales who sang the Responsorial Psalm was the “one man band and choir master” during the mass.
Laguna Garden as usual never failed to satisfy our appetites with their delightful and sumptuous array of food and delicacies . Adding luster to the evening were the music and harmony of the “The Kars “ Trio of Glynnis and Anton who sang and played mellow and danceable tunes of the 80’s. Further warming up the night was the group dancing of” Rico Mambo “ led by sexy KZ and her brother of the Cebu Belly Dance Troupe. Tomas Gutierrez who was celebrating his birthday that same day surprised everyone when he belted out “What a wonderful world “ just like a pro. Also showcasing his family talented genes, Ven Lacustales did a soulful duet with his grandson Vince to the amazement of the audience.
Nobody left empty handed as everyone got a share of the Christmas raffle prizes, cash gifts and other giveaways courtesy of the generous sponsors from the Shell Club- H.O. Major winners among others were Richard Lim for the grand prize, Tito Reyes, Lucille Sanson, Felimon ‘ Jun” Daclan and Leonardo Arpon.
The event was also graced by the presence of Janot Barreto who represented the Shell Club 15 Board and who shared to us the Christmas message of the Board’s Chairman Baste Quiniones . Present likewise was Ms. Roselyn Tomarong – Visayas Retail Manager who preferred to stay on the sides to enjoy and be entertained. She was one of the generous sponsors of additional 1 lechon and 2 boxes of Shell calendars.
Indeed , it was fun to reminisce the times when we were young and vibrant, and that evening proved to be one. Even though some of us are no longer physically energetic yet our youthful spirit and mindset pulled us through up to the late evening.
The successful get together was organized and coordinated by the Visayas Secretariat – led by Ven Lacustales , Rose Reynes , Grace Gador , and Violy Galeos ably assisted by Lucille Sanson, Terry Suico , Suzette Salaveria at the Registration table, Rocky Daclan and Victor Pepito for admin logistics support and Tito Reyes as the Master of Ceremonies.