On December 14, Shell Club15’s Christmas Party, the hard-working Secretariat members were swarmed by enthusiastic attendees long before the opening at 7am.
Members were excited to see friends and colleagues. The number of guests was around 500, with spouses in attendance.
Our usual crowd-drawer was the team of Atty. Rubin Cura and Vic Pascual – who call themselves the Pogi brothers. This duo is not only well-versed in quipping jokes but they’re also fantastic singers! Their advantage over any other professional hosts is that they know the audience.
As has been the practice, the day started with holy mass, presided by our “resident priest”, Fr. Paolo Pirlo, now a certified Shell Club15 member.
The message of CH Baste Quiniones was “Volunteerism Keeps Shell Club15 Alive”. He reiterated this with a quotation by Winston Churchill – “We make a living by what we get, but we make a life by what we give.” As in previous events, Baste stressed that everyone is called to contribute not only money but talent. As if to answer the call, our Shell Tabangao ladies showed their talents and wowed the crowd with two dance numbers.
The Michael Cuneta Band kept the audience entertained by their songs. His dance instructors lured dance-lovers to the dance floor.
It could have been just another Christmas party. However, Shell Club15’s 2019 Christmas party was so very special because we were to honor a man whose legacy we will long remember. The theme of the 2019 Christmas party was “Denims are Forever” (Walang Kupas). The theme was chosen to underline our honoree’s unfading record of excellence – from the time he graduated from Civil Engineering in UP to a Master’s degree in Structural Engineering at Lehigh University in Pennsylvania, USA to numerous awards in the field of corporate management, socio-civic activities, finance and service to the country. What stands out in his long list of achievements was his being the first Filipino to be awarded as Honorary Officer of the Order of British Empire (OBE) by Queen Elizabeth II in 1991.
It was a challenge to tell the story of Mr. Cesar Augusto Buenaventura, since photos were not enough to show his many accomplishments. I then asked first Filipina sand artist, Monica Regalario, to do the honor of telling the story of the first Shell Filipino president who served a term of 15 years.
The 15-minute script was written by Chairman, Terry Valladores. Monica was directed to portray not only the accomplishments of CAB but, more importantly, our honoree’s concern for the country, the underprivileged members of society and the environment, guided by Shell’s time-honored business principles of honesty and integrity. Cathy Azanza-Dy, who is also a December 18 birthday celebrant like CAB did the narration.
Though the surprise number by Pinky Marquez-Cancio did not materialize due to the hospitalization of CAB’s friend, Bert Marquez (also a Shell retiree), the Palawan State University choir (winner of many international awards) were quick to cover the gap. The song aptly mirrors the life of CAB – a song popularized by Whitney Houston – One Moment in Time.
CAB@90 remains strong in mind and body. His speech and boogie number were very much applauded by the audience.
To honor CAB, four CEOs were present – CH Cesar Romero, Oscar Reyes, Eli Santiago, and Ed Chua.
After the tribute, CH Cesar Romero, delivered his Christmas message and briefed the participants on the remarkable performance of Shell In retail and the consumer sectors.
Before the celebration ended, SC15 President Sam de Guzman informed members of the 2020 line-up of events. He urged all present to keep the communication lines going through their feedback to guide the officers in packaging events and programs.
You may watch the video of The Tribute to CAB@90, the Christmas party and photos of the event at our website – shellclub15.com.
Wishing everyone blessings of health and wealth in 2020.
Mila C. Azanza