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The Many Meanings of Salu-salo all captured in the evening’s festivities.
treat n. anything that gives pleasure: handog, parangal, handa
gathering n. an assembly, a meeting: pagtitipon
dinner n. evening meal: hapunan, a formal meal in honor of some person or occasion
party n. a group of people doing something together: pangkat, grupo, a social gathering: pagtitipon
Ms. Rose Slotema-Haboc, the Masters of Ceremony for the evening, opened the program by introducing Ms. Diana Oosterbeek-Latoza, Board member, Coordinator and Social Cultural Worker of Bayanihan. Ms. Oosterbeek-Latoza gave a short information on what Bayanihan does and then proudly presented the new working Board of Stichting Bayanihan- the women who are actively lobbying for the rights of Filipinas in the Netherlands.
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Ms. Rose Slotema Haboc, Masters of Ceremony for the evening.
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A Filipino Christmas party will not be complete without the singing of Christmas carols. It is an integral part of the Filipino Christmas tradition. Filipinos love to express the joys of Christmas season through songs like Sa May Bahay Ang Aming Bati (a song traditionally sung to start the caroling), Ang Pasko ay Sumapit and Pasko na Sinta Ko. This year, as a means to raise funds for projects for 2011, a group of talented Bayanihan ladies have gotten together to form the Bayanihan Choir. A timeless collection of carols in English, Tagalog and Dutch were sung. The participants were treated to the melodious voices of Diana, Salome, Veronica, Jac, Zurin, Rose and their musical trainer and conductor, Rochita Loenen-Ruiz.
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The Bayanihan Choir serenading the crowd with their angelic voices.
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To spice up the evening, there were games for children and adults as well as a surprise visit from Santa Clause. The children were told that their names were written on Santa’s “good children” list. As a treat they got a special gift from Santa but true to the Filipino tradition, each child had to do the “mano po” to Santa before getting their present. “Mano po” refers to a physical gesture of taking the hand of an elder and bringing it towards your forehead. This is a sign of respect for the elder and is usually done at the point of greeting or farewell. Even though the children were not familiar with the custom, they quickly learned the gesture and one by one gave Santa a “mano po”.
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The funfare for the evening were not only for the children but for the adults as well. The game “Pinaka… (the Most)” got most of the participants scrambling out of their seats as “The Most Handsome Man in the room, The Most Colorful Sock and Shirt, The Most Red-Colored Lipstick, and the Cutest Child were presented by the participating teams. The Most Handsome Man category gathered the most laughs as each team presented their choice and each man had to do a fashion walk for the judges. Raffle prizes were sponsored by Filipino Store from their assortment of Filipino bags.
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The participants listening intently to game host, Lana Kristine Flores-Jelenjev for the instructions.
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Raffle prizes were also given away and brought a big smile to the faces of the winners. Select sponsors provided the major prizes ranging from free small balikbayan shipping from NL-Philbox, , free remittance to the Philippines from Sunro, cosmetics from Oriflame and a 100 euro voucher from Agila Travels Corporation. Proceeds from the raffle will be used to fund Bayanihan’s projects for 2011
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Lana Jelenjev, Ranessa Krause and Jaclyn Misagal drew the lucky numbers for the raffle.
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The crowd busy with their raffle numbers with the winning hand raised from the back row.
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Coordinated by Stichting Bayanihan volunteers: Jaclyn Misagal, Lana Jelenjev and Ranessa Krause, the evening was indeed a Celebration of the Spirit of Christmas -Filipino style. The traditional festive fare can be felt which are reminiscent of the Christmas celebrations we shared with families and friends in the Philippines.
For most of us living abroad, we know that Christmas in the Philippines will always be uncomparable. Celebrating Christmas here in the Netherlands or in any part of the world will always be different- other language/s used and heard, the different faces, snow filled roads and pavements. But one thing is the same--- the smiles and laughter shared between families and friends as during this special occasion.
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Jac, Nessa, Lana and Tess: the women behind the festivities
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Some of the Bayanihan Volunteers and their families.
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