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Happy at 33 (11-19-08)
After the success of the Grand Bridal Shower Party, I
couldn' ask for more for my birthday this year. It was
like my own birthday party and everyone who attended were
my guests. I was so overwhelmed and contented and financially
drained hahaha :). Kidding aside, i really had no plans
for my birthday because of the bridal shower. But my dear
angels didnt let my bday pass without a celebration. They
gave me an asalto last night with my closest friends and
my family present. At midnight i got text messages with
a message number sequence. It was supposed to be 33 messages
from 33 people i love but apparently most fell asleep
and the others didnt follow instructions so i got confused
about the numbers hahahahaha :) Tonight my mom cooked
dinner in our house in QC for me and my angels :)
Thank you Lord for
the gift of Life, for an amazing family and wonderful
set of friends and relatives. There are so many other
things that I am blessed with and am very greatful for
them. My talents, my angels, our bride and groom clients
:) At 33 i can say that I am happy and contented and I
have done most of the things i wanted to do but there
are still more things now that i want to do for others
than myself. I pray that the Big Boss would grant me more
time on earth to serve my purpose well and somehow be
a blessing to others just as others have blessed me.
The
Grand Bridal Shower Party 2008 (11-09-08)
It
has been almost 3 years when i first thought of having an
event for soon-to-wed brides that is fun, never been done
and would be our own version of "corporate social responsibility"
project. I envisioned having one big party were all ladies
about to say "i do" would come together and celebrate
in a grand bridal shower that most married women never expereinced
before they got married. It haunted me for 3 years, sleepless
nights, brainstorming the program while taking a shower
(most great ideas popup in the bathroom which i consider
my comfort zone) and just practically talking about my vision
to the people i love. I'm a firm believer that everything
happens in God's perfect time and this event was no exemption,
3 years was all worth the wait.
The
Grand Bridal Shower Party was roughly 2 months in the making.
After signs from above and encouragement from dear friends
and wedding suppliers Ferdie and Jeng Flores of Megapixels,
I and my team decided to push thru with the event only last
September 2008 and started to promote it first at The Wedding
Expo last Sept 8. The concept was to come up with a party
to be attended by soon-to-wed brides and their female entourage
members. A Grand Venue,Live Music, Light Effects and Event
Styling Set-up, a big Ramp, Food, Drinks, Bridal Gowns and
most of all Gorgeous Men were the ingredients i thought
of mixing all together for the guests' delight and enjoyment.
Above all, I wanted the event to be for a cause. So we invited
Bantay Bata 163 to be our lone beneficiary for the event.
To add spice and excitement instead of having 1 cake boy
I got 12 hunks and called them the "Calendar Boys".
All guests needs to vote for a "King of the Night"
among the 12 boys. Every P100 that they donate at the Bantay
Bata Booth during the event will entitle them to one play
money cum raffle coupon which they would use to vote and
would also give them a chance to win a 3days-2nights Honeymoon
Suite Accommodation at the Boracay Grand Vista Resort &
Spa.
With
a great vision comes a challenging task of executing the
plans and we were at the last quarter. Marketing wise it
was a no-no to solicit at that time of the year. Most companies
have drained their budget for sponsorship and everyone is
preparing for Christmas expenses. But God is so so good!
He sends angels when needed the most. Co-presenting the
event with WeddingsandLifestyle.com was Boracay Grand Vista
Resort & Spa. He made a way for us to use one of the
most beautiful event venue in the metropolis, 1Esplanade.
Not just one venue but all 3 of their venues were made available
for the event. Major sponsors Centertable Catering and Juan
Carlo the Caterer provided the food, Megapixels Studio documented
the event and made a Lupang Hinirang Video which was wedding
inspired, Blue Shots Mobile Bar provided unlimited cocktail
drinks and Sound Level made wonders with the Light Effects.
Minor Sponsors Royale Flower Shoppe did a breathtaking styling
with the ceiling drapes and their floral creations on stage,
Belo Medical Group touched us with their promotional items
and Gift Certificates, Sensitivity for the beautiful Stage
and Ramp. The Donors PhCare who gave products for ALL ladies
who attended, Don Robert's bridal Car who sponsored the
loot bags, Imagine Nation Photography provided the LCD Projectors
and Screens and Konsepto's Fotoloco Picture Booth was a
box-office hit! Thank you also to East Digital Photography,
Mr. Eddie Bruan, Printed Matter and Patio Victoria. and
Special many many many many thanks to Mr. Ammon Velasco
for his beautiful Bridal Collection, Sir Jun and Sir Rod
of FUSED for the Casual Wear and Private Wear as well as
Mr. PJ Arañador of Nautilus Boracay for the Summer
Wear and Swimwear that the Calendar Boys wore. And of coures
to our 12 Calendar Boys for a magnificent show, thank you
guys!
The
Grand Bridal Shower Party 2008 was just as I envisioned
it to be. An event for a cause and an event that showcased
what we, the suppliers who supported and participated, do
best. It was a night to remember and would
linger in our memories for a long long time. The sight and
sound of happy brides and their entourage, sisters and even
moms, I can see and hear them still clearly. To date i still
receive positive feedback from people who attended the event
expressing how much fun they had. And It was, it really
was so much FUN. Hope to see you at next year! CLICK
HERE to start pop-up slideshow of the official
photos of The Grand Bridal Shower Party 2008 courtesy of
Megapixels Digital Studio.
Of life and the Life After (07-20-08)
It’s a celebration of life! It’s
our beloved Tita Remy’s 60th Birthday which she celebrated
with a small party for her friends in the church where she
has been serving for the past decades. Everyone in the family
circle was present as we all became event coordinators taking
care of our Tita’s guests. Present during the party
was their eldest sister Tita Cely (Angel Lari’s mom)
whom I thought was not supposed to be there because she just
recovered from a heart attack more than a month ago, but she
forced her daughter Lari to bring her to the party. I remember
during Angel Olive’s wedding, I even asked my driver
to fetch her from Pandi Bulacan and brought them back home
because she really wanted to attend. That’s how “mapilit”
our Tita Cely is. During the birthday party she was all jolly,
keeping at pace with everyone as if she was in the perfect
state of health. She gave the welcome remarks for the start
of the short program and she joined every group picture of
the family. Though everyone was concerned about her we just
enjoyed the moment and tried to make her rest every so often.
The party ended and our Tito Totoy offered her a ride home.
My mom (Tita Cely and Tita Remy’s sister), Joshua, my
partner Akiro and I stayed on together with my other cousins
to help Tita Remy bring her gifts to her place.
On our way home I got
a phonecall from my cousin Angel Grace. She said Tita Cely
was rushed to the hospital because on their way home she had
difficulty breathing. She didn’t want to break the news
to my mom so she asked me to do it. I tried to organize the
words I was about to say to my mom when her fone rang. It
was my Tito Totoy on the other line and he told my mom about
what happened. We rushed to the hospital. On our way there
my mom was praying as she held a rosary in her hand. I was
praying too, hoping for the best and expecting the worst.
Again mom’s fone rang and they were asking our exact
location. My mom kept on asking how Tita Cely was and they
kept on replying “basta bilisan nyo”. At that
moment my mom turned to me and said “I think Tita Cely
is Gone” to which I replied “She’s happy
mom, and we all know that”.
As we went down the
vehicle I can see our relatives waiting outside the hospital
and I heard Angel Lari crying. We didn’t have to hear
the bad news as it was flashed before our very eyes. We all
broke into tears and my mom insisted that we see Tita Cely.
And there she was lying on the stretcher as if she was just
sleeping. There was peace in her face, an aura of joy. It
was my closest encounter to a beloved who just passed away.
My mom embraced her and we had to ask her to leave the room.
I took a moment to talk to Tita and told her “Everything
will be fine, we will take care of your daughters and grandchildren”
During the funeral,
I was asked to deliver a eulogy and sing. During my speech
I said: “In my work, I am used to receiving a warm round
of applause from the audience. I thought maybe it’s
their affirmation that I did my job well or they liked my
performance. Today I realized that in life there are a lot
of people around us, specially the ones we love, who deserves
our applause. It may be one of our ways of appreciating and
thanking them for everything that they have done for us. I
know Tita Cely has touched our lives in a positive way and
I know everyone agrees that she truly deserves a big hand
for a job well done here on earth.” The crowd applauded
and I sang. The first and last time I was singing a song for
dear Tita Cely. To me she deserves more than a resounding
applause, she deserves a standing ovation.
June
Coordinator (06-30-08)
It’s that time of the year again when most television
shows would feature the topic “Weddings”. This
month, I was fortunate to be invited to appear in a number
of shows in both the Kapamilya and Kapuso channels: Unang
Hirit (ch7); Kabuhayang Swak na Swak (ch2) and Ang Pinaka
(ch11). I hope I was able to portray my roles well and looking
forward to June 2009 for, hopefully, more TV appearances (naks!
Hehehe).
To
Bora, To Bora (06-23-08)
Another ambush vacation/business trip to Boracay as typhoon
Frank leaves the country. I’ve seen the island at it’s
best and I didn’t mind seeing it at its worse…NO
electricity, NO ATM machines, almost NO sand to see by the
shoreline, NO sun! but still it was worth it because I had
my much needed rest and was able to touch base with the local
suppliers. Though I slept most of the time and had little
time going around I could say it was a relatively productive
trip, business wise. Click
here for my complete trip chronicle.
Angel
Olive Weds Amidst the Storm (06-22-08)
It was one of the strongest typhoon that has hit
our country. Typhoon Frank literally took the Philippines
by storm. There was a nationwide brownout, flood, strong rain
and wind. But it never ruined one of the most important day
in our lives as our dear Angel Olive said “I Do”
to her groom Jojo.
She
was worried. Anybody in that situation would have had a nervous
break down but she was calm and tried to be cheerful still.
While I was doing her make-up and the rest of the 11 heads
(all relatives of mine), I kept on praying for a miracle to
happen. I know the sun won’t shine but I was praying
for light...light from electric powered equipments that were
already being set-up by Sound Level. It was supposed to be
a showcase of what we, as event coordinators, and the other
suppliers from Manila, does best but it would only be complete
with electricity running thru the cables. As I was about to
make the call to give the generator set a “go”
signal to come to Bulacan, the miracle happened. Loud music
was heard, colorful lights playing in the ceiling, and the
spotlight focused towards our direction.
The
rain continued pouring and so was our positive spirit to make
it an event to remember for Angel Olive. And it was! From
the walk down the aisle as the bride was met by the little
bride who handed over her bouquet in the middle right before
she met her parents half-way thru the altar, to the touching
speech by the bride and groom in which most people were brought
to tears as the sister of the bride went up stage to give
them flowers and a big hug. Everything that was planned for
happened. Only regret was most of the guests from the flooded
areas of Bulacan and from Manila was not present to witness
the wedding. But as I always say, everything happens for a
reason, maybe it was meant to be an intimate event fit for
an Angel. Special thanks to Tito Edward Teng for Olive’s
bridal gown, my mom’s evening gown and my nephew Joshua’s
barong. Thank you Sound Level and the guys from Megapixels.
FRANKly speaking you people are the best!
Our
Girl KIM CHIU turns 18 (04-29-08)
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