The Journey
Back Home
By Icar Napiza and Laarni Paras
(As published on the SJC QC HS Batch '88 Year Book)
We were in for the long haul… with only one goal!
It was quite a long wait… but it’s all worth it!
St. Joseph’s College of Quezon City High School Class of 1988 (SJC QC HS Batch 88) will finally get together after a quarter of a century to pay homage to its alma mater and celebrate the Annual Grand Alumni Homecoming on March 16, 2013. By tradition, the main host for the said yearly event had always been the Silver Jubilarians.
The official planning took place online via mass private message on Facebook, a social networking site. The invitation was sent by the designated Overall Committee Head, Joy Velasco-Guilas, to 118 batch mates on March 20, 2012. The torch was passed on by the preceding batch and we barely had a year to prepare. Everyone was enthralled with the idea…and the ball started rolling!
The internet played a very significant role all throughout the Homecoming preparation considering that the batchmates are mostly scattered not only within the 7,100 islands of the Philippines during high tide, but all over the globe!
On top of the task list was the creation of committees. The core group asked for volunteers to lead each team. There was only one qualification to fit each post: 100% commitment to the cause! Thus, the set of 13, all strong and determined leader-organizers was formed along with its members.
Joy Catherine Velasco-Guilas, Head (Phils.)
Lilian Parale and Pam Guevarra, Heads (US)
Lhen Dela Rosa-Velon, Head (Europe)
Rosario Ong, Head (Canada)
Auditors: Peaches Bautista and Hazel Yamsuan
SECRETA-
RIAT
Subsequently, a series of conferences took place in the Philippines and abroad with live streaming
that allowed batchmates in different time zones to participate in real time! Not to mention the online
chat conferences wherein some threads of conversations reached to more than a thousand
comments! We brainstormed, deliberated, voted and decided as a team! We were united!
Then it was time for some real, serious stuff… money matters! Oh yes indeed, it did matter!
Successful online raffle promos were initiated by Lilian Parale, Glenda Valerio and Rosette Natividad with the help of all batch members. A well-attended fundraising party was also organized by Pam Guevarra in San Francisco, U.S.A. Solicitations, donations and sponsorships … they all poured forth from all sources! All avenues of promotion were utilized such as radio, TV, print and the Internet, talk about multimedia! Everyone generously contributed all they could give… their talents, time and devotion to ensure the success of the big event.
As expected, the targeted amount was successfully met and it will beproperly disbursed as planned including a donation for the rehabilitation of the Mater Dei Auditorium and a token of appreciation to some school personnel. All batch 88 members will be able to attend the event for free and even take home a batch shirt as solicited by Joy Velasco-Guilas from an anonymous philanthropist donor.
We will party all night long to our hearts’ delight… catching up on stories… filling in one another with love and laughter.
We will be young once more … Reliving our high school days… Reviving the friendship and sisterhood… Reminiscing the good memories.
It was no small feat and it came with sweat and tears but the fruit shall be sweet!
SJC HS Batch 88 shall come home victorious to its beloved alma mater, proudly able to say…
Mother…
Laarni Paras, Head
PROGRAMME COMMITTEE
Ces Llanes Guirnalda, Head
Pam Guevarra, Director
PROMOTIONS COMMITTEE
Lilian Parale, Head
FOOD & BEVERAGE COMMITTEE
Rosette Natividad, Head
YEARBOOK COMMITTEE
Jennifer De Leon, Head
GRAPHIC ART, LAYOUT AND WEB DESIGN
Icar Napiza, Head
EDITORS
Lhen Dela Rosa-Vellon, Aleli Lavilla and Laarni Paras
Next… the theme! A special occasion, one as big an event such as a Homecoming should have a very extraordinary theme to make it even more remarkable and truly unforgettable. Thus, we gathered all our thoughts together and put up a poll to get a consensus.
The winning theme was:
However, the leader-organizers thought it
needed more substance and a subtitle was befitting, hence, the tag “Relive, Revive, Reminisce the Strength and Solidarity of the Josephine Sisterhood.”
The original theme was revised several times to also
recognize and include the male alumni since the school
is now coeducational. Therefore, the final theme became…
"Ganito Kami Noon... Ganito na Kami Ngayon."
Relive, Revive, Reminisce
The preparation got even more exciting in the ensuing months. An official SJC HS Batch 88 website was constructed by Icar Napiza to better promote the event.
PROGRAMME COMMITTEE
Ces Llanes Guirnalda, Head
Pam Guevarra, Director
PROMOTIONS COMMITTEE
Lilian Parale, Head
FOOD & BEVERAGE COMMITTEE
Rosette Natividad, Head
YEARBOOK COMMITTEE
Jennifer De Leon, Head
GRAPHIC ART, LAYOUT AND WEB DESIGN
Icar Napiza, Head
EDITORS
Lhen Dela Rosa-Vellon, Aleli Lavilla and Laarni Paras
The winning theme was:
"Ganito Kami Noon... Ganito na Kami Ngayon."
needed more substance and a subtitle was befitting, hence, the tag “Relive, Revive, Reminisce the Strength and Solidarity of the Josephine Sisterhood.”
The original theme was revised several times to also
recognize and include the male alumni since the school
is now coeducational. Therefore, the final theme became…
"Ganito Kami Noon... Ganito na Kami Ngayon."
Relive, Revive, Reminisce
the Solidarity and Strength of all Josephines
The preparation got even more exciting in the ensuing months. An official SJC HS Batch 88 website was constructed by Icar Napiza to better promote the event.
In addition, a Facebook Fan Page was created by Jurizz Catedrilla-Tabanera. Moreover, the existing main thoroughfare of all online communications, the SJC HS Batch 88 Facebook Group Page soared to 258 members!
There were also campaign videos designed and released by Lilian Parale to further create awareness on the event and entice not only batch 88 members but all SJC Alumni to participate and join in on the fun! A playlist for SJC QC HS 88 - Homecoming now exists in YouTube which includes, among others, 'Rewind' (a video about the 80s) 'Balik-Aral' (a video on high school subject matter) and 'Places" (a video on the school grounds and facilities).
The most anticipated project, however, was the creation and publishing of our very own SJC HS Batch 88 Yearbook. It was the dream of each batch member to have one, even after 25 years. The Yearbook Committee members devoted so much of their valuable time to make it possible!
There were also campaign videos designed and released by Lilian Parale to further create awareness on the event and entice not only batch 88 members but all SJC Alumni to participate and join in on the fun! A playlist for SJC QC HS 88 - Homecoming now exists in YouTube which includes, among others, 'Rewind' (a video about the 80s) 'Balik-Aral' (a video on high school subject matter) and 'Places" (a video on the school grounds and facilities).The most anticipated project, however, was the creation and publishing of our very own SJC HS Batch 88 Yearbook. It was the dream of each batch member to have one, even after 25 years. The Yearbook Committee members devoted so much of their valuable time to make it possible!
Subsequently, a series of conferences took place in the Philippines and abroad with live streaming
that allowed batchmates in different time zones to participate in real time! Not to mention the online
chat conferences wherein some threads of conversations reached to more than a thousand
comments! We brainstormed, deliberated, voted and decided as a team! We were united!
Then it was time for some real, serious stuff… money matters! Oh yes indeed, it did matter!
The ardent fundraising campaigns began with much enthusiasm and dedication!
Successful online raffle promos were initiated by Lilian Parale, Glenda Valerio and Rosette Natividad with the help of all batch members. A well-attended fundraising party was also organized by Pam Guevarra in San Francisco, U.S.A. Solicitations, donations and sponsorships … they all poured forth from all sources! All avenues of promotion were utilized such as radio, TV, print and the Internet, talk about multimedia! Everyone generously contributed all they could give… their talents, time and devotion to ensure the success of the big event.As expected, the targeted amount was successfully met and it will beproperly disbursed as planned including a donation for the rehabilitation of the Mater Dei Auditorium and a token of appreciation to some school personnel. All batch 88 members will be able to attend the event for free and even take home a batch shirt as solicited by Joy Velasco-Guilas from an anonymous philanthropist donor.
 |
| Organizers at work! |
Many batch mates will travel from distant places to be there on that very special day and the rest who will not be able to attend will certainly be with us in spirit. Each woman, successful in her own right… as a mother, wife, employee, professional, artist, entrepreneur but among many other things, always a Josephine.
We will party all night long to our hearts’ delight… catching up on stories… filling in one another with love and laughter.
We will be young once more … Reliving our high school days… Reviving the friendship and sisterhood… Reminiscing the good memories.
It was no small feat and it came with sweat and tears but the fruit shall be sweet!
SJC HS Batch 88 shall come home victorious to its beloved alma mater, proudly able to say…
Mother…
"Ganito Kami Noon...
Ganito na Kami Ngayon."
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