Dinky Einsiedel
Singing at the hotel lobby was one of the best, if not the best reunion moment, especially since it was spontaneous. If you'll recall, we were in the "secretariat" room doing a debrief when Nina L felt the group was getting impatient waiting for the bus. It was she who suggested I go out to the lobby and "entertain" the group. I didn't plan anything! I just went out with my guitar and lyrics of some songs which we didn't sing but had kept in my guitar case. I approached the group closest to the front desk, which included Lou, Portia, Au, Paul, and Sheila, and asked them if they knew the song "Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow". We started singing, just a few of us at first, then others joined us. After singing all of the 3 songs that I had the lyrics of, we stopped and I put my guitar back in its case.
But the bus had not arrived yet. After several minutes, I thought I'd just accompany anyone who wanted to sing while waiting for the bus. Since no one came forward, I asked people to join me in singing "Leaving on a Jetplane" which I felt many people were familiar with. That seemed to have gotten a lot of people's attention and a lot joined in. After, I just followed it with "Let Me Call You Sweetheart" which again I was sure everyone knew. That was when Egbert got Portia to dance the waltz as everyone sang! It was great!
I was exhausted after that and just slept all the way to Everybody's Cafe!
But the bus had not arrived yet. After several minutes, I thought I'd just accompany anyone who wanted to sing while waiting for the bus. Since no one came forward, I asked people to join me in singing "Leaving on a Jetplane" which I felt many people were familiar with. That seemed to have gotten a lot of people's attention and a lot joined in. After, I just followed it with "Let Me Call You Sweetheart" which again I was sure everyone knew. That was when Egbert got Portia to dance the waltz as everyone sang! It was great!
I was exhausted after that and just slept all the way to Everybody's Cafe!
Carmen Torre-Dimayuga
Here is my wish to our classmates 5 years from now:
Five years from now (70+ years old na tayo!!), I wish all my UPHI '61 classmates
will still be as happy and kalog as they were during our 50th reunion.
Magaganda at magaling pa rin sumayaw ang mga girls, pogi at magugulo pa rin ang mga guys. Enteng, Manny and Dinky will still be entertaining us with their piano and guitar renditions. And Aura with her beautiful voice will still be singing for us.
I wish all the classmates involved (both from Manila and the US, etc, alam niyo at nang lahat kung sino-sino kayo!!) will still be as masigasig 5 years from now so we will celebrate another unforgettable and wonderful reunion. Sana PRESIDENTE na si Volts para sangkatutak pa lalo ang mga photographers and security ng class '61. As Rolly Eugenio was telling me, this is the.first time in his life that he was “secured". From the time we left UP last Friday up to the time we came back last Sunday we had security. Wow!
Five years from now (70+ years old na tayo!!), I wish all my UPHI '61 classmates
will still be as happy and kalog as they were during our 50th reunion.
Magaganda at magaling pa rin sumayaw ang mga girls, pogi at magugulo pa rin ang mga guys. Enteng, Manny and Dinky will still be entertaining us with their piano and guitar renditions. And Aura with her beautiful voice will still be singing for us.
I wish all the classmates involved (both from Manila and the US, etc, alam niyo at nang lahat kung sino-sino kayo!!) will still be as masigasig 5 years from now so we will celebrate another unforgettable and wonderful reunion. Sana PRESIDENTE na si Volts para sangkatutak pa lalo ang mga photographers and security ng class '61. As Rolly Eugenio was telling me, this is the.first time in his life that he was “secured". From the time we left UP last Friday up to the time we came back last Sunday we had security. Wow!
Five years from now, I would like to see more classmates joining our reunions. Especially those "silent" classmates na hinanahanap natin.
Stay healthy and happy dear classmates so we will all have the energy to celebrate our 55th (Beyond the Gold)!! Emerald or alexandrite daw ang stone for 55th wedding anniversary. I guess yan din for 55th class reunion. So isip na kayo ng ating next slogan!!
Cheers!! Cheers!! Cheers!! Hinay-hinay lang sa beer mga boys!!
Ofie Penaflorida-Aid
I'm back home to Lakewood but the memory of our golden reunion still lingers on. Kudos to the ones who organized it because it was very, very well-prepared and executed. On a scale of 1-10 I give it a rating of 10+. The reunion committee left no stones unturned in all areas. The place was very well-chosen, the programs were very entertaining, the activities were very well-scheduled, the souvenirs were all very well-chosen, and there was never a dull moment with all our classmates and spouses. On the last day, at Voltaire's dinner, I got teary-eyed because I was thinking of when/if we'll see each other again. I'm very glad I was able to make it this time.
Art and Myrna Jorge
What a wonderful 50-year journey. ..it’s been so nice to meet “old” classmates.. so fortunate to be afforded a nice weather and super setting for a beautiful get together… hope to see everyone in the next reunion.
Nora Quesada-Catiis
Got back to New Jersey yesterday after over a month of wonderful trips in the Philippines and Canada--highlighted, of course, by a most memorable UP High '61 golden reunion. It was surely a Reunion of a Lifetime!
Wonderful memories--and yes, we won't forget the little touches of golden mementos: the "gold-carat"sash, the gold-inlaid pill box in a gold bag (sooo handy and useful), the nicely done name tags and the wide-brimmed native hats to keep us from being sunburned;
Thanks to Nina Les for the luggage tags (a real work of art!); to Jack J for the nice pink "I Love Guam" bag; to Mabs for the "MB Life with an appropriate slogan: "Making better lives" handy fan with matching pen; the souvenir "Gold Na Galing Galing Pa" ball pens distributed and used specifically for the "Name That Tune" game and gifts from the UP Hi North Am. planning committee (with extras to be mailed/handed over to others who missed the reunion).
Thanks again to Volts and Rhodie for EVERYTHING you did to make the reunion the BIG success that it was. I echo the comment that YES, we all felt "very secure" during the whole Subic trip.
To all who attended: Thanks for your wonderful company--and camaraderie!
Special thanks to the Joaquins and our Casa Joaquin mates: the Joaquins (of course), the Salazars; the Jorges; Ofie, the Cajiuats: we had such great time pre and post Subic, didn't we? The rides to and from UP; to and from Camp Aguinaldo--and around--were made easier because of the superb CasaJ service and accommodations. Indeed, Casa Joaquin was our home away from home for those 6 days pre-and post-Subic events!
Let us all keep in touch...and see you, hopefully, in the very near future: Vancouver in 2013!!
By the way, the North America "time capsule in a wine bottle" with all of the North America friends' notes and wishes are "safe"with me. Would you believe that it was questioned at JFK, NY airport--when they randomly X-rayed my luggage? At first they thought I had a filled wine bottle inside (duh!!) so I explained that it was an empty wine bottle with some notes from a reunion...and they thought it was amusing! Surely a "JFK customs experience" to remember!
Wishing all the BEST of EVERYTHING...and God bless.
Nora Quesada-Catiis
Got back to New Jersey yesterday after over a month of wonderful trips in the Philippines and Canada--highlighted, of course, by a most memorable UP High '61 golden reunion. It was surely a Reunion of a Lifetime!
Wonderful memories--and yes, we won't forget the little touches of golden mementos: the "gold-carat"sash, the gold-inlaid pill box in a gold bag (sooo handy and useful), the nicely done name tags and the wide-brimmed native hats to keep us from being sunburned;
Thanks to Nina Les for the luggage tags (a real work of art!); to Jack J for the nice pink "I Love Guam" bag; to Mabs for the "MB Life with an appropriate slogan: "Making better lives" handy fan with matching pen; the souvenir "Gold Na Galing Galing Pa" ball pens distributed and used specifically for the "Name That Tune" game and gifts from the UP Hi North Am. planning committee (with extras to be mailed/handed over to others who missed the reunion).
Thanks again to Volts and Rhodie for EVERYTHING you did to make the reunion the BIG success that it was. I echo the comment that YES, we all felt "very secure" during the whole Subic trip.
To all who attended: Thanks for your wonderful company--and camaraderie!
Special thanks to the Joaquins and our Casa Joaquin mates: the Joaquins (of course), the Salazars; the Jorges; Ofie, the Cajiuats: we had such great time pre and post Subic, didn't we? The rides to and from UP; to and from Camp Aguinaldo--and around--were made easier because of the superb CasaJ service and accommodations. Indeed, Casa Joaquin was our home away from home for those 6 days pre-and post-Subic events!
Let us all keep in touch...and see you, hopefully, in the very near future: Vancouver in 2013!!
By the way, the North America "time capsule in a wine bottle" with all of the North America friends' notes and wishes are "safe"with me. Would you believe that it was questioned at JFK, NY airport--when they randomly X-rayed my luggage? At first they thought I had a filled wine bottle inside (duh!!) so I explained that it was an empty wine bottle with some notes from a reunion...and they thought it was amusing! Surely a "JFK customs experience" to remember!
Wishing all the BEST of EVERYTHING...and God bless.
The ONE High School Reunion
April 9, 2011 by Trell
It is Saturday morning in Amherst, Ma which is said to be quite a university town with several famed authors in residence. I walked to the church at St Bridgett and grateful for some down time. This trip has been a longed for brief visit to family in Conneticut and Massachusetts. And, a chance to sit still and write this promised blog about our 50th High School Reunion in February.
It has been 50 years since graduation from UP High School - the school that created a strong mold into each one of us. The ingredients of academic excellence, constant quest for knowledge, introspection, self exploration and expansion, discovery of talents, community awareness, empathy, generosity, perseverance, tenacity and a strong value system.
The memories of how I got into UP High surfaced as I participated in a casual group conversation with some of our classmates during the reunion. One shared that his family moved to Quezon City from a distant town so he could go to school at UP High School. I remember how my mother dragged me to take the entrance examination and few years later commented/complained about how I have become too independent and a free thinker . Then, my thoughts shifted to that period of time in High School when a dear friend Norie migrated to California to be with her mother and continued her secondary education in the US. There was not a doubt at that time that she would excel in a Western educational system and she did.
My thoughts moved back to February 2011 when I made it to our meeting ground near the Alumni Hall in UP Diliman. One passes by The Oblation (a symbol of strongly rooted academic and social concepts) as one drives to the campus. My mind was not focused on those symbolism. I was processing an odd mixture of feelings. How can I explain my absence in all the previous reunions ? How will I recognize my classmates? I did not get a chance to study and read through all the email communications about this Golden HS Reunion that were misrouted when I changed e mail address. I have attended a few events with UP High School classmates in the US - the ambiance of which was casual, fun and relaxing and and they linger in my memory.
And ...there we were - a group of guys and gals with maroon shirts and khaki pants casually talking. I felt like I have just seen them a few months ago. As I blended or faded in and out of the group, there was no mistake of the warmth, sincerity, gaiety, spontaneity, non-judgmental and unconditional acceptance and love for each other. The reunion committee both in US and Philippines and even classmates who could not attend the reunion provided such an impressive labor of love to make the reunion a success.
I reminded myself throughout the reunion that I am with a group of men and women who are clearly accomplished in several areas and aspects of their lives. Meeting or watching each of our classmates produced a steady pattern. My mind kept going back to the physical appearances- face, physique, movement, speech, The images of each was clear and vivid. It was hard for me to focus on who I was facing at that moment.
Beyond the identity of who each one was 50 years ago, a tapestry emerged behind the screen. I listened to the series of milestones, the family, career, honors , accomplishments, gains, some failures and losses. For most at this period of our lives, the inevitable had occurred like losing our parents, loved ones, family members and friends. At 50 years post high school graduation and at this graceful period of our lives, we are facing the season of harvest.
Again, for those who labored long and hard to put this magnificent event together , our gratitude for a living history of experiences, perceptions, wisdom to share not only with each other but also to those especially the younger generation who are willing to listen.
The reunion was well planned, and well engineered, geared to make each one have one of the best memorable moments in our lives. It was beyond excellence.... beyond galing galing !!
