I honored some mothers two weeks ago so it would be fair to honor some fathers as we just celebrated International Father’s Day yesterday, June 15. The fathers I will be mentioning are no longer with us, but their spirit of community volunteerism lives on. They were all volunteers and supporters of the 110th Proclamation of Philippine Independence celebrations held on June 13, 2008, at the Al Nasr Leisureland in Dubai.
In 2008, I became the accidental chairman of the Philippine Independence Day (PID) executive committee in Dubai and the Northern Emirates. Why accidental? On the night of April 28, I arrived late at the meeting being conducted by Consul Butch Bandillo with about 30 Filcom leaders at the PCG compound in Al Ghusais. I asked the consul when the celebrations would be held. He replied: “That’s why we are meeting Art. Come here and preside over.” I obliged and sat beside him then asked the same question to the attendees. I did not notice that Consul Bandillo quietly slipped away and perhaps very much relieved that someone took over the meeting.
During the next hour, we had many exchanges and made some calls to people who have contacts with basketball courts, multi-purpose halls, and hotels. After agreeing on the date, June 13, and the potential venues, I asked everyone about the next steps. Then Joel Nedamo of PSSP nominated me to be the chairman and everyone quickly concurred that I should take charge since I was already doing it. I have no regrets as the following milestones will show that the Bayanihan spirit was very much alive in the subsequent weeks.
May 6, the first general meeting: At least 24 organizations contributed Dhs500 each to show their solidarity and support for the event which was less than six weeks away. We announced the four working committees and the respective heads, namely Production, Ollie Pineda of FACE; Logistics, Dante Delizo of CADD; Protocol and Welfare, Olive Mara of FDSC; and Finance, Tinette Pudda of UPAA. I represented Gawad Kalinga (GK) at that time.
Between the first and last general meetings, each working committee met separately at the Zying Asian Grill outset at Dubai Festival City. Zying was a sister company of Giordano which was being managed by good friend Ishwar Chugani, the famous dugong Bumbay, pusong Pinoy executive in Dubai. Both brands came in as sponsors.
June 9, the last general meeting: This was the biggest meeting attended by two representatives from each organization. This time we were confident that all preparations were in order and the leaders were upbeat on its eventual success. I acknowledged that their camaraderie and enthusiasm were very inspirational.
June 13, the PID event: There were many firsts. The Job Fair organized by UPAA saw hundreds of applicants packing the venue as early as 8 am. The Free Tawag or overseas call to the Philippines provided by du and arranged by the United Filipino Airsoft. The colorful Santa Cruzan coordinated by FBCC (Sharjah). The Giordano Fashion Show presented by FDC-D.
When I delivered the customary chairman’s address, I requested all the heads of the working committees and the coordinators of the various support committees to stay on the stage because I wanted to honor them for their significant contributions given the short period of planning, coordinating, and implementing.
And this is where I also honor those fathers who had passed away. Consul General Benito Valeriano, who later became Ambassador to India. He gave his all-out support to us without meddling or influencing our decisions. Same with Dante Fermazi, who was the GK national coordinator in the UAE. He encouraged me to give my best not only to GK but also to the PID event.
These were the fathers who had active roles before, during and even after the PID celebrations: July Marimla of Aguman Kapampangan, Ronnie Balilo of FACE, Benjie Zabat of FDC-D, and Milo Torres of OPPS. Special mention goes to Melanie Torralba-Guerrero who managed the multi-media presentations representing SFC, Obet Ramos who performed a comedy skit representing the UPAA, and Roy Silvano of SMPII who would later volunteer in all PID events during the 2010s.
Entrepreneur Angel Timbol of Aguman Kapampangan donated Dhs500 during the June 27 Thanksgiving Mass. We were able to turn over Dhs3,700 to a foundation which was doing relief efforts for the victims of super typhoon Frank which destructed parts of Southern Luzon and the Visayas that month.
Thank you everyone for your spirit of community volunteerism. This is the same spirit carried by those who had just conducted two PID events in Dubai. Wishing the Abu Dhabi community all the best this Saturday, June 21. Mabuhay!
