April turned out to be one of the months with the most number of Batch63 birthday celebrants. At the Grand Kapihan today, seven birthday boys treated the Batch for breakfast at Manila Polo Club. The birthday celebrants were: Boy Palanca; Ernest Cuyegkeng; Bert Saenz; Mari Duarte; Vic Romero; Gary Salcedo; and Ramy Salcedo (Ramy is really a March celebrant. He is based in Calgary and in town at this time).
The Batch63 guys who feasted on the buffet were: Joe Assad; Joey Estagle; Raffy Villarreal; Gabby Valdes; Boy Carlos; Oni Mayo; Joey Ingles; Jackie Arellano; Lito Domantay; George Cunanan; Ed Lim; Ed Oleta; Tony Estonina; Doug Marcaida; Francis Horn; Joey Angeles; Bambi Goco; Vince Misa and Linggoy Araneta.
The continuing success of the Grand Kapihan program for several years now has surprised everyone. The event has consistently attracted more than twenty busy souls on average each time. For people residing in the South (BF-Alabang area) and the North (Novaliches-Diliman area), it is neither easy traffic or cheap (round trip SLEX toll fee alone is P600) to make it on a week day to the Batch’s Makati Kapihan. Also, many in the Batch have other obligations in one form or the other which they will have to skirt for at least most of the morning of that day.
It is interesting to see the old boys mingling enthusiastically despite their different current avocations and situations. Some are retired; some are still active in business. Some are a picture of health while some have had some medical procedure done on them already. Some continue to reap success, while others lose out or fade away. Some remain with their families, others have more excitement than they can handle. Overall, what is clear is that Batch63 is weathering it all graciously. It has evolved into a group that has a soft heart and tolerance for each other despite their disparities in character and status. Simply, they are more than classmates – they have turned out to be comrades if not brothers.
During the Kapihan, a topic of interest was the ongoing effort of the group to prepare the agenda for the March 2013 Homecoming. Everyone watch out for the Jubilee Bulletins that should spell out the proposed Jubilee projects in the coming days.
See slide show for more photos.
