A village fiesta to remember

“True piety consists of being charitable, loving one’s fellowmen and being judicious in behavior, speech and deed.”  — Gen. Emilio Jacinto

By all accounts, the day-long festivities that accompanied the annual procession during the Feast of the Lord’s Ascension in San Pablo, Laguna was one countryside fiesta to relish. It has been an annual endeavor of the Escudero family led by its patriarch, Villa Escudero Plantations and Resorts owner Ado Escudero, to share the antique image of the Resurrected Christ with the village folk. The object of veneration is owned by the family and passed down eight times so far from one generation to another. Each detail was delicately planned by the family members and executed by the Villa Escudero workforce — the participation of the UST Conservatory of Music during the Mass, the foot procession of the Señor featuring ritual dances and the 30-foot bamboo barge or pagoda that carried the image upstream to the dining venue. Seen enjoying hefty servings of Filipino fare were Dr. Jimmy Laya, Frank Eizmendi, creative genius Patis Tesoro, Ito Curata and Delia Razon, who all came clad in Filipiniana. After the last guest had left, the Escudero family hosted a similar banquet for their workers and tenants as a gesture of appreciation for the year’s bountiful harvest. Indeed, nobody “conducts” a fiesta like the Escuderos!

Greetings

Happy birthday to our celebrator today, Ideaz Plus’ Bob Zozobrado.

Advanced birthday greetings to elegant lady Judy Roxas, Monina Lopez, construction queen Aying de Leon, Ed Zialcita, Antonio Tambunting Jr., FCCP’s Marietta Holmgren and Gail Soco, July 31; Malou Rosal, Nenuca Araneta Blardony and Marielle Litton, Aug.1; jet-setter Nene Quimson, Aug. 2; debonair chairman of The Bellevue Hotel Johnny Chan, Sony Lopez Gonzales, Kit Aguado and Alex Libongco, Aug. 3; and Martin Litton, Emily Lopez, Meralco CEO Oscar Reyes and Eskaya’s Phoebe Lim, Aug. 4.

So, how was your week?

 (For comments or inquiries, please e-mail meat jjlitton@indanet.com)

Oops...

In my column last Sunday, Weon Kil Kim and Hyeon Wook Jo were inadvertently identified as president and executive director of Plantation Bay Resorts and Spa. The two gentlemen from Korea, indeed, hold the same position, but in a travel agency called GSA (Global System Air) Korea, a concessionaire in the resort located on Mactan Island, Cebu. I regret the error. Photo shows (from left) HK Tours and Air Services, Inc. GM Louis Choi, GSA (Global System Air) Korea president Weon Kil Kim, Plantation Bay Resorts and Spa sales office manager Jaye Godornes and sales manager Stephanie Grace Trocio and GSA Korea executive director Hyeon Wook Jo.