DMCI Homes residents dress up condo communities

MANILA, Philippines - A merry display of yuletide cheer and community spirit highlighted the recent holiday season at DMCI Homes projects around the metro, through the first staging of the “Dazzling and Merry Christmas in the Community” event.

Organized by DMCI Homes’ Community Development Unit, the yuletide lighting and decor contest witnessed the month-long showcase of charming Christmas lights, ornaments, and other colorful displays around the facade and common areas of the different participating DMCI Homes developments.

Named as champion for 2011 was Ohana Place in Las Piñas, whose cheery residents received a cash prize and a certificate of recognition.  

 “The entire community in Ohana Place was so happy and proud that we won the grand prize,” declared Dr. Krissy Santos, a resident and Community Council member of Ohana Place. “Our theme, Family Filipino Christmas, also encapsulated the spirit of family and community, because we wanted each unit owner from every building to be involved of the contest. It’s also a reflection of our condo home, because ‘ohana’ in Hawaiian means family,” she noted.  

The unique and creative Christmas décor design of Ohana Place captured the attention of the judges, starting from the guard house decked with a huge parol and a nativity scene. It was a simple but meaningful display that embodied the spirit of Christmas. The display also included colorful renditions of the season allotted around the buildings, including a giant Christmas tree near Hanalei, the lanai with hanging ice candy plastics with colored fillings, a belen on stage at Kauai, recycled Christmas trees at Lanikai, white Christmas and giant Santa and snowman at Anahola, and colorful lanterns at Honolulu. 

The development’s core amenity, the clubhouse, was also adorned with white parols and Christmas lights that exuded both warmth and festivity, further enhanced by the playing of Christmas songs all day throughout the month of December.

 “We were able to pitch for this project by assigning our community councils to solicit funds from their respective buildings. For this, we thank everyone at Ohana Place because they were very kind enough to share and be part of this event. Aside from that, our community members were also able to have ample time to bond with each other during the time of decorating.  We did see the bayanihan not only from our unit owners but also with our workers in Ohana Place, including the maintenance, the security guards and the housekeepers.  The event was truly one for the Ohana family,” Dr. Santos added.

Ohana Place in Las Piñas named as champion for the first staging of the “Dazzling and Merry Christmas in the Community” event organized by the DMCI Homes’ Community Development Unit.

After they were proclaimed champions of the inaugural DMCI Homes yuletide lighting and decor contest, the Ohana Place residents decided to further celebrate the season through the value of giving. All council members decided to give the full cash prize amount they received from DMCI Homes to the victims of Typhoon Sendong .

 “It is our way of sharing our blessings to our less fortunate kababayan from the places affected by the typhoon,” Dr. Santos said.

Meanwhile, first runner-up of the contest was East Ortigas Mansion in Pasig while second runner-up was Vista de Lago in Taguig. The runners-up received cash prizes as well.

In the spirit of Christmas and to recognize the creativity and efforts of the other communities, consolation prizes were also given to Royal Palm Residences and The Manors at Celebrity Place. Participating displays were judged based on originality or the unique design and creative use of lights and decorations, arrangement, theme, as well as overall impact.

The exciting event was a tribute to the Filipino tradition of dressing up homes with Christmas lighting and decorations every December.   At the same time, it fosters cheer and the holiday spirit while encouraging bonding and harmonious relationships between residents of each DMCI Homes community.

Throughout the month of December, residents and visitors who travelled to the DMCI Homes locations all over the metro were treated to a grand and dazzling display of Christmas. Aside from the winning communities, others developments that participated were Bonifacio Heights, Rosewood Pointe, Morning Sun Homes, Rainbow Ridge, and Mahogany Place 3 in Taguig City; East Raya Gardens and Riverfront Residences in Pasig, Magnolia Place in Quezon City, Raya Garden Condominium in Paranaque, and Dansalan Garden Condominiums in Mandaluyong.

DMCI connects its communities with blogsite

DMCI has also launched a blogsite that aims to forge stronger relationships between residents of DMCI Homes communities.

The DMCI Communities website (www.dmcicommunities.com) went online recently as the first developer-initiated online portal in the country that will serve as a venue for residents to link up and connect with each other while giving the rest of the netizens a sense of what it feels like to live in a DMCI Homes community. 

DMCI formally launched two sites recently, namely at the East Raya Gardens in Pasig City and Royal Palm Residences in Acacia Estates, Taguig City, the blogsite unveiling was dubbed as a festive and fun-filled event for start-up families who mostly comprise the target population of DMCI Homes developments.

This strategy is foreseen to help improve the company’s initiatives in effectively managing its communities while at the same time encouraging harmonious relationships between unit owners of each development. 

The blogsite is also a relevant move to tap online communities as well as residents whose lifestyle now includes active Internet usage both for business and leisure.   With streaming data coming in from everywhere about various stories and concerns, DMCI Homes saw it crucial to be proactive in establishing a credible and accessible online site which residents can use to air their views and suggestions to their community members, community officers, and as well as to their project developer.

Through a user-friendly interface that anyone can use and visit anytime, online visitors can surf for various news, events about their DMCI Homes community, and even lifestyle topics that address condo living.   It also serves to provide an official community presence on the Web, as against scattered, informal communities on the net that may confuse or mislead other information seekers.

Featuring an exciting array of sections, the DMCI Communities blogsite also presents helpful tips such as recipes and home décor suggestions, informative articles, a community bulletin board, recipes, home decor suggestions, a local business directory, testimonial stories by unit owners, and even a multimedia collection of engaging videos and photos to be seen at the different DMCI Homes locations. There are also discussion forums where residents can tackle various issues or topics, plus pages that can link users to DMCI Homes’ property management office (PMO), and customer care departments.   The blogsite is also just a click away from linking with popular social media sites like Facebook and YouTube.

To further drum up interest on the blogsite, DMCI Homes has even launched the “Feel Good Moments” photo contest. Open to all residents from any DMCI Homes project, participants can just upload their “feel good” moment photos within their community on the blogsite and get the chance to win a three-day, two-night accommodation at Alta Vista de Boracay. Winners will be selected every month, from February to April 2012. 

A total of 20 finalists will also be selected to join the grand finals, which will award winners with cash prizes and the chance to be featured on leading dailies. More contest mechanics can be seen at the blogsite.

DMCI Homes is the country’s premier triple A builder-developer that brings serviced, themed communities within reach of urban families who once had limited residential options, but still aspire to achieve a comfortable, enriching quality of life proximate to their place of work. For more information, call 324-8888 or visit the website www.dmcihomes.com.