A Surprise for Philippe

Early last month, Philippe Gauthier, founding president of Le Club and now chairman of EuroAsia and AsiaType, was never more surprised in his life. He was led blindfolded to the Inter-Con ballroom for what he was told would be a small dinner hosted by a dozen friends on his birthday.

While guests waited in the ballroom, suspense was building up with successive announcements over the loud speaker: "Philippe has just stepped out of his car; he is now entering the hotel lobby; he is now ascending the stairs; he is actually outside the ballroom!"

When Louis Vergeon, Air France GM, and Roger Ferrari of Pacific Hemisphere Development removed Philippe’s blindfold, he could hardly believe his eyes–or ears. Two hundred or more people were milling around, "explosions" were renting the air as guests kept stepping on the colored balloons on the floor causing these to explode simultaneoulsy. The deafening noise mingled with cheers, laughter and applause. The celebrant lost no time kissing every woman in sight–to the great amusement of his wife Martha–and every man, too, in the French manner.

Among the "conspirators" I saw were AF director Philippe Normand, Cultural Counselor Franck Hebert, Consul Pierre Coquillat who, incidentally, speaks such fluent Spanish, I asked him in levity, "Do you speak French at all?" He replied, also in levity; "A little." One couldn’t miss the towering Louis Paul Heusaff, a past president of Le Club.

Excellent wine (French, of course) flowed during the marvelous dinner which the beautiful, talented Tessa Alindogan, dancing queen Becky Garcia, Edgar Ortiz, Le Club administrator, Benjie Liboro of First Philippine Holdings Corporation, and Jacques Branellec of Jewelmer, among scores more, heartily enjoyed.

The stage show sparkled with Philippe’s son playing on the drums, one of his two daughters singing, and close friends parodying him to perfection: imitating his mannerisms as board chairman, tennis player, and lover (read: harmless flirt). I dare say Philippe must be the most likeable Frenchman in the entire length and breadth of the archipelago, not only for what he is–incomparably warm, friendly and amiable–but also for what he has done; he established Le Club, the largest consortium of French businessmen and executives working closely with Filipino partners for mutual interest. Philippe is also deeply involved in the activities and concerns of the Euro-Campus, a multi-national school with a large number of Filipino students.

By the way, Philippe became so enchanted with our country, he married a Filipina.