Vol. 11, No. 12, Sept. 17, 2007

Henry Dy is VMLP interim president

Iligan City Vice Mayor Henry C. Dy, in photo, has been chosen as Interim National President of the Vice Mayors League of the Philippines (VMLP).  He was chosen Interim National President of the VMLP in the election conducted by DILG NCR Regional Director in Manila last Aug. 31.  Also reelected as Chairman was Herbert Bautista, Vice Mayor of Quezon City.  The VMLP is an organization composed of 1,700 vice mayors nationawide.

Gregorio Tan

Gregorio Tan died of a lingering illness on Sept. 10, 2007 in Iligan City.  He was the husband of Marcela "Sena" Uy-Tan (Batch '58) and father of Angelie Tan Dy-Carlos (Batch '87). He hailed from Libertad, Misamis Oriental. In his younger days, he used to work for Lian Hong Company Inc.  We request our pious readers to pray for the eternal repose of his soul.

Modern philosophies
Sun, 02 Sep 2007 10:14:36

Modern philosophies:  1. If your father is poor, it's your fate.  But if your father-in-law is poor, it's your stupidity. 2. Love thy neighbor. But don't get caught.  3. The wise never marry.  When they do, they become otherwise.  4. Love is photogenic. It needs darkness to develop.  5. Children in back seats cause accidents.  Accidents in back seats cause children.
--Remedios Tan-Wee (Batch '64), Cotabato, Philippines; forwarded from SMS, cell +639209213613

Iligan vintage photo
Wed, 5 Sep 2007 22:16:20 +0800 (CST)
Wow, the vintage photo of Iligan, published in the recent issue of the Spectrum, is really fantastic. It's a fantasy, a dream to see Iligan at its early age, when most of us had not yet been born yet. This is by far the oldest picture of our city I have seen. Hope there will be more of these ancient pictures to be published in the newsletter. Thanks to Santi Ong, my classmate.  My best wishes to the Go family. Yes, we were their neighbor too.
--Rene Tio (Batch '70), Cagayan de Oro, Philippines; email: fishers_3@yahoo.com.sg

Iligan plaza & the earthquake of '53
Wed, 4 Sep 2007 09:23:02 +800

Viewing that vintage photo of Iligan's old plaza (Spectrum, Sept. 3, 2007) stirs up many childhood memories. One such memory harks back to that big edifice on the right portion of the picture.  That was the Labao Hotel on the corner of Mabini and Del Pilar sts. (the Maria Cristina Hotel did not exist yet).  The Labao Hotel was the city's most prominent hotel in the 40s and 50s. We lived just a stone's throw away from this landmark. I remember when a major earthquake struck Iligan in 1953, our family, along with many other panic-stricken residents, fled our homes and sought refuge at the open space of the plaza. As the earth shook, we could see the building of the Labao Hotel sway left and right. The hotel was one of the taller buildings in town yet it withstood the big shake-up and did not collapse at all. As a matter of fact, not a single building in the city collapsed despite the magnitude of the quake.  That may be because practically all structures in Iligan then were made of light wooden materials.  Still, for fear of aftershocks we camped out at the plaza throughout the night and returned to our homes only the morning after.  Somehow, we all got home unscathed but ... badly shaken.
--Charles O. Sy (Batch '67), Cebu, Philippines; email: syanlok@yahoo.com

Changed address
Fri, 14 Sep 2007 17:33:56 -0700 (PDT)

Good day to everyone. I would like to change my old address (as indicated in the Batch Directory of the Spectrum website). My name is Tony Lueong of Batch 1979. I used to live at Ubaldo Laya, Noria, Pala-o, Iligan but I already migrated to the U.S.A. with my family. And this is my new adrress: 317 West Milford St., Glendale, California, U.S.A. I was wondering if there's anyway that we could upload old high school photos, so that I can share it with our fellow alumni?  Thanks and more power.
--Tony Lueong Wie Son (Batch '79), Glendale, California, U.S.A.; email: lueong@sbcglobal.net

[We've updated your address in the Batch Directory on our Spectrum website, as indicated in your email.  Our website cannot accommodate uploading of photos due to its limited storage memory.  However, you may send your old high school photos directly to the Spectrum by email and we shall select the appropriate ones for publication in the forthcoming issues of the Spectrum.  Please include a caption or description of each photo. Our email: lchsspectrum@yahoo.com. --Editor]

Roger Suminguit, Batch '73

NEW ALUMNI OFFICERS.  Gracing our LCHS-AA board meeting last Sept. 10 at the LCHS library were a few of the newly elected officers of LCHS Alumni Association for 2007-2008.  The officers-elect are mostly alumni coming from the younger generation. As we all know, many of the incumbent officers and directors have served our association for a good 20 to 25 years already.  It is now high time that young blood be infused to take the helm of the association.  Our veteran officers deserve a break.  They have served our association well.

It was decided during the meeting that the induction of new officers & directors be shall be on Sept. 25, 2007 in conjunction with the Teachers Day celebration of the alma mater at the LCHS gym at 1:30 p.m.  It will be a modest but no less meaningful induction ceremony as this will mark the transition of the LCHS-AA leadership from the older generation to a younger generation of our alumni.  The complete list of officers and directors will be announced after they shall have been formally inducted into office. Abangan!

THIRD GAH.  Also at the Sept. 10 meeting, the officers have set a tentative schedule for our 3rd Grand Alumni Homecoming (GAH): third week of May 2008.  The two previous GAHs were held in the months of August and July. The 3rd GAH schedule will make it easier for alumni in the Philippines to attend the affair as it is summer vacation.  The new LCHS-AA officers will work out the program of activities for the forthcoming GAH-2008 after their induction.

ILIGAN FIESTA.  The week-long festivities of Iligan City fiesta will commence in the early morning of September 20. This is the "Pagla Na-og Ni Senyor San Miguel" from the altar. This has been the tradition of celebrating the start of the city's fiesta.  The rituals will be attended and witnessd by the Iligan residents, tourists, visitors, and local governmet officials, with traditional song and dance numbers to be performed by the locals.  On this date also is the traditional practice by a group of die-hard Iliganons in celebrating the occasion. LCHS-AA past president Arturo "Toto" Samson is a member of this group. Needless to say, several rounds of beer will roll on the table coupled with a lechon. Mag baha na pud ug beer!  Hala bira!  Viva Senyor San Miguel!

Henry L. Yu, M.D., Batch '69

The rolling '50s brought to the public senses and sensibilities the Rock 'n Roll era where Elvis Presley was hailed as the king. It was the Golden Period in Philippine cinema where movies were shown in black and white and double-program at that.

The fabulous '60s brought in the phenomenal group known as the Beatles, along with the Cascades, Gary Lewis & the Playboys, the Everly Brothers, among others. It was the era of the miniskirts, hot pants, go-go boots, twiggy, fishnet stockings, jam session, Star Trek, Flinstones, James Bond, My Fair Lady, The Sound of Music, etc.

The Flower Power generation of the '70s was the psychedelic era that brought to the fashion scene the mini, midi, maxi skirt lengths, the tye-dye shirts and bellbottoms, long hair, the "Peace, man" sign, the hippie, Mary Jane, discomania, Rolling Stones, Bee Gees, John Travolta, Saturday Night Fever, among others. It saw the end of the Vietnam War, Watergate Scandal, Feminism, Civil Rights. It was a period of student activism, political unrest, Martial Law and the New Society.

The '80s brought in the aerobic clothing, parachute pants, shoulder pads, skinny ties, acid wash denims, Swatch watches, the Regal Babies, Bagets, etc.

The '90s is best remembered for the Gulf War, the Comet collision, Princess Diana's death, the Hong Kong Handover, Asian financial crisis. It was equally memorable as we commemorated many significant events, among them the centennial celebration of Philippine Independence.

These are but few of the highlights of each era that came to pass like seasons in the sun. Our life. Our times.

And then the New Millennium, the Jubilee Year, the Y2K era which is an epoch of life on a fast lane where everything comes in handy, fast, convenient. It is the peak era of the fastfoods, the cellphone and the e-mail - three of the very IN things of today's dot.com generation. And there's no stopping them from being so.

The fastfoods click because they mean fast service. Busy people, like you and me, who are always in a hurry would prefer the fastfoods over a sit-down lunch or dinner on a regular working day, for obvious reasons. We don't have to wait long for our food order (that's why it's called fastfoods). It saves us time and money. We don't have to call the waiter for the chit/bill, and no need to give tips.

Through the cellphone, we are able to re-connect with friends whom we haven't met or touched base with for the longest time. Like the fastfoods, the cellphone saves us time as we don't need to drive back to the bookstore or supermarket, for example, in case we forgot to buy something. By just texting or calling mom or dad or the driver, it saves us time. The cellphone also proves to be a very convenient tool especially when we're in a shopping mall, in the airport, or when we're stranded in a certain place and we need help.

Unlike the decades past, when we have to wait for days on end for a letter sent thru the post office to arrive in our mailbox (three days for air mail and a week for ordinary mail), with the e-mail system we don't have to wait that long anymore. It's an express way of getting things done and right in the vicinity of our home or office.

The fastfoods. The cellphone. The e-mail. They're all great inventions of this generation. Easy does it. They are the IN things that comprise life on a fast lane. They make life more comfortable and convenient like no other. And they're here to stay because for now we couldn't imagine how life would be without them.
 

Igdono U. Caracho, Batch '66

This is the site of the famous balcony  scene in the Franco Zeffirelli film,  Romeo & Juliet. Now a favorite tourist  attraction in Venice, Italy, this is the  balcony from where Juliet called out  to her lover down below: "O Romeo, Romeo,  wherefore art thou Romeo? Deny thy  father, and refuse thy name ... that which  we call a rose, by any other name  would smell as sweet."  Photo by Mike  Lee (Batch '66).