this just in . . .

Congratulations to Fr. Marlowe Rosales, ofm and members of the the CKC-Jose Gomez Symphony Orchestra (Christ the King College Youth Symphony Orchestra). They won in the Visayas run of the Globe Campus Connect Super Showdown. The competition was held at past 7 tonight at the University of San Jose Recoletos campus in Cebu City

St.Vincent Ferrer Parish is 100 years old

Happy Birthday Sir Pio!

Mr. Pio O. Santos will turn 79 years old today. Happy Birthday!

Glenn and Angel

Glenn Aniflauni Lagman and Rachel Anne Jaropojop Dira will get married today. Their wedding mass will be presided over by Monsignor Bienvenido Chiquillo at the San Damiano Chapel of Christ the King College. Reception will be held at the Calbayog Cultural and Convention Center.

in memoriam Bishop Manuel Del Rosario y Platon

(Photo courtesy of Baao Historical Society)

Today we remember Bishop Manuel Del Rosario, the 4th Bishop of Calbayog. It has been two years since he received the gift of eternal life.

Funeral photos courtesy of Marvinne. More images here.

Vote for the CKC-Jose Gomez Symphony Orchestra

The CKC - Jose Gomez Symphony Orchestra is one of the finalists in the Globe Campus Connect Super Showdown. The Group will be in Cebu on March 31, 2011 for the Finals Night at the University of San Jose Recoletos (USJR)

Let us support the Orchestra. You may vote for them through text by typing:

CCSS (space) CKC and send to 2948 (for globe subscribers).

You may text as many votes as you want.

Text voting will end on march 31, 2011 at 7:00 pm.

You may also vote online. Here's how:

1. Check the Globe Telecom fan page on facebook
2. Search for the Visayas Finalists Photo Folder
3. "LIKE" the CKC Orchestra

Or better yet, check this link.

Online voting ends on Wednesday, March 23, 2011

Samarnons challenge MATA-Samar to probe solon’s lavish birthday bash

By Emy Bonifacio

Friday, 18 March 2011

CATBALOGAN CITY -- A newsmaker in her own right, Congresswoman Milagrosa T. Tan of the 2^nd District of Samar made another big hit as she turned 53 years old last February 25.

While the rest of the country were commemorating the historic 25^th EDSA celebration, where a bloodless People Power toppled a corrupt dictator, the Samarnons were then witnessing one of the most lavish birthday celebrations which compelled them to ask why a government official could throw such amid poverty among her constituents. (read more)

The CKC-Jose Gomez Symphony Orchestra goes to San Joaquin

The CKC - Jose Gomez Orchestra is set to perform in Barangay San Joaquin. This will be held this coming Tuesday, March 22, 2011 at 3:00 pm.

San Joaquin is the third and last Barangay to be visited by the said orchestra for this semester. The visit is part of the orchestra's outreach program. Their earlier barangay outreach performances were in Barangay Pilar and Barangay Migara.

Happy Birthday Msgr. Palma!

The Most Reverend Jose S. Palma, Archbishop of Cebu and former Bishop of Calbayog will turn a year older today. Happy Birthday!

Fr. Tony Petilla to celebrate his 50th Sacerdotal Anniversary

Rev. Fr. Antonio Guy Petilla will celebrate his 50th Sacerdotal Anniversary today. The Thanksgiving Mass will be held at the Sts. Peter and Paul Cathedral afterwhich a reception will be held at the Calbayog Cultural and Convention Center.

Fr. Tony was assigned in various parishes in Samar during the first 27 years of his priesthood. At present he is the Pastor of the Our Lady of Perpetual Help Parish in Daly City, California.

Samar's Undiscovered Symphony Orchestra

By Junfil Olarte, SE Asia Travel Writer

Taken from the article "A Trip To Samar" at davestravelcorner.com

A soft breezy sunrise rouses me as my ship nears the coast and moors at the docks of Maguino-o, off the city of Calbayog Western Samar in the Central Philippine Islands.

Maguino-o seaport really looks like an isolated place. You can hardly notice houses dwelling nearby it. The scene still brings you back to the early years (undeveloped in other words), with meagerly built homes yet pacific, having fresh air and unblemished environment. Perhaps, unlike many travel writers in the country, such a place catches my attention most. Especially, that it does not see even a glimpse of foreign visitors. I know that a lot of exciting activities await me in this part of the island.

Franciscan Father Marlowe Rosales then receives us warmly when we get in at the Friary's refectory, situated right beside the secondary school premises of Christ the King College (a popular OFM run school in Calbayog City). With us in the dining room is Father Marcelo Tubac, the school's OIC President, whom I also ask for some information about the area, along with Father Rosales who has arranged my media visit in the city.

I say that this metropolis in Samar is not touristy: narrow streets as we've meandered through it, having only one or two (yet tiny) department stores with small number of celebrated refreshment centres. Seeing foreign travellers roaming around here is sporadic. However, it does have something very important. The splendour of the city's natural attractions, its colourful culture and arts, historical features and the ancient relics in its museum are simply remarkable, which interest me to even travel 22 hours by sea from my port of origin in Northwestern Mindanao Southern Philippines, with stopover in Cebu, sailing through the island straits of Leyte.

We do have natural spots here, Father Marlowe tells me, but still fairly developed. These are beaches and waterfalls; a hot spring that provides therapeutic waters; and a number of caves in its forests (part of Samar Island's vast labyrinth of caves) that hardly ever visited by domestic and foreign tourists. I can assist you going to these attractions if you choose to stay long, Father Marlowe convinces me. I just nod whilst still being seated at the dining room. But tomorrow, he continues, we're going to drive eleven kilometres off this city for the orchestra concert.

I consume the following time visiting the tourism office. Drenched in the 11:00am sunlight, Joel and I do photo shots on its still quaintly Spanish-looking facade. Just in front of it is Calbayog's very old cathedral the Franciscan Jose Gomez de Huerce had built during the late 1840s. In my appointment with Tourism Officer Erlinda Calesa she gives me a historical book about the city. And it appears that the year 1739 traces the records of Calbayog's earliest establishment.

I head back to the Friary for lunch and, a few hours after, set myself to visit its museum, situated just close to the High School grounds of Christ the King College. Oh, I should keep you in touch with Carl, says Father Marcelo, he can give you details about the museum. Calbayog's Samar Archeological and Cultural Museum is the only one in the Eastern Visayas Region open to the public that keeps some ancient burial jars, human craniums and bones, artifacts recovered in several towns of Samar five decades ago.

There are vintage brass musical instruments also kept inside the museum, said to be legacy of the late Jose Cinco Gomez, a great composer of Calbayog in the 1960s, otherwise known as the Music Man of Samar. Troves of different ancient relics, including old manuscripts in the 17th century, are put on display inside lined framed glasses positioned at the museum's centre walkway.

The following day finds us driving through a narrow road off the city to witness the said orchestra concert in Migara, situated at the upper vicinity of Calbayog, about eleven kilometres away from the city proper.

Jose Cinco Gomez, in fact, was the famous composer in Samar, who had had his "Colegio de San Vicente de Paul Orchestra" organised in 1930 (renamed the "Cecilian Orchestra" two years later).

Jose Gomez's organised orchestra five decades ago had enjoyed performing its original pieces to Calbayog and its neighbouring towns and even played classical symphony from immense European Legends as Mozart, Bach, and Beethoven. However, Samar's piece of music died right after the day Jose Gomez passed away in 1975. And no one, since then, has ever taken his place to revive such rare legacy he left.

Father Marlowe then embarked on a great task of reviving Calbayog's symphony, which has been dormant for three decades, and bringing music to young students of Christ the King College. Obtained his "Bachelor of Music in Conducting" and "Bachelor of Music in Music Education" in the University of Santo Tomas Manila in 1998-2001, he began teaching students at CKC such orchestral instruments, including piano, and the reading of its musical notes which is the most difficult and crucial of all. "I say it's tough, really," explains the 38-year-old priest. "I even thought trumpet was just a mere instrument where you simply blow on it in order to create harmonic tunes," Father Marlowe smiles. "In the case of strings," he adds, "I'd had assistance from already learnt students to do a help on others for fast learning."

The long months of difficult endeavours had turned into one great honour when Father Marlowe Rosales set up the "CKC Jose Gomez Orchestra" in 2007, signifying the renaissance of the island's long lost legacy for more than three decades. The symphony group then did its first performance at the Monastery of Saint Clare on March 9, 2008, followed by concerts at different venues in several towns of the province, and even spent successful performances at Philippine Capital sites as Manila's Century Park Hotel, Mall of Asia, and Forbes Park.

CKC Jose Gomez Orchestra members are composed of high school learners as young as 13 to 16. Many tried, but not all were selected, to become participants of the Orchestra's first chorale set. Persistent interest and discipline on the part of aspirants came to be the basis of the final selection.

The long months of difficult endeavours had turned into one great honour when Father Marlowe Rosales set up the "CKC Jose Gomez Orchestra" in 2007, signifying the renaissance of the island's long lost legacy for more than three decades. The symphony group then did its first performance at the Monastery of Saint Clare on March 9, 2008, followed by concerts at different venues in several towns of the province, and even spent successful performances at Philippine Capital sites as Manila's Century Park Hotel, Mall of Asia, and Forbes Park.

CKC Jose Gomez Orchestra members are composed of high school learners as young as 13 to 16. Many tried, but not all were selected, to become participants of the Orchestra's first chorale set. Persistent interest and discipline on the part of aspirants came to be the basis of the final selection.

Although some uninitiated people do criticise it, CKC Orchestra is the only orchestra existing in Samar provinces (or perhaps, in the entire Philippine Islands in terms of young school artists) that has successfully established itself and even obtained noteworthy publicity from famous Philippine media as ABS-CBN's "Umagang Kay Ganda" and GMA's "Mel & Joey" in 2009 and 2010, respectively. Because of this rare and great achievement (same as the Franciscan Father Cantius Kobak), the City Government Council passed an Official Resolution on October 11, 2010 declaring Father Marlowe Rosales (a native from Ozamiz City, Southern Philippines) as an "Adopted Son of Calbayog".

Mike and Marizel

Michael Mulaly and Marizel Harrison got married today. The Wedding Mass was held at the Sts. Peter and Paul Cathedral with Rev. Fr. Iluminado Paulino as Main Celebrant and Monsignor Antonio Petilla as Homilist. Reception was held as the NwSSU Socio-Cultural Center.

Calbayog's young achievers

Congratulations to the new set of Calbayog's young achievers!

Baclayon Church, at last

It all started with my undergraduate thesis where I tried to chronicle the history of the Sts. Peter and Paul Cathedral. And I got stuck on old churches. The church of Baclayon was one of those which I have always wanted to visit. That came true last Monday. WHEW! That's all I could say as the old structure simply took my breath away. How I wish our own church in Calbayog was preserved (or maintained) that same way that they did in Baclayon.

Kwaresma Na

I was in Cebu when we observed this year's Ash Wednesday. As with the past so many years, I found myself in a Church (in this case the Basilica del Sto. Niño) to attend mass and to undergo that age-old ritual we call "pamuring".

As with the previous Ash Wednesdays, I took some pictures during the mass.

a close encounter with my long lost relative

Nagkita guihapun kami san akun urupod. That's how I fondly refer to my first encounter with the Tarsier. Our countryside tour brought us to this "sanctuary" on our way to Carmen, Bohol for the Chocolate Hills.

My first zipline "ride"

I had my first zipline ride (am I using the right term?) today. It's the suiside ride at the Danao Adventure Park in Danao, Bohol. It is touted at the longest and the highest in the country.

So how was it? Well, I'll do it again. Here are some pix of my "ride" courtesy of De. Teody Fortaleza.

Renil and Katherine

Renil Malobo and Katherine Serrano will get married today. Fr. Iluminado Paulino will preside over their Wedding Mass at the Sts. Peter and Paul Cahtedral. Reception will be held at the Centennial Pastoral Center.