2011 Christmas Party Review

We would like to thank everyone who attended our wonderful Christmas party on Saturday, December 10, 2011.  The turnout was fantastic and we continue to receive many compliments and rave reviews from those who attended.  We are taking the time to post this review of our event for all our members as memorabilia and for those who weren't able to attend. 

One of our goals for next year is to increase the amount of guests and participants at our next Christmas party.  We hope you can share this review with others so they can see that our next Christmas party will be a  "can't miss" event for the 2012 Christmas season. 

Meanwhile, please enjoy this review and have a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! 

2011 BIBBAK-Illinois Christmas Party Review

VENUE

Due to the expected increased number of people attending this year, we were fortunate to find an alternative venue that could accommodate all of us.  We would like to thank the Egyptian community and St. Mark Coptic Orthodox Church in Burr Ridge for allowing us to use their gymnasium for our Christmas party.  There were other activities taking place that day at St. Mark and we had several people stop by to see what was going on in their gymnasium.  Everyone we met was very nice and hospitable.  We would also like to give special thanks to Nabeel and Reda Saadalla of St. Mark for all the help they provided prior and during the event.  We can't say enough about St. Mark and its congregation.  

MEMORIAL

A short memorial was given in memory of those who have died within the past few years.  Again, we would like to offer our thoughts and prayers to the families and friends of:

• Henry Sapdcopen Sr. (6/27/09)
• Augustin Sarmiento (3/26/11)
• Donald Simon (10/4/11)

HONORARY GUESTS

BIBBAK-IL Officers with Philippine Consul General & his Wife

We would like to thank the following for their presence at our party:

• Leo M. Herrera-Lim  (Philippine Consul General)
• Fides Herrera-Lim  (Philippine Consul General's Wife)
• Estrella Ravelo Alamar (Founding President of Filipino American Historical Society of Chicago)
• Ruben & Merle Salazar (Filipino Cultural Ambassadors for Fil-Am Youths)

Fides Herrera-Lim Speaking to the Audience

We would especially like to thank Fides Herrera-Lim for her kind and inspiring words.  We were very happy to hear her message.  In addition, it was both consoling and refreshing for many of our BIBBAK-IL members to learn she is a fellow Igorota (Ibaloi).  We thank her and her husband for all the support they have given BIBBAK-IL this past year and we look forward to developing our relationship with them in the future.

FOOD & BEVERAGES

You never know what kind of food may turn up during a pot-luck party.  Fortunately for us, the delicacies that appeared not only pleased our palettes and stomachs, but they were also fine examples of Igorot and Filipino cuisine.  There were too many dishes and too many names to individually thank here, but we would like to give special thanks to Norman Longid & Family for providing the Lechon and the Batanes, Lehman & Aquisan families for butchering the goat. 

A big round of applause goes out to everyone who contributed food, deserts and drinks.  The following dishes are just a few of the many that comprised the collage of culinary cuisines that graced our tables that night:

Lechon, Kambing Kilowen, Kambing, Dinardaraan, Pinikpikan, Papaitan, Chicken Adobo, Fried Rice, Tapey, Dinakdakan, Fish, Egg Rolls, Barbecue Chicken, Dinengdeng, Shrimp, Vegetables, Igado, Cassava, Dikut, Ube, Leche Flan and so much more.

FUN & GAMES

What would a party be without fun and games?  We would like to thank Raul Buendia and everyone who helped make the games for children and adults so much fun. 

ENTERTAINMENT

Our BIBBAK-Illinois family is very lucky to have so many talented people.  Thanks to Lynn Fackayan and others, our young children conveyed a wonderful Christmas message by performing their version of the Nativity scene.    The teenagers also contributed with various musical performances. 

The youth weren't the only ones to delight the audience.  Women of BIBBAK-IL showcased their stage prowess by performing a spectacular interpretive dance of Salidumay while also spreading festive cheer through series of fun holiday dances.  The seniors, better known as the veteran youth, also took the stage to share holiday songs with our very own Igorot Elvis playing his mandolin.  

The best was saved for last when the BIBBAK-IL men surprised the crowd with their rendition of the Evolution of Dance.  At first, the audience watched what was beginning as the Bontoc war dance, when suddenly one of the teens, Mikayla Delson, interrupted and sent the dancers back stage.  "This is Christmas. Not a time for war," she scolded.  Then she instructed the sound man to cue the music, thus cuing the men to begin a series of past and present American dances in their wanes/bahags.  The audience absolutely loved it.

NATIVE DANCING

Bendian Dance

Ifugao Dance

Pattong

In addition to all the fun that comes from games and performances, what would a BIBBAK-IL party be without our native dances?  We are thrilled to hear from many people about their happiness to see our native dancing brought back to the BIBBAK-IL Christmas party and all of our BIBBAK-IL events.  This year's  Ifugao addition to BIBBAK is being received with so much joy.  The rich dances from Ifugao more than compliment the Ibaloi and Mt. Province dances that we have been dancing this past year.  Huge thanks go out to Ray Baguilat, Joel Tayaban and all our Ifugao friends who brought their wonderful dances to the party. 

FUND RAISING

As announced in the beginning of the year at BIBBAK-IL's Kickoff Meeting, the money we raised is being sent to the Cordilleras to help a much needed endeavor to save our culture by aiding in the documentation, education and promotion of our indigenous knowledge.  The money will be going to the following network of organizations that are spearheading this endeavor:

• Cordillera Indigenous Knowledge Network (CordiknowN)
• Cordillera Administrative Region Association of State Universities & Colleges (CARASUC)
• Benguet State University Center for Culture and the Arts (BSU-CCA)

Interestingly enough, our fundraising display table attracted several of our younger children.  The book, "Stories of Alapu" was picked up and read by many of the children.  Some went as far as to read it in length.  This was truly a very encouraging sign for us adults to see that night. 

We would like to remind everyone of the importance of this endeavor with the following quotes:

"These storybooks ["Stories of Alapu" books] will give parents and their children an opportunity to read indigenous stories of their "Alapus" (ancestors) and learn from them. . . I commended the project team for realizing the importance of gathering and publishing these local stories so that younger generations will know their very own folk stories." - Governor Dalog

"Why don't you look into the preservation or conservation of the indigenous material and non-material culture of the region? These are fast disappearing.  It is an irony that "educated" leaders of the region are talking of autonomy but look of what they are pushing at. They talk of development but only infrastructures, developing material resources but what use are these if the people will lose their identity and values as a people."  - Marcelino Delson (former President Mt. Province Polytechnic College)

"He who does not know how to look back at where he came from will never get to his destination."  - Dr. Jose Rizal

As our party was taking place, the mentioned organizations above were conducting their second week of "Cordidance Powow" back home in the Cordilleras.  In addition to publicizing the Stories of Alapu, they are now creating educational and instructional videos of our native dances.  They were told of our commitment to support their efforts and were gracious to take several minutes out of their time during their event to personally thank us.  Here is what the students had to say:

THANK YOU AGAIN

We want to thank again everyone who shared in that memorable evening with us.  We realize it took some of you more than an hour (in some cases two hours) to travel to the party.  It really means a lot to us that those people from Rockford, Chicago, Elgin, Grayslake and all the other distant places decided not to make the distance a reason for not attending.  We also realize many just weren't able to make it for good reasons such as work schedules and sickness.  We know you wanted to come, and we truly missed you, but rest assured that your heart's desire to attend was felt by us in that gymnasium that night.  In essence, you were there in spirit.

SPECIAL GRATITUDE FROM REX

I would like to thank all of the officers and leaders of BIBBAK-IL who volunteered their precious time in the preparation and coordination of our Christmas party.  I especially want to thank:

Gerald and Kathleen Batanes:  Thank you for your leadership and support throughout the entire process.  I am grateful for letting us use your house to practice and prepare, for your wonderful ideas (especially the men's dance routine) and many more.

 Marlon and Marissa Jose:  Thank you for spearheading many of our activities and opening you house for us to practice and prepare.  I am grateful for all the "behind the scenes" things that you contributed, but most importantly - your time and support.

Merry Christmas everyone and we hope to see you throughout the oncoming year ahead.  For the sake of our future generations, let’s keep this train rolling  :)

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