Reach for the Stars…
On Saturday, September 17th, the 27th PBSSQ Awards Night was held in the Town of Mont-Royal Town Hall. It is an event to honor two very important facets in our community: youth and volunteers. I had the chance to attend this evening as an Intern with Ashley Espinosa this year. Basically, my job was to help around the room to see if anybody needed anything. By doing this, I got to see our community in full action.
Then night started out somewhat late, following the well-known Filipino time schedule. When the food was finally on the tables, it was time for the guest speaker, none other than Marc Garneau, to go up. Being the first Canadian man to see our planet from outer space, he had lots to say. His words held the whole room in silence for a few moments. He was truly inspiring not only with his speech but also this own success story. Now, he is the representative of the riding of Westmont – Ville-Marie since 2008. Mr. Garneau finished his speech just as I finished my plate.
He was followed by beautiful performances by Salinggawi, a folkloric dance troupe from Montreal. The importance of dance troupes like these is never fully appreciated. Their outstanding work entertains but also keeps our traditions alive in the cosmopolitan city of Montreal. We were also serenaded by Marie Josée Tambanillo and Cristine Toca. Last but not least, a award winner took the stage. Jillian Sudayan gave a breath-taking
performance in Italian. She first dedicated her song to Gene Santander, then literally had the crowd begging for more and finally did an encore.
To close the evening, we got to the heart of the event: the awards. I got to have dinner with the scholarship awardees. Jane-Marie Ramil and Laura Ranaudo, were the Elemantary scholars. They are two very lovely girls and also very shy. Joanne-May Ramil and Micheal-Angelo Yadao were the High School Scholars. Being the same age as them, the conversation was somewhat alive. Finally, there is the university Scholar, Jilian Sudayan who, by then, was a celebrity in the room.
As they got their medals, we had to prepare the benevolent awardees, three amazing women each in their own way. Grace Sencio Yip, Roquina E. Orillaneda and Monica Regacho. I could feel their excitement as the walked up to accept their prizes. The vibe was definitely different compared to the young scholars. These women were very happy to have been honored. Their awards represented the numerous years of service and
experience that the youth have yet to give. In their eyes, there was a special joy of being honored for all their actions in our community.
The 27th annual benevolent and scholarship awards night could have not been possible without an amazing group of people, their executive board and president Dr. Ermie Pelausa. They work every year to make it the best they can. 2011 is no different. To anybody that is interested, PBSSQ starts looking for youth scholars near the end of the school year. Maybe I’ll see you next awards night!
