Filling the community with music

by Isabel

When my sisters and I joined the DEH youth choir years ago, the choir was led by two brothers — Pip (who I recently learned has passed away, bless him) and Ikel Gadi.

The brothers told stories and made us laugh, but they both loved music and were talented musicians as well (Pip played the guitar and Ikel, the piano). They taught us songs and vocal arrangements, pushed us in our vocalization, and scolded us when we were lazy. Between Pip’s soft-spoken demeanor and Ikel’s stern nature, the choir slowly went from an out-of-tune (or tempo), rowdy, disorganized, bunch of kids to a group with a purpose: to fill the community with music at the upcoming fiesta. (We were still a bit rowdy, but at least we knew what we were doing, and why.)

The Gadis, who used to live just a few houses from us, have long since moved out. But sometimes I catch myself humming the songs they taught us, or I hear certain songs sung at Mass, and I am transported back to those younger, more carefree days.

Tomorrow (Saturday), the community’s musical tradition continues. If you want to help fill the community with music, head for Our Lady of Remedies Chapel for the DEH music ministry workshop at 1:30pm. It is expected to be a fun and rewarding way to spend the afternoon.

Election Day

Voting in Barangay Holy Spirit was generally peaceful. Luckily this is not — and probably never will be — an election hotspot. Aside from the lack of monobloc chairs and ballot secrecy folders, everything seemed to be order.

In the Philippines, you can tell which building is a voting precinct because of the concentration of posters and streamers displayed like buntings. In the case of Barangay Holy Spirit, sample ballots littered the area leading to the barangay hall. Nothing new, really. But what was new — to me, at least — was the presence of a laptop at the information booth, where one volunteer was verifying names and precinct numbers.

May the best men and women for our community, our city, and ultimately, our nation win this year’s elections!

DEH music ministry workshops

by Isabel

The DEH Music Ministry is inviting all residents of Don Enrique Heights, young and “the not-so-young” alike, to attend the music ministry workshops one Saturday afternoon per quarter.

The objectives of the workshop are as follows:

to teach new songs and vocal arrangements to members of the different choirs and to the congregation, and practice current songs so that the community may sing as one during the celebration of the mass;

to discover new talents in the community;

to provide vocal training to the members of the different choirs; and

to foster awareness of the vital role of the music ministry (prayer in song).

Other objectives include to encourage stronger ties with neighbors through community activity and to promote the work of homegrown composers and arrangers.

For inquiries and registration, kindly get in touch with Ms. Pauline Balao. You may also leave a reply below.

The first workshop is on 19 May (Saturday) from 1:30-4:30 PM at the Our Lady of Remedies Chapel. Next batches will be in August and October.

See you there!

Elections 2007

by Isabel

It’s looking a lot like fiesta season, but it’s not. It’s election season — nearing its frenzied end. What else would explain the posters and tarp banners of all colors, sizes, and shapes along Holy Spirit Drive?

With barely two weeks to go before the elections, do you know who your candidates are?

Until last week, I actually thought that incumbent Quezon City Mayor Sonny Belmonte was running unopposed. Thanks to this article in The Manila Times Internet Edition, I found out that there are three other candidates for mayor — Romeo Acebedo, Florian Alvarez, and Andy Rosales.

Similarly, Vice Mayor Herbert Bautista is being challenged by Rogelio Olesum and Roland Jota of the Kilusang Bagong Lipunan.

In District II, our district, Rep. Annie “Rosa” Susano is up against a QC former mayor — Jun Simon — and two former representatives — Dante Liban and Chuck Mathay.

According to the Manila Times report, our district — the largest in QC in both land area and population — has the most candidates for city councilor. Including the six councilors in office — Winnie Castelo, Aiko Melendez-Jickain, Ramon Medalla, Voltaire Godofredo “Bong” Liban III, Eric Medina, and Allan Francisco — there are 22 candidates all in all. Among them is Chito Valmocina, our incumbent barangay chairman.

I tried, but could not get the names of all the other candidates for city councilor. Hopefully, we can find out who they are before 14 May!

A chapel for Isidora Hills

by Isabel

During the Holy Week, we were pleasantly surprised to find that there was one more chapel in the community to add to our list of seven churches for the Visita Iglesia.

Our Lady of the Sacred Heart Chapel is off Holy Spirit Drive in Isidora Hills. If you have never noticed it, that is because it is not visible unless you are coming from the gas station or from the general direction of BF Homes.

On-and-off construction
Though the ground-breaking ceremonies for the chapel were held in May 2002, it was not until February 2004 that construction actually started. “When we began, we had no money,” recalls Sr. Bibiana Kim of the Missionaries of the Sacred Heart (MSC). Funds and materials came in “trickles” from the homeowners and their relatives and friends. Construction was on and off, until in late 2004, it stopped altogether.

In March 2005, the MSC Sisters donated the chapel’s roof. The flooring was also installed and completed. This brought renewed enthusiasm into the homeowners’ fund raising efforts, and more donations started to pour in.

Finally, the first Mass was celebrated by Fr. Tom Flores of the Parish of the Holy Spirit on 6 November 2005, more than three years since the ground breaking. Since then, regular Sunday Masses have been held at 7:30 am.

A channel
The chapel is dedicated to Our Lady of the Sacred Heart, an image of whom stands at the foot of the cross near the altar.

The image was completed and installed in May 2006, in time for the Feast Day of Our Lady of the Sacred Heart. It is an image of Mary standing and facing Jesus, with her left hand raised towards Him and her right hand towards the ground.

Sr. Bibiana explains it this way: “The Blessed Mother is getting grace from Her Son and giving it to us. At the same time, She is saying, ‘If you have problems, I will bring them to My Son’.”

“This means the Blessed Mother is the channel,” she adds.

Happy Easter!

May the Risen Lord bless our community this Easter and always! Happy Easter to all!

(Our DEH Community thanks KVilla of East Axis Creative for the Easter graphic.)

Holy Week schedules

Just in case you miss the services at the Our Lady of Remedies Chapel, here are the schedules of the nearby churches:

Parish of St. Benedict

Holy Monday to Holy Wednesday

5:30pm	Way of the Cross
6:00pm	Mass

Holy Wednesday

7:00pm	Novena to Our Lady of Perpetual Help
7:45pm-12mn	Confession

Holy Thursday

5:30pm	Washing of the Feet
7-10pm	Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament

Good Friday

7:00am	Way of the Cross
1:00pm	Seven Last Words
3:00pm	Veneration of the Cross

Saturday

9:00pm

Easter Vigil

Easter Sunday

4:30am	Salubong
5:00am	Easter Mass
8:00am	Easter Mass
10:00am	Easter Mass
6:00pm	Easter Mass

St. Peter Parish

Holy Monday to Holy Wednesday

6:00am	Mass
7:00am	Mass
12:00nn	Mass
5:30pm	Confession
6:00pm	Mass
6:30pm	Confession
7:00pm	Mass

Holy Thursday

10am-12nn	Confession
6:00pm	Washing of the Feet
7:30pm-12mn	Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament

Good Friday

7:00am	Stations of the Cross (new)
9:00am	Stations of the Cross (old)
8-11am	Confession
3:00pm	Veneration of the Cross
6:00pm	Confession

Saturday

10:00pm

Easter Vigil

Easter Sunday

4:00am

Salubong

regular Sunday schedule

Holy Week in DEH

(The following was contributed by Naty Lapuz-Templo.)

By now, residents of Don Enrique Heights should have their copies of the Holy Week program distributed by the chapel committee. The program details the religious activities to be observed in the community from the afternoon of Saturday, 31 March, up to Easter Sunday, 8 April.

As tradition dictates, there will be the blessing of palms, the triumphant entry of Jesus into Jerusalem, washing of apostles’ feet, mass of the Last Supper, Stations of the Cross around the park (not through the streets of DEH as in previous years) with the chapel as the starting point, commemoration of the Lord’s Passion, the procession of the Sto. Entierro, the lamayan, the Easter vigil mass, the blessing of fire and the Easter candle, and the salubong.

One, if not all, of our three resident priests — Fathers Steve Tynan, Geoffrey Coombe, and Brian Steele — will be available to hear confessions in the afternoon of Saturday, 31 March. If we cannot make it then, we can still go to confession at St. Benedict Parish on Holy Wednesday, 4 April, at 6:30 p.m.

Although it does not appear in the program, a pabasa is scheduled on Monday, 2 April. I heard that a group from Bulacan will do the chanting/reading. I wonder why residents have not been encouraged to participate in it.

We shall not hear the Seven Last Words in our chapel on Good Friday. This activity will be done in St. Benedict Parish at 1:00 p.m.

Those who will go to the Easter vigil mass on Saturday evening need not bring candles. The chapel committee will provide these, equipped with decorative shields/guards that will catch the candle drippings (instead of them from falling on the chapel floor).

On Easter Sunday, kids will again be treated to some fun and prizes at an Easter egg hunt on the chapel grounds at 7:30 a.m. With Babeth Lazo, Auring Santos, and Maritoni Littaua as the ladies in charge, our young “egg hunters” can expect an exciting time. Since about eight years ago, we have incorporated this western activity into our Easter celebrations, like other urban communities. In some places, though, children look forward to the ringing of church bells during the “Gloria” symbolizing Christ’s resurrection from the dead, at which time they must jump in the air, in the belief that this will “help them grow taller.”

Mapping the community

by Isabel

When you’re new to a place, sometimes you’ll need a map to find your way around. But when you’ve lived there for some time, you know the place well enough to have your own internal map. You’d know the shortcuts, for example. You’d also know that to get to where you want to go, you have to pass the house with the blue gate, or the one with the white car in the garage, or the big garden full of orchids. You’d know which stores would still be open by the time you get home from work. Or which place sells the sweetest mangoes or serves the best coffee.

These are not the details that you’d find on maps available in stores or even online. And some places — like DEH and the surrounding areas, for example — are just too small to have their own map.

This is exactly why Platial exists. Calling itself “The People’s Atlas,” Platial “enables anyone to find, create and use meaningful maps of Places that matter to them.” Their aim is to “connect people, neighborhoods, cities and countries through a citizen-driven common context that goes beyond geopolitical boundaries.”

The idea behind these personal maps or what has been called “neogeography” is very much related to “place blogging” (i.e. the map itself is your blog — but maybe this is for another blog post). So Our DEH Community now has its own little map (see the lower part of the sidebar, right side) that shows some landmarks recognizable to anyone living in DEH or other nearby subdivisions.

High-tech tricks for seniors

by Isabel

I’d like to share part of an email I received from a member of the community about using the Internet:

I belong to an egroup of college classmates, which we started four years or so ago with only a handful, but which has expanded now to more than half of the class. The medium led us to reconnect with one another. Many have settled in different parts of the world but mostly in the USA. We are closer now than when we were in college. Actually, it is a case of rediscovering the true person in each one or the person that has evolved since graduation….

I’m sharing this because as you said in one of your blog posts, some parents are asking their kids to do this for them….

…let’s hope that the membership (of the mailing list) grows and the adult members of the community try not to be intimidated by the computer or that their children not be intimidating when they teach the tricks to their seniors.

This email illustrates two things. One is the Internet’s potential and capacity to bring people together. And the other is the the unfortunate but predominant assumption that seniors cannot or will not use the Internet.