On a KBS reunion
Have you noticed how many reunions and homecomings among family members, barkadas, and former schoolmates are being held with such high frequency these days?
Post-pandemic lockdown, people have become so hungry for the company of other people, especially those who have crossed their paths once upon a time or those with whom they have formed deep bonds.
Myself, I am no exception. My social calendar has been bursting with get-together’s with classmates from elementary, high school, university, and the workplace, since the last Christmas season.
It has been decades since most of us last saw each other, so that it was with so much fun and excitement when we, former co-workers at Kanlaon Broadcasting System (KBS) , re-gathered at the Phil-am Homes Clubhouse in Quezon City on Feb. 8.
The event assembled 125 former employees representing RPN-9, IBC-13, and BBC-2, then the largest networks in Philippine broadcasting. At least 24 of them were balikbayans, mostly from the US.
Amid shrieks, hugs, and vesos, we renewed our ties and recalled our old friendships at the workplace. What pleasure there is in attending reunions among people with a shared past!
For at least one whole day, all 125 of us felt the surge, the energy of youth, all over again as we laughed and cried over things we either did or never did when we were in our 20s and 30s. Those were the best years, we kept telling ourselves, as KBS moved from Bohol Avenue (Broadcast Plaza) to Tandang Sora (Broadcast City), both in Quezon City.
Our Feb. 8 special event was made even more momentous by the presence of the late Kitchie Benedicto’s family members, led by her daughter, Rep. Juliet Ferrer.
From my own biased end, let me say here I was so glad to touch base
once more with friends like Ruby Guzman Dado, our former secretary at KBS Public Affairs department, Rene Araujo, Edith Amat del Rosario, Fe Silica Arellano, Agnes Caballa, Rebecca Macainag Cabrera, Liza Katigbak, Miriam Guamen, Howard Medina, our news cameraman Eric, radio icon Tina Loy, Elena Dimanahan, Susan Orin Trinidad, Brother Wayne Enage, and so many others.
I totally missed my former colleagues at Public Affairs, Tommy Lopez, Nila Barican Tupaz, Baba Loanzon Flores, Bibeth Orteza (nasaan ka), Lito Datoc, Joey Aquino, Jerry Ronquillo, Sammy Arce, Danny Rondon, and our boss, Emil Jurado.
Thank you very much to the KBS Steering Committee---agnes Caballa, Fe Silica Arellano, Marites Boquiron, Susan Trinidad, Vera Yllana, Mike del Mundo, and Serafin Bautista --- for all the hard work exerted to make the reunion not just grand but also most enjoyable.