Baguio Centennial Updates, June 22, 2008

It is exactly 434 days before the 100th Charter Day Anniversary of Baguio City on September 1, 2009.
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TRIVIA: Did you know that in Baguio’s early years, the vice mayor, members of the city council, and members of the advisory council served without compensation? On October 4, 1909, appointed as members of the advisory council in the municipal service of Baguio were Mateo Carantes, Sioco Carino, Cuidno, Molintas, and Piraso, all original settlers of the township. The other appointed members of the city council were Conrad P. Hatheway, Capt. Milash R. Hilgard, H. Phelps Whitmarsh, and acting councilors John H. Rethinger, Lt. Eugene Reybold, and John Wagner. The justice of the peace was William M. Brower, while the city attorney was Asterio Favis.
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The original list of Baguio City memorial sites was trimmed down to 15 by the committee headed by Dr. Ronnie Paraan this week. Criteria followed by the committee in qualifying the sites were its 100-year old existence and its historical significance. These sites are being eyed for memorial markers that the Commission intends to put up before the grand celebration next year.
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In this connection, the committee is calling on all college students to join in a centennial marker design contest that aims to gather inputs for the historical occasion. The activity is open to all college students from any course and presently enrolled in Baguio schools. The contest is slated on July 16th, 2008 at the Baguio Convention Center lobby, and pre-registration shall be open until July 15th. The Commission shall provide illustration boards, while participants may use any colored medium for their artworks. Artworks shall be based on an area of 18 by 24 inches, in full color, and in three-dimensional or perspective illustrations. Criteria include the theme, visual impact, design, and originality. Cash and the prestige of winning await the winners of the Centennial marker design contest, while all entries automatically become property of the Commission.
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Doc Ronnie Paraan’s committee has also finalized designs for the official Centennial commemorative plates, along with proposed house plates and business plates. The proposals are up for discussions in the Commission this week.
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Also to be presented is the prototype of the Centennial calendar project under the publications committee of Mr. Gerry A. Evangelista Sr. It is hoped that the calendars will be ready for distribution in a fund-raising dinner coinciding with this year’s 99th Charter Day celebrations in September.
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CenteCom Chairman Dr. Virgilio C. Bautista, in a meeting with Commissioners Mike Pearson and Gerry A. Evangelista Sr. this week discussed the possibility of holding at least one major Centennial activity per month, gradually building up to the grand celebration on September 1, 2009. The proposal is up for discussion in this week’s regular CenteCom meeting.
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Businessman Mos Cating is bound to give a much-needed boost to the Centennial celebration efforts as he leaves for the United States this week. He has pledged to lobby US-based Baguio residents in California to support the Centennial programs and activities, even as he is set to meet with Baguio City High alumni meeting in Seattle, Washington for a similar purpose.
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