Some 30 years ago, a sistership of 20 was formed, among Connie Baylon, Adel Burgos, Nieves Callanta, Lou de Belen, Citas Diaz, Lita Gamboa, Shawn Gochangco, Tess Gonzales, Layda Llamanzares, Dita Medina, Virgie Nadal, Pining Ocampo, Amy Puno, Tess Pusta, Ched Rana, Lulu Roa, Tess Salazar, Albertine Santi, Edna Santiago, and Ruby Sioson. The common thread that bound us together was being part of the former Operations Department.
Ours has always been a loosely formed group. There are no officers except the “holder of treasure.” There are no goals to meet, no rules to submit to, no need for minutes. The group meets as often as desired. In time, we started to call our group the OBG...Oldies but Goodies.
Over the years we have “raised husbands,” nourished and nursed kids, stood as godmothers for each other’s children, taken care of ageing parents, married off children, buried parents, taken driving lessons, crocheted curtains and knitted baby dresses, and done all the things that women do together. We aged, not only numerically but also dimensionally; we became grandmothers.
Mostly baby boomers, we grew and matured during a golden age when women developed to become competent persons, able to hold a job, manage a home, and be creative. Many of us are actively engaged in parish work. A number of us are continuously caring for parents. Some are extending helping hands in the care of grandchildren.
Standing (L–R): Tess Salazar, Dita Medina, Lulu Roa, Albertine Santi, Tess Pusta, Lita Gamboa, Ched Rana, Virgie Nadal, Lou de Belen, Amy Puno, Ruby Sioson.
Seated (L–R): Layda Llamanzares, Nieves Callanta, and Tess Gonzales. Taken at the Makati Garden Club in December 2009.
We planned varied activities during our quarterly stints. We once rented a van to drive to Vigan. We joined a walking tour of Chinatown. We boarded the Pasig River ferry at Makati, got off at Escolta, and shopped. We lunched at the Makati Shangrila. We made a pilgrimage to churches in Rizal and Laguna. We attended a healing mass in Los Baños.
We also did some outreach activities. Once, we went to spread cheer to senior citizens at Golden Acres. We listened to their life stories, and joined their choir in singing Christmas carols. We played games, sang songs, and danced with children stricken with cancer at the Child’s House in Quezon City. Our hearts went out to the children with cerebral palsy when we visited their home—The Chosen Children in Tagaytay.
We did not forget culture. We visited the Ayala Museum and the artists of Angono. We visited Marikina City to see how a third-class municipality can rise and become a well-run city.
The OBG provides a field for love to prosper and grow. We cry with a sister when her heart is full of woe. We pray with her, too. We cheer for a sister when she gets a coveted post, when a daughter is summa cum laude, when a son takes a bride, when a husband wins a court case, when the doctor declares one is CA-free, and the most joyful of all graces—when a grandchild is born. The OBG is a circle of hands ready to share, to sympathize, to pray with, to laugh with, to be joyful with, to suffer with.
The OBG has had some changes: two of our members are now US-based, but manage to visit once a year; another who spent nearly 20 years in the US has returned; and two have passed away. At this time, what do we have look forward to? Maybe to celebrate our 40 years of togetherness, of sisterhood... Yey, OBG!