"I was digging into my collection of music magazines when I came across the special issue of Jingle music mag and found this article. It reminds me a lot about the sights, sounds and the smell of the ‘70s. I scanned the article into an editable text to come up with ‘fresh copy’ so I can proudly share it with you and with our batchmates for all of us to reminisce the golden era of our lives. I am sure we all have fond memories of the 70s and this article will help us vividly remember those days gone by. Hope this can find a place in our website."

TOTO Delgado
IV-Ruby Batch 74

    Why me? I don't exactly enjoy flash-backs especially when there's not really not much to remember: On the other hand, an overload of memories get me panicky merely because I hate and curse myself for not being able to exactly remember every single detail of what and how it used to be. And now that I am tasked to write about the seventies, the problem seems to be how to compress so much memories in so little space and still make sense. Oh, well…

    To begin with, I'm actually not in a very good position to author a comprehensive retrospective on the seventies. Someone who'd probably be in his late thirties or early forties now would definitely do better in my place considering that I was just a naughty, pigtailed, Catholic-schooled girl in my elementary years then and was therefore not directly into the groove of this decade. The best remembrance of the seventies I could master is one that is quite personal in nature and one that, at times, may defeat chronological accuracy. But what the heck! Let's all sit back and enjoy every single memory of the seventies as we take a trip back in time.

    As a second grader at St. Paul's College (Q.C.) way back in-1972, I remember being so  awed seeing Rosa Rosal, in her flowery caftans picking up Toni Rose Gayda (who was in high school) every afternoon at the parking lot. I was also mesmerized by Gloria Romero and Juancho Gutierrez's presence during school affairs, attending to daughter Maritess' needs. Maritess was about Grade 7 then. Among my celebrity classmates that time were the daughters of Carina Afable, (who was a somebody in the Pinoy music scene) and Rollie Grande (director and head writer of Super Laff-In, one of my favorite TV shows), Pilita Corrales, who was busy waxing a barrage of OPM LPs then, was barely visible as a parent in the campus. During the rare times that she'd be around, she'd fashionably come in brightly-colored mini-skirts with strategically placed holes, on her navel and sides, wearing similarly dyed wigs and proudly showing off her imported knee-high wet-look boots. But whenever she can't make it, Jackie Lou Blanco's Spanish-speaking-yaya served as an alternative entertainment for us kids during dismissal.

My high school days were in QCHS. We were making plaka the songs of  America, James Taylor, Don McLean, Beatles, APO. We spoofed “OK Lang” in the HS Stage.

    In my starched and neatly ironed black and white checkered uniform, I'd come to school lugging a blue tin lunch box with extreme close-up shots of the Beatles embossed on its surface. Inside the kit were a thermos of cold calamansi juice and about three packs of peanut butter biscuits with the Beatles' name printed on their plastic wrappers.  Beatlemania was the standing order of those days.  Even at such a tender age, I gushed over Paul McCartney whom I found as the most guwapo and the cutest of them all.

    Meanwhile, on the local entertainment scene, LVN, Sampaguita Pictures and LEA Productions were lording it over the box office. Nora Aunor and Tirso Cruz III '(Guy & Pip) and Vilma Santos and Edgar Mortiz (Vi & Bot) were the reigning showbiz love teams. In school, my classmates had so much fun giving them silly monickers  (Nora Orinola and Vilma Santol). But all of us kids envied Nora for the pretty walking doll (Ma. Leonora Theresa) Tirso gave her as a love present not to mention the hit song that was written about the doll. At about that time, too, The Sensation received the nationwide adulation and following which That’s Entertainment is currently basking in.

My sister was a Noranian. I used to stop by a sari sari store to play Nora Aunor, Tirso Crz and Edidie Perigrina songs on the Jukebox.

    The top noontime TV shows then were Student Canteen (Eddie Ilarde and Bobby Ledesma) and TSP (Tony Santos, Sr. Presents) hosted by Vic Pacia (who later on hugged the headlines with his fatal car accident in Laguna), Sylvia La Torre, Tony Santos, Sr. (also the show's director) Tony Santos, Jr. (his son) and Baby' de Jesus (that ten piano virtuoso who came ahead of Cecil Licad).

    Evening programming usually started with Oras Ng Ligaya (hosted by Oscar Obligacion) at 6:00 p.m. Then came a tossup between Combat ( Ric Jason and Vic Morrow), Mission Impossible, MOD Squad, the tear jerking Balintataw the musical Tawag Ng Tanghalan, the hilarious Tang-Tarang-Tang (Mang Nano, Patsy, Marita Zobel and Bentot, Sr.) and Bahay-Bahayan (Tina Revilla, Ramon Zamora and Zeman Manahan) and Hawaii. Five- '(starring Jack Lord who's Oriental secretary in the show turned out to be Nanette Medved's mom). Weekend TV viewing for the kids' started with Tino Lapuz' Eskuwelahang Munti and Uncle Bob's Children Hour. Then there was Shintaro (the Japanese Bushido swordsman) on Channel 5. Ginang Milyonarya (Chichay and Rudy Manlapaz) and Super Laff-In (Champoy's jump-off show) had their respective audience share.

    In-between and during the shows was a well-loved commercial Coke's I'd Like To Teach The World To Sing (a jingle which remains a classic to this day). (We Share The Same Horizon , COMTRUST Jingle) Two of the most familiar, pretty faces gracing TV and print ads then were Maritess Revilla (perhaps the most popular Camay girl among them all) and Charina Zaragoza.

    Worth mentioning, too is that as far as I can remember; the first MTV (although, it wasn't called that yet) ever shot and shown was that of Sonny Cortez and Jeanne Young singing Top Of The World. This was followed by Sahlee Ouizqn's rendition of Good Morning Starshine.

    As for the movies, hit na hit noon yung Lost Horizon, Oliver (Mark Lester), Brian's Song and Love Story (Ali McGraw and Ryan O'Neal), to cite a few.

    Choco-vim was sold in plump bottles at  P0.35, Apple Sidra and RC Cola were a measly P0.25 while my daily baon was pegged at a shocking rate of P0.30 only. Can you imagine how much Texas bubble gum I could buy then at 3 pieces for P0.05 with my allowance? The earliest remembrance I could muster about jeepney fares then was it cost P0.30 per person for a reasonable distance. The P 1.00 coin now was a paper bill then and had an unbelievable purchasing power for a young girl whose main concern centered on sweets and goodies.

    It was also in 1972, September to be exact, when I woke up one morning to find out that classes in all schools and in all levels were suspended, that the TV and radio were mere statics and that the morning's supply of newspaper would not be delivered for a while. Martial Law was imposed (by then President Ferdinand Marcos) and the writ of habeas corpus was suspended. Kaliwa't kanan ang dakipan. Curfew was strictly imposed. The University of the Philippines, a threatened bastion of freedom, was revving up for what would be the historical First Quarter Storm.

    Various institutions were padlocked under the suspicion of rebellion and treason. My parents reminded our other household members and relatives to keep their mouth shut and not to say anything against the government. 1972 saw the birth of what would be 20 years of dictatorship. The settling-in of pseudo normalcy during the early Martial Law years saw the emergence of the government run Daily Express after a temporary media blackout. I kinda enjoyed reading this paper simply because it had colored photos and there was no other choice. Broadcasting on TV and radio was also resumed. Yun lang nga, limited ang number ng stations na may permit to operate.

    Besides, most of the time, the stations would obligingly comply with the government order of airing the Ang Bagong Lipunan jingle Sa ikauunlad ng bayan, disiplina ang kailangan became the nation's motto. Ariel Ureta was jailed for jokingly blaring on TV, Sa ikauunlad ng bayan, bisekleta ang, kailangan. Books entitled Notes On The New Society and The. Democratic Revolution (both authored by Marcos) were strewn around our house then because they were given free and my mom, who happened to be a government employee, could not refuse the offer (much to her consternation).

    It was also during these years that the execution by firing squad of Lim Seng, a Chinese drug pusher, was televised to serve as a lesson to would-be offenders. It was the first ever although way back in May 1972, the first execution by electric chair of the, rich scions who violated then matinee actress, Maggie de la Riva, was also aired live on TV.

    The whole country was put Under the Agrarian Reform program   Green Revolution campaign was strictly enforced subjecting every parcel of untenanted land, including, every backyard, to greening. I remember my father patiently tending to plots and plots of' eggplant, pechay, tomatoes, calamansi, okra, squash, patani, 'ampalaya and rows of malunggay, banana and coconut trees around our house. We hardly needed to go to the market anymore.

    Jaywalking was a serious crime then. This saw the proliferation of pedestrian lanes all over Manila. Offenders were caught and penalized by having to pull out weeds in the vicinity of Camp Crame. Martial Law also turned JINGLE into TWINKLE.

    As I grew older, I also grew more aware and became more appreciative of the music scenario. In fourth and fifth grades, I remember going gaga over the Apolinario Mabini Hiking Society (now the APO) who had four members then. My classmates and I also swooned over Jojit Paredes and Ronnie Henares. The airwaves were also peppered with songs waxed by Victor Wood, Darius Razon and Rudy Genasky. They filled the vacuum created by the untimely demise of Eddie Peregrina. I remember seeing Celeste Legaspi on TV - then, she was just a member of the famed Ambivalent Crowd. The Jackson Five became a mania. Motown lorded over the charts. The Carpenters were unstoppable. I remember the songs Love Me For What I Am and Did You Happen To See The Most Beautiful Girl as two of my early favorites.

    1974 was the year of the Ms. Universe Beauty Pageant. The Folk Arts Theater rose in 77 record-breaking days (courtesy of the Madame). Guadalupe Sanchez represented the country. Spain's Amparo Munoz captured the title. A runner-up Joanna-Raunio from Finland returned to the country to star in some local movies (Dyesebel, for one) and later married Raul  Roa her Pinoy leading man. Miss Aruba, Maureen AvaViera, made pictures, too, and likewise married a Pinoy, Philip Ysmael. The sarimanok was the pageant’s logo.

    Usong-sayaw by that time and the years after? El  Bimbo, latin hustle, salsa, swing and  bump. LPs came with instructional posters tucked inside. Usong, teenyboppers then? Donny & Marie Osmond, Tony Orlando & Dawn, Shaun Cassidy, Leif Garrett, parker Stevenson and Lance Kerwin  (of James At 15 to name a few). Usong TV shows? 6 -Million Dollar Man (Lee Majors as the Bionic Man) which later on gave birth to Bionic Woman (Lindsay Wagner), Wonder Woman ( Linda Carter), Nancy Drew And The Hardy Boys, Kaluskos Musmos (A KB-funded  project under Imee Marcos), Superstar (Nora Aunor), Flordeluna (Janice de Belen), Analiza  (Julie Vega), Spin-A-Win (Jeanne Young) and Ms. Ellaneous (Tina Revilla, Ma-an Hontiveros, Yogi Dominguez-Zaragoza). Of course, Pepe Pimentel was already Tito Pepe then with. his signature hep-hep hurray!

    And who could ever forget Penthouse 7 (hosted by Archie Lacson with Ray-An Fuentes, Poncy Quirino, Mike Monserrat and Sandy Hontiveros to name a few)? Fad sa school? Authograph books na may silly question like define love, describe your crush, your most unforgettable moment, etc. Uso rin  yung Tiger Beat and Teen Beat magazines, Bang-Bang and Great Jeans pants, BM, RJ, XQ an WK( mga radio stations na familiar sa akin).

    The Manila Sound then became such big hit. Hotdog  and Cinderella were among the most popular band then. Siyempre, yung Circus Band came after them. The disco fever raged on. John Travolta became a public figure with the remarkable success of Saturday Night Fever. VST & Co. also carved a niche for themselves in the annals of the local music industry. Coco Banana was the hottest disco in town. Annie Batungbakal was personified.

    Then came Hajji Alejandro (ang "Kilabot Ng Mga Kolehiyala) and Rey Valera, Basil Valdez’s name shone as a solo recording artist ( after his Circus stint). Same with Pabs Dadivas, who was a co-band member. Jakiri  that exotic- looking guy trom down South broke into the music scene with his Zamboangahan. Angela Bofill came (to the country) and conquered. The New Minstrels gave birth to succeeding generations.

    Uh, oh, hmmm… kelan kaya matatapos ang reminiscing na ito? I could go on and on. But space constraints limit me from doing so. Well, now.

    Re-reading what I have already written, I, guess I have more or less repainted a good picture of what and how it used to be during the seventies. Although, of course I’m guilty of having left out so much more memories in the process. Meanwhile, I have a nostalgic but happy trip down memory lane. Groove, it man!

By Nerissa V. Mata
Jingle Music Magazine
Best of Seventies Special Issue

The year 2007 will no doubt be a big year for the batch of 1974. It’s safe to say that a least 95% of our batch was born in 1957. Perhaps it’s just a number, but turning 50 will be a small achievement in of itself. The fact that some of us might have already turned or will be celebrating their half-century mark this year have urged me write this very short article.

To commemorate such an event, I think it’s fitting to dedicate a section in our website which could feature fellow batch 74 in a current picture along with a message if they so wish. It would be interesting to see each one of them perhaps with their family after all these years, much like we enjoy to see some of them already featured on this site – many thanks to Alan Alvarez for his time and effort to keep us all informed of the goings-on of the alumni association.

Five years ago I had a chance to e-mail Alan a set of pictures of our group here in Toronto along with our short messages.  The only thing I can add is we still see each other quite often and that we have new members: Ricardo Mejico and his wife Jo Gabudao-Mejico.  They have been living here in Toronto since 1987 but for some reason our paths hadn’t crossed until a few weeks ago.  Last weekend I invited them both to meet their former classmates and schoolmates.

It was definitely a pleasant surprise to get reunited with the lovely couple (L-R Ric and Jo Mejico, Mina Battalla, Beng Pallasigui-Landicho, Johnny Furigay, Judith Abuel-Ibarra, Vida Ponce de Leon, me, Baby Landicho-Furigay, Art Ibarra, Edwin Ponce de Leon and Rod Battalla) as we couldn’t stop talking about the good old days at the same time Jo could barely take her eyes off the 1999 reunion souvenir program that Susan Juachon-Roman gave me a few years back.

I hope this message from us will encourage other fellow batch 74 to email their own messages as we all look forward seeing you even in picture only.  On behalf of the group, we wish each one of you who are or will be celebrating their 50th birthday this year or in the next two years. One of the above will reach the “top of the hill” next month!  That I will leave for you to guess.

I don’t know who actually came up with the nickname “Quazo”.  What I do know is I started hearing it around the time of my batch in Quezon City High School. I also know that some of my friends hated the newly coined word.  Perhaps they thought it was sacrilegious to refer to our beloved alma mater in such a “pang-kanto” lingo. Nonetheless most of us went along and started to use it and hear it more and more conveniently.  The name Quazo has stuck ever since.

Like it or not, many alumni souvenir programs and websites still use the nickname Quazo.  “Kamustahan sa Quazo” was the title of the Class 74 homecoming while Class 77 had “Walang Kasing Quazo” as their headline. Coming from a family of mostly QCHS grads, I can attest to you that only a few of us use the name Quazo while the rest of the family still vehemently prefer the longer version, Quezon City High. Whoever came up with it, maybe should come forward and stake his or her claim to fame.

I would like to share with you certain extracts from the materials I have read from websites and other messages written by our fellow alums and other school dignitaries. I find them very interesting and inspiring and I certainly hope you do too.  I apologize in advance for their out-of-context nature.  Hope you enjoy reading the following --- “Quazonian Quotes”:

“Primarily the success of our earlier secondary school education process was because we had a smaller controllable classes taught by dedicated and compassionate teachers”
Forting Sunio - Class 50

“So, how does one react at a first reunion?  No you don’t faint.  But you are allowed to hesitate at first”
Makiling Elphick - Class 54

“And when we think of what our legacy will be to the succeeding generation, a favorite verse from our English and American Writers textbook comes to mind: Lives of great men all remind us/ We can make our lives sublime/ And, departing, leave behind us/ Footprints on the sands of time”
Divinia Jaurique - Class 56

“During my days we could run around the high school.  We even had a track and field area where we could practice running or playing.  But now there is none.  It is too bad that the High School did not buy the adjacent lots that were empty”
Eddie Calderon - Class 56

“In just one click, let’s revive in high spirits our good old days”
Ester Lacsamana - Class 57

“The pergola hang-out where friendships were sealed and teenage crushes revealed”
Tony Encarnacion - Class 58

“Rrring…..the clock struck five --- time to wake up.  I remember yesterday was our prom…today is still March 14, 1966”
Urania Salvacion - Class 66

“Una.  Napakalaki ng aking utang na loob sa ating bayan, paaralan at mga guro.  Sila ang naghubog at naghanda sa aking kaisipan at damdamin, sunod sa aking mga magulang at mga kapatid”
Alan Paguia - Class 71

“Then came graduation day, and it was all over.  How we could love to return to those wondrous days of high school”
Alan Alvarez - Class 74

“I remember vividly the jitters as we took the NCEE (we were the first batch to take this gov’t. exam) because we know very well that this would determine our fate”
Kit Cabalquinto - Class 74

“When we stop to think, we soon realize that big things get accomplished by dint of many small things”
Nina Mistica - Class 74

“After the homecoming, what now?  Should we just slip back to our own lives, briefly interrupted by the demands of “Grupong Pito-Pito”?  Is the homecoming an end or a means?
Jojie San Pablo - Class 77

“Those skinny boys and girls are no longer uncertain.  Most of us are now proud parents and responsible individuals, fulfilling the dreams that we weave in the past”
RT Lina - Class 77

“Your love to your alma mater flourishes that benefit our students and your teachers.  Your generosity and concern to this school is exemplary that is honoured by one and all.  Everyone is proud to hear of your successful achievements”
Josefina Perlado - QCHS Principal

“As long as unity and cooperation between the city government and private groups and individuals exist, as you have been manifesting, our ultimate goal to make Quezon City the country’s premier metropolis will be more facile to achieve”
Feliciano Belmonte, Jr. - Mayor

“The promise of a bright future depends on us.  If we lose it now, it will take us time to recover, perhaps never at all”
Editorial - The Capitol

Hello there to all my relatives, friends & all Batch ’74 of QUEZON CITY HIGH SCHOOL, especially to IV-Grnet: Elena Vibat Reyes, Evelyn Rauza, Josephine Gabudao, Nanette Guieb, Susana Sengco, Luzviminda Cabanatan, Poly Mate & Rosemarie Saplada to all of you. I hope you will attend our upcoming Alumni Homecoming on April 9, 2000 at QUAZO siyempre! Please do come ‘coz I’ll assure you that it’s really fun & really a place of nostalgia. If you wont come, you sent your greetings at our guest book at www.angelfire.com/al/quazo74. Till here & God Bless you all! Hope to see you soon! Always, Nancie Ventura Manguerra Hi! To all Batch ’97 OF qchs A la eh! Hi! To all my relatives there in New Jersey Phila delphia. Especially to Fernandez Family: Ate Baby, Ate Munti, Ate Irma, Ate Caring, Kuya Junior, Kuya Kano & Ate Celing. Most especially to Nanay Miling. Regards to your families.

God Bless & Take  Care Always! Hope to see you soon! Always, Montano Manguerra & Family BATCH ’74  SIMPLY THE BEST!!! Hi! To all the soon to be graduates of QUEZON CITY HIGH SCHOOL BATCH 2000,especially IV-3 under MRS. Yap. Good Luck to all of us. Hope that we achieve all our dreams & aspirations. Also, I hope that we become successful in our chosen carrers. I will cherish all the memories we’ve shared. All that moments will be kept here in my heart. Just always the same & be ourselves always! Till here & God Bless You All ! Take Care! Always, Christine V. Manguerra To: ERWENE Chui E-mail ADDRESS : mia4love@HOTMAIL.COM MESSAGE: Hello! How’s life goin on there in California? Doin great in your studies? Hope so. Its been so long since we have talked. So, Kamusta na? Kami okay lang. Pressure lang sa mga Major Subjects namin like Customs, Tariff’s and Tax. College ka na ba? Please write me naman(my address: 49 K-6th St. Kamuning, Quezon CITY, Philippines 1103) or call me at 927-32-94. Nawala kasi yung address mo sa akin. Hope you understand. Please send me your home address. Till here na lang. God bless ! Take Care& Study Hard!!! Always, Charie V. Manguerra

    As you all know, as the years passed by, nothing has changed so much with me.  I'm still Amelia Domingo, your batchmate, if you still remember me, the kinda talkative yet kalog, that's why I could easily make friends with others.  I would like you to know that I am a single parent with one kid and now a teen-ager.  Being a single parent is really very hard because I'm the only one who supports his studies and needs as well.
    When I first joined this batch's meetings, I had some feelings of insecurities in mind.  Will they accept me as I am, in terms of professionalism, social status, my financial status as well?  With regular meetings, activities and getting-to-know each other stage, all my insecurities and burden were erased because in my heart I know and I really feel that I was accepted as to who I am and not for anything else.  All I could offer is my commitment and dedication in as much as I could, which they really appreciate so much.
    I never regret joining Batch '74 for it brings a lot of difference in my life.

Your Batchmate,
Amelia 'Amy' Domingo

My family are the first residents of Kamuning. The area used to be a subdivision, a homesite. But now many homeowners including my parents remodeled or tore the home down to built new ones. Ours was torn down in 1958 and a new house was built.

Kamuning was quite a different place when I was growing up and we did not have that much houses there. The trip to the Sacred Heart Catholic Church from my home was quiet as there were no houses from K-C to the church. But now when I came back, I could hardly believe my eyes. The place is packed as though there appears to have no ample room to breathe there. We call this congestion, and I guess that could be the result, though it may not be that beneficial --especially the social part of it, of progress. Also when I was growing up our water pressure was great. You could take shower on the second floor. Now you can't and so when I visited my home, I have to fill the entire huge plastic can with water from downstairs so I could bring it up to the second floor bathroom.

QCHS also has changed. When I was there from 1952 to 1956, the place was very big. You had to walk at least 300 to 400 years before you could go to your classroom. But now it has buildings by the gate and others on the back of the previously main high school. During my days we could run around the high school. We even had a track and field area where we could practice running or playing. But now there is none. It is too bad that the High School did not buy the adjacent lots that were empty.

It is fun to reminisce the good old days. Incidentally when I came back again in 1997, I saw Mrs. Guico-Velasco as the principal. She used to be our teacher in Tagalog.

Again those are fun memories. I am thinking of visiting the Philippines again this  year. I was about to go this March but it was sidetracked for various important reasons. My sister, a 1955 graduate, is visiting RP in May of this year. If she could not make it, I probably could.

I could hardly believe how Quezon City had changed that fast. When I came back to visit Kamuning in 1970, I saw the Araneta Coliseum area as the only site for a big shopping centre, rivalling those in Manila. The outlying areas were still the same and not commercial developed yet.

But now Quezon City is practically a shopping centre. Kamuning used to be purely residential even in 1970. Now it is all business with the private homes becoming more of a secondary value than an important landmark. You do not have to go to Manila to do the shopping anymore.

However, my mother's hometown of Taal, Batangas has not changed. If there is a change, it is more of a retrogression. But I like Taal the way it is. It has preserved its significant history, the Spanish architectural houses of the 18th and 19th centuries, the old churches, the very important steps going to the church of the Virgin of Caysasay in the barrio of Labac (now called Caysasay), and its many other unspoiled beauty. Lemery, a neighbouring town, now becomes one of the centres of Commerce in Batangas.

Taal and Lemery are the towns I stay partially when I come to the Philippines. The other town I stay for my visist is Baler, Aurora where my father was from.

Even after many decades removed from the campuses of their high school years, there’s still a certain fascination among former QCHS students to find a way to get together whether via internet chatrooms, e-mails or the more up close and personal -- a class reunion. They love to talk about their beloved alma mater and the bygone days in the school campuses as if those days happened in recent terms.  For the last few years, this fascination has picked up several notches.

“Welcome to the QCHS 10th General Assembly and Alumni Homecoming”. Each year a general alumni homecoming party is called and organized by the host class, usually the jubilee class or batch (25th year from graduation).  With the speed of e-mails and text messaging, communication between these “exs” has become high speed and instantaneous as well.  For them the small world has become smaller.

Planning is crucial for such an event to have any hope of success.  Some batch members start communing a year or two in advance -- not that they need such a time frame but more of getting geared up and excited hoping that in one way or another they will be part of the big event.  Judging by the e-mails and the website linkages budding all over the place, the excitement builds up especially among the organizers and then hits fever pitch heading into their big day.  They pay attention to details.  Stage presentation is looked upon as a friendly competition pitting the current host batch to the jubilarians of the previous year.  Then the time has come -- after days, weeks and months of planning -- the stage is set and ready to rumble.

Memories abound, drinks overflowed as digital cameras flashed to capture their smiles reminiscent of the friendship back in those years. Their favorite and not-so-favorite teachers were seated next to them. They treated each other with mutual admiration and fondness in place of the disciplinary teacher-protégé approach. For a moment they were back in time.

As the clock ticked well past midnight, once again everyone had to say goodbye, and once again, at the exit doors -- although this time -- not on foot -- no rolled-up piece of paper in their hand -- but in their shiny Pajeros or in bright-colored two-seater Mercedes Benz.

The morning after the night before, all evidences would lead one to believe that the exs have had a great time. So far no stories of party getting out of hand or any form of violent behavior.  Perhaps twenty-five years later, the sins of the school days are long forgotten and more importantly, forgiven. Another successful night, the host batch might declare. But the true measure of success is not what was seen on the stage, but what they have felt.  The months of communication and the interaction that the exs thought would be gone for good right at the exit doors of the Roces stadium, or wherever their respective graduation site happened to be, were there again.  Thanks largely to the age of information technology.  To them the computer is like a time machine.  But still only a machine -- the “hard drive” required to run this machine is the spirit -- the QCHS spirit that is still alive and well.

The other good thing that comes from this annual celebration is the awareness factor.  They get to see the current state of affairs in QCHS first hand.  The gap between the public and private school systems in the country has widened to a point that the standard of teaching in public schools is perceived to be very inferior compared to its private counterpart. In most two-tier system anywhere, the better-funded system in almost all cases will come out having a great advantage -- fair or unfair.  It’s strikingly ironic that while the exs still cherish the years at QCHS, most of them would choose not to sent their own kids to their beloved alma mater. The fluidity of the economic landscape and the ever-increasing population nationwide has a profound effect on the standard of education especially in public schools like QCHS.

But life goes on in QCHS. Despite the need for structural improvements or better teacher-student ratio, it remains a vital institution in Kamuning and its surrounding community. The school is holding ground on its own but welcomes any kind of support from fund-raising efforts by various alumni associations or batch groups. But should these separate QCHS alumni association and batch groups consider banding into one big conglomerate in order to become a bigger benefactor -- like a charitable foundation?  Think about the potential membership of such an organization.  Most of the original graduates (circa 1940) are still around.  The potential membership could be in the thousands.  Could a more concerted fund-raising effort by such an organized international group make a significant impact in the standard of teaching -- perhaps help acquire new books, computer equipment, build buildings or retain competent teachers -- in a sustainable manner?  Can they make QCHS one of the best “semi-privately” funded high schools in the country -- and make the future exs wanting to come back for their own 25th jubilee?  Is there enough Ex-factor to make it happen?  I believe there is.