How Lights Make You Thrilled in La Carlota

December 15 is the opening of the Festival of Lights in the small city of La Carlota, Negros Occidental, Philippines and will culminate on January 1, New Year's eve.

Nativity 2015

It is a tradition among the Mangkasanons, native of La Carlota to have a Festival of Lights every year to usher the coming or the birth of Jesus as religious observed by the Catholics and to welcome the New Year.

The plaza is filled with sea of people coming from nearby cities and municipalities to see the various glistening, glittering lights all over the place. You could overhear anyone's cheers, the wow, the amazement which the lights displayed.

From its starting date until New Year's Day, there would be a nightly Christmas presentation of songs, dances and tableau to entertain the visiting tourists, visitors and even the La Carloteños themselves. Schools, religious sectors and other people's organizations are to share their respective best entertainment.

The Theme: NEODELIC

Last year theme was "White Christmas".

This year's theme as mentioned is "neodelic" which is a combination of "neon" and "psychedelic". It could be interpreted as I see it as lights playing thrill in ourselves as we are overjoyed by the spirit of Christmas which our Father in Heaven's love through his Son.

Neodelic could make everyone in the public plaza of the small city of La Carlota mesmerize by the time all the lights on the trees, 2 main edifices are on after a short program.

The theme was conceptualized by the Tourism Department of the City with the collaboration of various artists.

The Lights

Now the plaza in this year's Festival of Lights:

The plaza in last year's Festival of Lights:

See you there.

Many Faces of Inday Carissa

Ma. Carissa Trenuela-Camporazo, we fondly call her Inday Carissa is celebrating her 22nd birthday today, December 6. She is the wife of our youngest son, Gilbor Camporazo, Jr.

Inday Carissa lives in La Castellana, Negros Occidental, Philippines. She is the 3rd of the 4 daughters of Ronie Trenuel and the late Melanie Trenuela. There are 4 of them all in the family. She is the youngest daughter.

She has the ambition to be a successful accountant someday.

The different moods and many faces of Inday Carissa with our granddaughter:

With her hubby:

Balabag Elementary School Facelifted

 Balabag Elementary School, a humble public elementary school in the Division of La Carlota, which is located at the Barangay Balabag, 7.5 kilometers from the city proper of La Carlota has improved her physical facilities in preparation for the evaluation for Seal of Excellence of the Division.

Faculty President Raffy P. Medes initiated the cleaning of the surroundings with the cooperation of the parents of the pupils. Other teachers of the school followed suit. They also maintained the cleanliness of their assigned ground and garden.

Faculty Vice President Jose Erwin Navio provided the plain sheets for the notice of nature advocacy, polite greetings, among others.

 School Guidance Coordinator Mailyn M. Miguel updated the recording data of the school from her comparative enrollment of three years, pupils academic performance, and extra-curricular activities.

Mr. Mike Pabalate and her wife, Roselyn together with Mrs. Angelica Tuala, Ms. Sarah Adenix updated the documents intended for the curriculum, minutes and resolutions adopted by pupils' organization and school governing council.

School science coordinator Ma. Juvy Tadlan took care of her medical garden with the help of her advisory pupils. Grade one teachers Ms. Mahal Demabildo and Ms. Gerose Bedlan also updated their SBM documents. Kinder teacher Mrs. Rima Jane Cadena printed out the composition of school disaster risk reduction management in blow up tarpaper.

Grade two teacher Ms. Jocelyn D. Tolosa and Grade six substitute teacher Ms. Ana Rey Abad weeded out and cleaned their ground assignment, replanted new ornamental plants and repainted the plant boxes.


Punong Barangay Joel Rumbines provided the bushcutting of tall grasses on the school ground. As overall physical improvement of the school, gratefulness is due to the PTA officers led by Mrs. Mary Jane Ramo and to the Supreme Pupils Government (SPG) led by Rainier Medes.

The school has created her image, conducive to learning, safe to the learners, and clean to the eyes of the community residents and school stakeholders.

Word of Thanks

To the pupils, parents, PTA officers, teachers and the Barangay officials, as a school principal, your services and cooperation are beyond compare. What you have shown as the physical improvement of the school is concered. I repeat this is your work, our work and everybody's work that we have made our school, a real one.

Making Family Forever

by Gil Camporazo

It is now a tradition among the members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in La Carlota Philippines District, La Carlota First Branch in which we belong to.

2015 Family Week

Proclamation No. 847 signed by PH President Fidel V. Ramos on August 12, 1996, declaring the 4th Sunday of September thereafter as Family Thanksgiving Day edifies this wholesome activity among the families of Latter-day Saints (LDS), a short name for the members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

This year's theme is focused on gender equality and children's rights in contemporary families.

This week-long national family celebration was culminated by a street parade, participated in by the 8 branches of La Carlota Philippines District. These may include a unit from San Enrique, Ayungon in Valladolid, La Carlota First and Second, Masville in Brgy. Cubay, Manggapsang in Brgy. Haguimit, La Castellana, and Moises Padilla, Negros Occidental.

Followed by a program graced by an Acting City Mayor of La Carlota, Jacky Jalandoni III, Ramon Alvañez of Mayor's Office, DepEd Schools Division Superintendent Portia M. Mallorca, and a married couple, Dionela Flores-Madrona, head of DSWD Negros Occidental Pantawid Pamilya Operations and Mr. Juvenile E. Madrona, Visayas Coordinator, Philippine Against Child Trafficking (PACT) respectively.

Synergeia Monitors SGC Implementation

"We make education work"  and  "communities working together" show how Synergeia work with the school.

Synergeia is a coalition of individuals, institutions, and organizations working to improve the quality of basic education. Etymologically, Synergeia is defined as "a union of forces whose whole is greater than the sum of its parts."

They implement programs to improve basic education for nearly 1.5 million schoolchildren in 250 municipalities in the Philippines. They engage local governments, socio-civic groups, schools, teachers, parents, and students to work together in upgrading basic education.

Starting this month of September, Synergeia is fielding their key personnel to visit every school especially in public to create an opportunity on how it could be helped in "making education work," particularly here in the Division of La Carlota City.

PICC La Carlota Celebrates 113th Founding Anniversary

PICC Altar

The Philippine Independent Catholic Church (PICC) here in La Carlota celebrated its 113th Founding Anniversary with a simple, austere activity of street parade in the morning and followed by a thanksgiving mass officiated by my high schoolmate, Rev. Fr. Vicente N. Calan..

The celebration was focused on this year's theme: "To preach the message, to insist upon proclaiming it whether the time is right or not..." is taken from 2 Timothy 4:2 of the Holy Bible.

Only a handful of faithfuls and devotees joined this Sunday Mass and celebration. This could be attributable to the schism that took several years ago and this Church was compelled to have their own separate chapel and separate priest or Bishop.

What Makes Buwan ng Wika Culmination a Success?

Declamation Winner

This year's theme for Buwan ng Wika is "Filipino: Wika ng Pambansang Kaunlaran" is exemplified by a selected pupils of Balabag Elementary School in the Division of La Carlota City by showing off their best of the best talents in a short, simple and austere program.

"O pag-ibig kapag ikaw nasok sa puso ninuman, hahamakin ang lahat masunod ka lamang" at "Nang dahil sa pag-ibig, ako'y naging tao." (O love, if you enters to everyone's heart, nothing is impossible just to obey you." and "Because of love, I become a human.")

These lines were my opening statement when I gave a message to a culmination program of Buwan ng Wika.

Everything was realized and came to fruition of what we have had this afternoon because of love.

Teachers did their job perfectly especially in training these kids and making them to be on their feet to show their talents in declamation, in Balagtasan, and in vocal solo singing contest.

Looking for Grade 5-6 Electronic Class Records?

by Gil Camporazo

ECR Templates

Since the electronic class records were already implemented for grades 1 to 4 which are under the K to 12 curriculum, the grades 5 and 6 were left out for they're using the old curriculum.

A month later after the regular opening of classes in June, a need on the implementation of ECR to all grades was realized. Grades 5 and 6 should have their own electronic templates too for their class records.

It's good that those selected members of the group of teachers were ready to comply with the order and they had officially come with the said record templates for the public school teachers to use starting this school year 2015 - 2016.

Making School Dengue-Free

written by Gil Camporazo

Cleaning up the canal

Preventing Dengue in schools is one of the major concerns of the Department of Education DepEd especially in supporting the Department of Health's thrust in getting rid of aedes aegypti mosquitoes that carry a dengue virus which could kill children and even adults.

Sometime in 2011, the DepEd issued a memorandum (DM no. 152, s.2011) to support the DOH campaign against Dengue.

The theme for such anti-Dengue drive was "Eskwelahan, Simbahan, Barangay, Palengke at Buong Komunida, Sama-sama Nating Sugpuin ang Dengue."

Every public school in the country made itself busy, particularly three o'clock in the afternoon. It was initially implemented on July 13, 2011.

Gibo's Word of Wisdom

Recently the La Carlota Philippines District of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints conducted its semi-annual conference this month of August.

Gibo in pensive mood

Church leaders were always prepared for their messages on the topic relevant to the spirituality of the members.

In short, they're tasked to give their words of wisdom, words of inspiration for the strengthening and edifying of their members' faith.

Gibo, a fond name for Gilbor Jr., who is my youngest son, took time to jot down any statement coming from President Christopher Barredo, Bacolod Philippines Mission President. He regarded them as a source of inspiration.

Gibo collected them and piled them up and posted them in his FB account to share and label them as #GiboWordOfWisdom which could be considered as maxims, sayings, or source for encouragement.

I love what Gibo was doing. I want his collections which he categorized and transformed them into an image quotation be shared for the readers to contemplate upon for their way of life.

7 Words of Wisdom

Take time reading them and relate them to your life. Here they are:

Choice

Express not to impress

One step at a time

Reasons and Purpose

Recording

Riches

Service

What's your pick? Tell us about it.

How Health Becomes Wealth?

The often-quoted saying goes this way, "Education begins at home", Gil Camporazo, the school principal correlated it with "Health is wealth" as he addressed the more than three hundred pupils with their respective parents and guardians, and the teachers of his school too.

Health is wealth because of wisdom

Health should start at home. The father provides the sustenance for his family and the mother provides the vital substance for her children on the food she got and cooked. It is appropriate to say then that health begins at home. It is a common knowledge that a healthy family constitutes a healthy society, and a healthy society makes a healthy nation.

Generally, education starts at home wherein the mother becomes the first teacher of her children. The school follows that up as a formal institution of imparting knowledge to the children. This practical knowledge which the children got from their mother and the knowledge they learned and acquired from the school, had become the elements part of their wisdom. This wisdom turns into their valuable possession in life as long as they live. And when properly applied becomes their intelligence.

Setting Adviser in LIS the Easy Way

Teachers/class advisers may be bothered if they couldn't access their own grade and section in LIS, especially those first timer.

The School Head

For they know as teacher/class adviser, they're  tasked to enroll their pupils to LIS especially this school year 2015 - 2016. However, they couldn't start their enrollment for their respective classes haven't been created yet for the present school year.

Therefore, their respective classes and sections should be created first before they do the batch enrollment of their learners.

How to remedy it?

Their school head or school ICT coordinator will assign an account for them to access in LIS. And they're given a unique username and password to use them every time they access their LIS account.

Sister Elwood Missionary Work Experience

Following is unforgettable and true story of Sister Jesica Michele Elwood, who is one of the missionaries of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints who served at the Bacolod Philippines Mission and was assigned in La Carlota.

                              Jesica's Story:

Sister Elwood

I served Bacolod Philippines Mission from March 2010 to October 2011. La Carlota was her longest area. She had been transferred five times from February 2011 to August 2011.

I miss the La Carlota people and I couldn't forget my experience there. I had learned a lot from the members and the investigator as well. After four months of stay, I was transferred to other area until I went home. I won't forget all the people there. I deeply care for them and I hope to see them after life and I wish our mansion would be near each on the other life.

When I was in La Carlota, I taught many people. I had no time to write all their names. But I want to talk to them and let them know a little about my present life.

How Things Made Easy at LIS

by Gil Camporazo

Learner Information System (LIS) is introduced by the Department of Education to make things easier for the teachers and also for the education agency as well.

Every learner has been issued a learner reference number (LRN) for easy tracking of his whereabout and for the DepEd to maintain a learner registry for that matter.

With the teacher's job made easy especially in providing a complete learner profile and with a voluminous learner data in a centralized registry of learner, the DepEd could have the assurance of genuine, reliable, valid info of those learners for an accurate decision making.

Since LIS inception sometime in 2012, problems, issues and other LIS concerns are great for a teacher to handle and likewise with a limited computer literate teachers, related issues were piling up.

LIS help desk was created to handle those unhealthy situations. With the diligence, invaluable services of those members of LIS team of admins, data issues and corrections guides were created to address effectively and inteligently the common problems which every teacher, ICT coordinator, and even school head confronting everytime they open their LIS school account.

How to Correct Learner Data in LIS

by Gil Camporazo

Learner's issues on his profile like wrong spelling of names, incomplete middle name, double LRN, among others are the common tasks usually effected during housekeeping before finalization of school statistics on end of the school year (EOSY) for a particular school year.

Tutorial on LIS

Sometime in 2012, learner reference number (LRN) was introduced for every pupil officially enrolled in the public elementary and high schools. And every school is required by the Department of Education to enroll their pupils online through Learner Information System website.

Issues mentioned above couldn't be avoided nor perfected by every school. Before the end of the school yearand before the submission of government elementary and high school profile to be finalized, LIS is activating its facility for housekeeping activity to make corrections on learner profil, corrections on LRN, corrections on  .

How Kids Value Valentine's Day in School

by Gil Camporazo

Happy Valentine's Day!

Love may have different definitions according to its purpose, applications as far as lovers are concerned. Love may mean to different people, to different occasion, to different culture, and to different ideology. Whatever, it is, February is considered by many as the month of love, particularly here in our country PH.

The school principal, before reading the cards given him by their thoughtful grade six pupils, cited the three categories of love.

Ma'm Sarah Adenix with her thoughtful pupil

Love is between two opposite sex, the male and the female. They've expressed their love as an affection on how they do care each other and finally join together in matrimony after exchanging "I Dos". They both shall live and till death do depart. In the course of their married life, they've founded a family and a home.

Another category of love is a love among the members of the family. Thus, a home is built where there's love. Children obey their parents and they're nurtured in the admonition of the Lord by their parents. They establish a home wherein a family is believed to be forever spiritually inspired. Members of the family are holding family prayers, going to Church together and having a family home evening to maintain closed ties among themselves.

Bryan Has Done It in eCard Making Technolympics

by Gil Camporazo

Bryan, eCard Making Champion

We're very proud of our 11-year old grandson, Bryan Perez Camporazo's  accomplishment on the first technolympics competition of schools division of La Carlota on eCard Making contest held recently.

Bryan who was a Grade 6 pupil of La Carlota South Elem. School 1, was one of the 12 competing pupils on eCard Making contest held at their computer room on Thursday, January 29. The said contest was opened to all 23 elementary schools in the division of La Carlota.

On the said venue, the other contest like PowerPoint Presentation and ePoster Making contest were also held there simultaneously with eCard Making contest.

Bryan was representing his school, LCSES 1 with Sir Teofilo M. Villanueva as his coach.

New Year's Day Outing at the Beach 2015

by Gil Camporazo

It's now a tradition in our family to go outing every New Year's day, January 1. And it's usually spent at the local beach in our place. For this year 2015, we had it at Soleo Beach, San Enrique, Negros Occidental, PH. Last year, we spent at Las Olas just a stone throw from the beach of Soleo Beach.

Soleo Beach, San Enrique, Neg. Occ.,PH

We spent for almost 7 hours at the beach. We brought our extra food in our media noche (early morning snack) for the whole family to partake at that time.

As usual we availed of the tryke of our son-in-law, Almon for our transport service to bring us back and forth to the beach and home.