Farewell to a well-loved couple

One of the most popular diplomatic couples in the country, Ambassador Joao and Ulrike Caetano da Silva of Portugal, bid farewell to their Filipino friends after staying in the country for more than five years. The gracious and active Ulrike readily adopted the Filipino way of life and showed a great interest in our country. Letty and her late husband Ambassador Enrique Syquia were the first Filipino couple that Joao and Ulrike came to know. The amiable Letty tendered an intimate dinner at her residence in their honor as both relived years of happy memories. Farewell, Joao and Ulrike, and we hope you come and visit us again soon! Babbit’s bash The charming and cheerful Babbit Goudsmit recently celebrated a fiery red birthday party at the lovely Goudsmit residence in Wack Wack. The birthday gal was all aglow in a red dress and shining pearls, and was surrounded by her husband Jules and children Joelle, Christine and Carmela, who came all the way from Brussels, Vancouver and the US. The joyous dinner party was highlighted by the amazing variety of cheeses, patés and hams which her loving family brought especially for this day. Babbit’s closest friends also came to show their promise of love and friendship to this great lady.

Happy birthday, dear Babbit!

Great young mind

Manuel Raymund Poblador, eldest son of Manoling and Sandie Poblador, is the first Filipino to graduate from Stowe School in Buckingham, England. He was awarded the Sir David McDonough Prize in History and the 2006 Grafton House Colors. You do all of us proud, Manuel Raymund!

Art against cancer

Artist extraordinaire Manuel "Manny" Padilla recently held his first art exhibition at the Banquet Hall of the Milky Way Building. The exhibit, which featured 29 paintings in pastel and in oil, displayed his personal interpretation of everyday objects such as lamps, cups and ceiling fans against a mixture of striking colors. Proceeds went to the breast cancer initiatives of the Essenses Foundation, represented by Rhoda Campos and Bo Ramas Ros. Lovely lady Toni Abad, a surviving breast cancer patient, gave a heartfelt speech, moving everyone with the story of her current battle with the disease.

Also present at the affair were UN Ambassador of Goodwill for Visual Arts Gion Gounet, Manny’s mother Olive and sister Mia, among many others. Congratulations to Manny for a successful exhibit!

Young creators

Three talented youngsters from Baguio are set to make their mark on the local art scene: twins Azra and Samantha Pinder and their close friend Ab Paredes. Their recent art exhibit at Le Souffle at the Fort in Taguig was a huge success, with UK Ambassador Peter Beckingham as the event’s guest of honor.

Keep the excellent work, ladies! Birthdays in Antipolo

Instead of the usual birthday lunch, celebrators decided to make a pilgrimage to Antipolo. In the photo are birthday girls after Mass and prayers: (front row, from left) Tessie Kabigting, Baby Gloria and Minerva Tanseco; (back row, from left) Alice Briones, Joey Sobrepeña, Carrie Bautista, Celina Bautista, Fanny Blanco and Therese-Santos Coronel.