To those of you who were not there, Caloy is the guy on the second and a half row on the right wearing glasses and a gray jacket with sort of printed tie. Jun is sitting in the front row flanked by Kitchie and Jo. Miriam is next to Jo. Menchie is on the second row 3rd from the left wearing a nice necklace. Mrs. Benedicto is next to Rene and Primo and all over is the KBS Family whose names will fill up the entire space if I name them all. |
THE KBS FAMILY REUNION |
| By Caloy Prieto May 2, 3 & 4, 2008 TROPICANA HOTEL & CASINO, Las Vegas, Nevada |
| THE KBS FAMILY REUNION By: Caloy Prieto <[email protected]> Date: Monday, May 5, 2008 The welcome party held in Caf� Moda last Friday night was a blast! People trickled in one by one and by 9:30 p.m., KBS owned the place. Kitchie, Miriam Guamen-Marfil, Jo Sarmiento-Moulton, Rolly Malapaya, Primo, Rene Tan, Rey Luna, Jun Sargan, Manny Topacio, Gil Ortiz, Henry Lozarito, Perry Camantigue who walked in using a cane due to a previous over indulgence in �laman loob� that gave him a gout attack, an illness that he shares with a lot of us, and others that I can�t recall due to the dimness of the place. It started as a sit down dinner that took about 6 tables and when the Karaoke started, the talented Sinatra wannabes took over the evening with Anton, Manny and myself belting Sinatra and Engelbert songs, while Henry brought the house down with his rendition of Eric Burdon�s �House of the Rising Sun� complete with the laughter. These numbers loosened up the whole gang and before we knew it, the dance floor was taken over by KBS line dancing the night away. The Gala Dinner held at the Tropicana Hotel last Saturday was a big success. Kitchie came with her mother Julie Benedicto, wife of RSB, and her husband plus her entourage at around 8:30 p.m. and the program went on with a few changes and adjustments. Jun Sargan was the director of the show with Jo Moulton pitching in with some creative touches. Manny and Gil were the cameramen, Rey Luna was the DJ and I was assigned to emcee since Boy Wilson had a commitment elsewhere. It was like the old KBS days when improvising a production when the logistics ran short was the norm. They made do with what they had but made it happen. I can�t wait for a copy of the show which will is now in post production. The faces and appearances may look different from what we remembered but the camaraderie remained the same. It was a really sentimental and nostalgic weekend for all of us and was worth the time, money and effort to be there. The organizers of this event should really be commended for a job well done. Manny & company exhausted all the resources to find and locate known KBSers in the U.S. and even paid a �people search engine�. Primo with his relentless e-mails asking everyone to send in old photos and giving updates on a daily basis. There was a time when my Blackberry had 15 messages from Primo in one day. He called me up by phone at 3:30 a.m. and while I was about to board my flight to Las Vegas. Celina Sargan handled the collection and record keeping of funds. Rolly who was our Vegas point man and took care of the reservations and deposit using his personal credit card and of course hosting that party in his house. We all know that these people made it happen and they should be given a round of applause. There were talks of a Grand Reunion in Manila in 2009 or 2010. Now it�s up to the RP group to organize and make it happen. Viva Las Vegas! Viva KBS! |
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| MAY 2 - Friday Night: Welcome Dinner Chika-chika - CAFE MODA - Las Vegas (KKB) May 3 - Saturday : BRUNCH (10:00 am) Chika-chika - ROLLY/ MAROSE RESIDENCE - Las Vegas May 3 - Saturday : DINNER DANCE (7:00 pm) Short program, acknowledgments and dancing Banquet Hall, Tropicana Hotel May 4 - Sunday : BRUNCH (10:00 am) Chika-chika - Tropicana Buffet (KKB) |
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| This was taken the following morning during breakfast. |