California Fundraiser for SFAS 2005

A group of friends who fondly call themselves “The Babes of Bacolod” recently hosted a fundraising dinner event for the Tapulanga Foundation. Raising $2700 and more than three times as much money as their first charity event which was a yardsale last year, the Babes outdid themselves by hosting an elaborate dinner held at the home of Janice and Steve Ragona in Encino, California on September 17, 2005.

The event was well-attended and supported by fellow Ilonggos as well as their American friends and co-workers. It was a concerted group effort led by Janice de la Cruz-Ragona with the assistance of Geraldine Yulo, who put together an impressive menu of Asian fusion dishes, and Joy de la Cruz-Herd, who was in charge of décor and keeping together the chocolate brown and turquoise color schemes. Agnes Severino-Clemente and Catherine Yulo-Khan were on hand to help out the chef. Assisting with décor were Lenlen Severino, Laurice Sibala, Arlene Litonjua and Alan Montelibano who did manual labor from lifting tables to folding napkins to arranging flowers. Ina Clemente-Tongson manned the bar where beer and wine were sold for a reasonable price.

The Babes of Bacolod hope to continue raising money for scholarships at St. Francis of Assisi School. They are committed to having annual projects such as this to benefit the Tapulanga Foundation as well as increasing their goals to enable them to reach out to other sectors. “I hope we can help out the sick someday, too,” adds Ragona.