the beta sigma family at the parade

manhattan - and history was made - malmon, making a first ever appearance at the philippine independence day parade in america, leading the beta sigma family delegation - composed of members from the eastern usa, led by gp wally kison, uplb 74 and members of the new york chapter with gp-elect jun castro, mlqu 78, together with kids, wives, partners and parents, proudly waving, flags and all, marching down madison avenue.

the weather could not have been more perfect. just when the parade started around noontime, it was sunny, less humid and the wind was calm - a welcome gentle summer breeze at best. the atmosphere festive, chaotic at times, participants from other delegations having issues (just ask grash balacuit, cmu 73 - a parade marshall with wife jiji).

during the parade, ed cheng from the university of the philippines in los banos saw the malmon & family delegation, recognized some fellow brods and soon joined in, afterwards james bagundol from silliman university approached the brods and introduced himself, quickly felt at ease - exchanging stories and then that feeling of familiarity soon erasing any doubt whatsoever.

the idea of the mascot came from jun buenavente, feati 77E, conceptualized further with wally rodriguez, up 63 and manny cayetano, uplb 64, and altogether supported by members of new york with gp-elect jun castro, mlqu 78, plus friends who painstakingly worked hard to make it financially viable.

learning from the past year, the group brought more than enough light food and refreshments, especially for the elderly and kids, purposely avoiding the long wait from lines and saving a buck or two from, a bit expensively priced stuff at the booths. thanks to mer quimson, gauf 84 and james sta.maria, dwcl 86 for allocating the money collected wisely.

i wish i could say more but then again i was late, missed the parade and all. these are stuff that i gathered, some i knew beforehand and what can i say? i felt the strong betan spirit alive & all over the place especially after seeing brod 'padre' jun 'vale' valenzuela, up 73b, making the trip from california just to be part of this event, an omen - if only you saw a few angels sent from heaven having a break and getting a tan - it was a shining and revealing moment for everyone.

all in all, it was another unique experience, proud of a kinship only possible because of our beloved beta sigma fraternity.......priceless.