Bangued: the vibrant town up north

ONE look at the town plaza in Bangued, Abra and one could just see how its people value so much the meaning that Christmas season brings. A landmark that symbolizes the love for country, hard work for their endeavor, and compassion for one another nestles majestically at the heart of the town sending across the message that the celebration of Christ's birth is truly remarkable in this side of the world.

The townspeople of Bangued have discovered that with their innate ingenuity combined with the true spirit of bayanihan, they could produce an outstanding masterpiece to represent their community. Their Christmas landmark, which showcased a cowboy on his horse with a wagon carrying a gigantic lantern, is heralded as a top contender in the Lady's Choice "Christmasterpiece: Bayanihang Pasko 2005," the country's first inter-town/city landmark-making contest.

"I personally believe that this Lady's Choice project truly reflects our rich cultural values as Filipinos especially during the Holiday season. It is really an opportune time to gather our act and make something creative out of it to bring forth a positive message to our nation and the rest of the world," said Mayor Valera.

Aside from bringing out the creativity and sense of volunteerism among Filipinos from different regions, Christmasterpiece also aims to help promote unity for the country in this time of disunity via a community-building campaign that showcase the pride, creativity, tradition and community spirit of the participating towns and cities.

The people of Bangued has built a landmark standing three levels high in front of the Abra Provincial Capitol, made from indigenous materials and about 2,500 empty egg-shaped Lady's Choice jars. A bigger-than-life cowboy is flanked by a lighted tableau made of more empty Lady's Choice jars, giving it a candle-like glow.

The landmark has become a visuial feast to townsfolk and visitors alike, reflecting the mayor's vision of bringing with her the cart of her province's dreams.

Bangued's entry has also become an early favorite in the competition. " We're deeply honored for this recognition because we believe this product our people's hard work, patience and creativity is a contribution in bringing about peace in our country," said Mayor Valera.

Bangued is just one of the over a hundred cities and municipalities who joined the landmark-making contest.

The winning entry, Naawan in Misamis Oriental, was named “The Most Creative Town” and brought home a P1 million in grant for the building of a creativity center plus P100,000 for the winning team and another P100,000 for the sponsoring civic group. Eleven finalists brought home P25,000 each. Aside from these amazing prizes, the finalists will automatically be included in the Lady’s Choice 2006 Commemorative Calendar.

Surfers can now also view the outstanding entries at www.ladyschoice.ph.

(Photo by Al Cruz)