BY GLENDA SOLOGASTOA
ILOILO City – High school student performers from Guimbal, Iloilo grabbed the chance to showcase their talents during the Liberation Anniversary of Guam.
Guimbal Performing Arts and Cultural Group (GPACG), composed of 27 selected high school students and five alumni from various schools in Guimbal, performed Filipino dances and Ilonggo songs before Filipinos and natives of Guam, which commemorated its liberation anniversary on July 22.
“We showcased the talents of Guimbalanons and impressed spectators in a foreign land,” said Mayor Christine Garin, who was there with sisters, Rep. Sharon Garin and Janette Garin-Colada.
According to Garin, the Iloilo International Guam (IIG),an association of Ilonggos based in the said country, that had invited the group through Sangguniang Bayan member Francis Basco.
The association sponsored the major expenses of the GPACG, including fare and accommodation.
The municipality of Guimbal spent P200,000 miscellaneous expenses.
The town mayor said the invitation was also in relation to the sister-city covenant entered into between Guimbal and the three villages of Guam namely Dededo, Agat, and Barrigada on April 11, 2014 at Guimbal, Iloilo.
The group also performed at the Guam Carnaval and in the country’s biggest mall, the Micronesia Mall.
They also toured Okkodo High School in Dededo and the Ocean View Middle School in Agat.
“We are lucky for the opportunity to show the Philippine culture and tradition in a foreign land,” said Kenny Jade Gicana, one of the members of GPACG.
Garin said they are expecting a 30-kid delegation from Guam to come for a sports clinic in Guimbal soon./PN
