Entrepreneurial Farmer

Ambrosio R. Villorente

Fiesta In Four Towns

FIESTA is a religious festival, a saint day. This is a gala celebration.
Fiesta is a celebration to express gratitude to a patron saint for many blessings the people of a community has received and enjoyed. Fiesta is also one occasion where relatives and friends meet to enjoy special food and drinks prepared for the occasion. It is a time for the renewal of friend-ship, reinforcement of family solidarity, and closer bonding.

To attract more people to join and participate in the celebration, events are organized and imple-mented.

There are religious, civic and social activities where the people participate and enjoy. In the churches, holy masses are celebrated in honor of its patron saint. There are baptism, confirmation, and marriage rites.

Community people offer masses in thanksgiving and salvation for their departed ancestors and relatives.

Saint Joseph the Worker

May 1 of every year is the feast day of Saint Joseph the Worker. He is the patron saint of Banga, Malinao, Malay and Numancia, Aklan. There are barangays which patron saint is Saint Joseph the Worker. Several years ago, the feast day of Saint Joseph was March 19, but the Roman Catholic Church transferred the celebration to May 1.

In Banga, Mayor Antonio Maming held on April 27 "Mutya It Banga" as a special feature of the Banga Town Fiesta in honor of Saint Joseph the Worker.

After World War II, I recall Banga held its annual town and religious fiesta as grand as possible. Beginning February, canvassing of votes was held weekly to elect Miss Banga, the Queen. It was one of the activities replete with benefit dances to raise money. Of course, votes were in the form of money (cash). To raise additional fund, baskets were sold to the highest bidders.

The winners were proclaimed Queen and crowned Miss Banga on the eve of the festival, March 18. Festival management invited guest and speaker to proclaim and crown the Queen and the members of her court. Usually, the invited guests were eloquent and articulate speakers who belonged to high society. He used the highest adjectives possible to describe the queen and her court. The speaker extolled the Queen using virtues oftentimes did not match with her behavior.

On March 19th the day of the celebration, holy masses are concelebrated in the Roman Catholic Church in honor of Saint Joseph. The mass over, civic program followed in the Banga Town Plaza in front of the Municipal Hall and the Roman Catholic Church. All public schools of Banga participated by way of group dances where the best were awarded valuable prizes.

That fiesta meant brand new shoes and clothes for me and for other children. It was a high business as it is today for merchants of Kalibo.
In Numancia, Saint Joseph the Worker festival started on the first week of April with basketball tournament which culminates on the eve of the fiesta. Every evening, Numancia Town Plaza is filled with people watching basketball.

This year’s Numancia Municipal Fiesta features several events. In addition to ball games, it holds "Miss Earth Numancia 2009" to remind people of climate change. Miss Earth and her court was crowned on Wednesday evening, April 29.

To know the efforts and products of Numancia-hanon, a one day exhibit was held in the town plaza opened after the grand parade where the healthiest and biggest beast of burden pulled the carts and sledges loaded with farm and sea foods. Exhibited and sold were the best and fresh organically produced fruits and vegetables, pretty and exotic flowers and ornamental plants, and delicious fishpond products. There were abundance of roasted pigs, one product Numancia is best known for. The One Town-One-Product vermicast of several sacks were exhibited and sold.

The Balik Bayan Night on April 30 was opened with the "Balsi de Numancia", danced by 60 leading citizens of the municipality who were patiently trained by Ms. Ethel Kimpo, a Master Teacher in Numancia Integrated School.

Despite the slight drizzle and leaks in a temporary roof and patches of water on a cemented dance floor, Hon. Elverita T. Templonuevo Mayor of Numancia and her entourage of dancers were undaunted.

They showed the spectators the mastery of their steps, the attractive looks of the senior citizen participants whose lifestyle is being spent with moderation. They stepped and swayed with elegantly tailored dresses according to the tune played by Sallador Band. /MP