Monday, November 2, 2015

Gala Dinner, A Success

Last night's Gala dinner was the best.  There were 700 people there.  Not all of them could fit in the dining room area so the hotel put out some tables in the hallway.  Fortunately, we were inside where we could enjoy the entertainment.  Congresswoman Bordallo had a great seat.  She was in the front.  Some of the capuchin brothers were also there.  The Masters of ceremonies also constantly mentioned the names of the sponsors and companies who assisted in the Gala dinner.  The many sponsors were classified into gold, silver, and bronze categories.   

The entertainment was great.  Michael Min, a talented student from Father Duenas gave a great performance.  Even the Archbishop, whom we did not expect to perform, also gave an excellent performance.  He sang songs in both Chamorro and English.  We were also very impressed with the seminarians of RMS and the John Paul II seminary.  They performed together singing different songs.

There were also silent auctions going on.  I looked at the many icons and other items being auctioned.  The auction of the little sleeping statue of Joseph, which the Archbishop brought from his trip in Rome went up to $800.  A lot of people liked that little sleeping statue of Joseph from Rome. It was announced that all monies collected in this event will be given to the RM seminary, the John Paul II seminary, and the Archdiocese of Agana. 

We loved the dinner.  The Hyatt Hotel did an outstanding job, and my compliments to the cook.  We all sat in our seats while we were served our meals.  Salad came first, then soup.  The main dish came next and finally dessert.  At the end, the Archbishop surprised us again by singing a love song.  In the end, we all shouted, "Biba Archbishop!!!" 

28 comments:

  1. The highest price in the silent auction was $15,000. Pretty good price for the Electra.

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    Replies
    1. Dear Anonymous at 11:47 am,

      I think the food, the service at the Hyatt, and the entertainment was great!

      Delete
    2. The Hyatt is an outstanding venue with great food. Good choice for the gala.

      Delete

  2. Self proclaimed democratic Revoloutionary leader is now calling you to apologise to Tim Rohr for posting
    October 31st 2.52pm. Diana revolounists demand an apology.

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    Replies
    1. Dear Anonymous at 12:46 pm,

      I live on Guam, which allows freedom of expression.

      Delete
  3. This was my 11th Gala Dinner to support the seminary and this was by far the one I have enjoyed the most. Not only did we get great entertainment, food and items to bid for, but we were treated with a pre-celebration welcoming party. It really felt like a VIP party. Money well spent!

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  4. THIS GALA WAS PROBABLY THE BEST I'VE SEEN.

    TO BE HONEST, I FELT LIKE IT WASN'T GOING TO BE AS SUCCESSFUL AS THE OTHERS DUE TO THE "DRAMA" IN THE CHURCH. BUT WOW! AGAIN, THIS WAS PROBABLY THE BEST GALA DINNER I'VE ATTENDED.

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  5. Article: "Not all of them could fit in the dining room area so the hotel put out some tables in the hallway. Fortunately, we were inside where we could enjoy the entertainment."

    The Bible: "and he who invited you both will come and say to you, 'Give your place to this man,' and then in disgrace you proceed to occupy the last place. 10"But when you are invited, go and recline at the last place, so that when the one who has invited you comes, he may say to you, 'Friend, move up higher'; then you will have honor in the sight of all who are at the table with you. 11"For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted."

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    Replies
    1. Dear Anonymous at 8:53 am,

      The ones who were seated in the hallway were the latecomers.

      In the Bible, the ten virgins who came late were not admitted into the wedding. However, the latecomers at the Gala dinner were admitted into the Birthday celebration and enjoyed a wonderful evening.

      Delete
    2. I too had seats inside the ballroom. Those out in the hallwsy were cheated a bit as if they were relegated to the equivalent of the children's table at thanksgiving. Archbishop Tony's sining was my favorite part of the gala. He is so good at it. Very talented. He sure enjoyed sining but also talking on the Mike. I liked the monitor set up. From any seat you could see whatever was going on. Archbishop Tony always look good in his amaranth zucchetto. But we all know he wants and he deserves to wear a scarlet one. Should we petition Rome? Is that allowed?
      Who can check?

      Delete
  6. Anon 8:53

    If it makes you happy, GO AND LIVE YOUR LIFE OF HATE WHILE WE FOCUS ON THE LORD. DON'T BE MAD THAT YOU AND YOUR PROTESTERS ARE NOT WHAT WE FOCUS ON. FOCUS ON GOD. FOCUS ON GOD. FOCUS ON YOUR LIFE FOR GOD. FOCUS ON GOD. FOCUS ON GOD. DON'T DIE WITH A LIFE NOT FOR GOD.

    YOU'RE WASTING YOUR TIME. FOCUS ON GOD.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Some like us embrace the Neocatechumenal Way. Some prefer a traditional approach to their Catholic faith. Why can't we just ignore them and continue walking in our communities? We know the next archbishop will be someone who has embraced our "way." That's all that matters, right?

      Delete
    2. Jealousy ,Jealousy, Jealousy, Jealousy. then hate CCOG just grow up it's only a party.

      Delete
  7. Anon: 8:53

    You have the mentality of Judas when the lady was spilling oil on Jesus.

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  8. GALA DINNER WAS A GREAT EVENT!!! ALL FOR THE CHURCH!

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  9. The only ones complaining are the ones who didn't go.

    Good News: You didn't go to the Gala. Therefore, you just saved $200. Now go and give it to the poor.

    God is good.

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  10. What's with the auctioning of a RELIC? Is that even allowed? Something's wrong with the picture.

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    Replies
    1. Dear Anonymous at 12:26 pm,

      No relics were auctioned off in the Gala dinner. The Archbishop purchased a little statue from Rome, which was auctioned off. If it was a sacred relic, Rome would not be selling it.

      Delete
    2. Why did he choose to bring back this statue from Rome? Was it blessed by the Pope? What's the name of the statue?
      I visited the Vatican last fall and bought my papal cross from the Vatican gift shop. Items bought there can be left with the shop to have them blessed by the Pope. You just leave your name and hotel address and by evening your Vatican gift shop items blessed by the Pope are delivered to your hotel. I also got rosaries with the Pope 's picture on them and had them blessed by the Pope too.

      Delete
    3. Dear Anonymous at 6:48 pm,

      The icons and statues that were auctioned off were not blessed; therefore, they can be sold or auctioned off. The Archbishop got the statue from Rome, but it was never blessed.

      Delete
  11. I got a statue like that in the PI.

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  12. Well, we got the CCOG reeling, no?

    Imagine protesting because a Gala Dinner was organized for the Archbishop on his 70th birthday!!!

    What can be possibly wrong in this?

    ReplyDelete
  13. The CCOG Act like little children.

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  14. I certainly enjoyed myself... Great Gala Dinner! I also noticed the sister of Mae Ada there... I think her name is Tomasa. She really looked ill at ease... I also saw the Archbishop welcomed her with a kiss on the check. Is she in the Way, she was with a friend, Jovita, from the Barrigada Community. Also I noticed a few of the CCOG members. they seemed to enjoy the evening festivities. I was glad they came. I am hoping they would see the good of the Archbishop and leave CCOG and Tim Rohr.

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    Replies
    1. See the good of the Arcbhishop? If he were that good, there wouldn't be this turmoil on Guam!

      Delete
    2. Dear Anonymous at 3:51 pm,

      They probably did see the good of the Archbishop. CCOG and the jungle do not represent the majority of Catholics on this island. There were more people at the Gala dinner than at the protests. People who do not walk in the Way also still attend Mass in Agana, Barrigada, Yigo, Chalan Pago, and other churches that have an RMS priest.

      Delete
    3. Dear Diana and Anonymous 3:51 pm,
      We may not "walk in the way", but we are not going to let your force us out of our parishes. You in the "Way" need to take your protestant beliefs out of our Catholic Church and build your own buildings. Real Catholics do not use a person's transgressions to manipulate them as your hierarchy does. If it talks looks like a cult, sounds like a cult, and smells like a cult....it must be a cult. To control the lives of its followers as the "way" does makes it a cult. Build your mixed up; mind controlling temple away from our Catholic Church....To add insult to injury, who ever heard of going on a mission trying to convert existing Catholics to another religion. Oh yeah, they are the protestants. I still hear our manamko talk about what is going on in our Catholic Church. They are troubled by how unCatholic the "way" is. They attend masses and are holding their tongues while in church, but behind closed doors they are not happy.

      Delete
    4. Dear Anonymous at 9:29 am,

      See my response in the following weblink:

      http://neocatechemunal.blogspot.com/2015/11/what-it-means-to-be-catholic.html

      Delete