Bida Star’s light makes kids shine

On the third Saturday of November (November 19 to be exact), the biggest Blue Christmas yet took place in the Ateneo grounds. With almost a 700 volunteers and almost 2,000 kids to give back to, it is undoubtedly an event which a lot in the Ateneo community have involved themselves in.

Blue Christmas is one of the major projects of the Council of Organizations of the Ateneo. It is a yearly event wherein the whole Ateneo community unites to organize a Christmas celebration for the less fortunate brothers and sisters. This year, with the theme “Bida Star” and a tagline which goes “Ikaw at ako, bida ng bayan ko,” Blue Christmas 2011 aimed to emphasize its purpose in spreading goodness among the less fortunate this holiday season, while also making it a point to integrate how everyone can be stars or bidas this Christmas. Blue Christmas also aimed to send forth a long-term message to the children, in that they can also be the stars of the future, and of the community as a whole, no matter where they come from.

With joint efforts from COA (Council of Organizations of the Ateneo) and OUDAR (Office of University Development and Alumni Relations), the event, which had been planned since mid-August, came to life. Blue Christmas participants came from the areas of cector-based cluster orgs and some offices such as Gawad Kalinga, ACED, and SJ Apostolate, among others. Blue Christmas also took the commemoration of the Philippines’ national hero, Jose Rizal’s, 150^th birthday into consideration when the activities for the day were planned.

Morning rites

The first half of the day was allotted to the activities prepared by the class host volunteers. Orgs, individual students, and groups inside and outside of Ateneo, all prepared various activities that helped the kids have fun, and at the same time, have a great learning experience. Games, arts and crafts, and simple cooking lessons are just some of the activities that the kids got exposed to. Classrooms, foyers, and open spaces all over Ateneo High School and some over at the Loyola Schools were filled with kids, eager to get on with what their ates and kuyas prepared.

Afternoon show

The second half of the day required the participants to mobilize going to the Ateneo High School Covered Courts and field for the afternoon program. The program was graced by the University President, Fr. Jose Ramon Villarin, SJ., who gave recognition to the eye doctors who were present for a good cause. Great performances from organizations also took place. One highlight of the afternoon show was the celebrity appearances of some young stars from ABS-CBN’s Going Bulilit. Led by the Blue Christmas team, the covered courts went high in spirits as everyone danced along to the Showtime theme song for this year’s Blue Christmas dance. Another highlight of the afternoon program was the showcase numbers of the participants from different areas. The kids were very eager and willing to share their talents to the big crowd.

Side events

As an integration of the commemoration of Jose Rizal’s 150^th birthday, an eye check-up took place in the afternoon program. Some classrooms have been converted to check-up clinics where some kids had the chance to have their vision tested and be given proper care. Free ice-cream was also available in the covered courts for the children during the program. Above all else, and as expected, the inflatable slides were the most sought after by the fun-seeking participants of Bida Star. Also, before going back home to their areas, some groups had the opportunity to go around and tour the Ateneo campus and see the unique Christmas displays all around.

Blue Christmas 2011 wouldn’t have been possible without the great effort that everyone in the Ateneo community exerted. It is just one of the events that unite many to achieve a common goal which, in this case, is to make children feel loved and happy by throwing them a one-of-a-kind holiday celebration. Indeed, Bida Star was able to make more than a thousand kids smile and shine on that day. Here’s to hoping that the children of Blue Christmas: Bida Star keep in mind that they too, can be bidas, not only on special days like this, but also in their everyday lives