Written by Albert Matayom

On the evening of February 25, 2022, OrComSoc entered a fresh start by holding their first general assembly of the year with the theme Bloom: Love begins within. The event was hosted by Jedidiah Villanueva and Jheremy Pagasian.

Prior to meeting the participants of the event, we were added to four different Messenger group chats where assigned facilitators gave us instructions. One of the tasks given was creating a group name with the theme of ‘popular flowers during Valentine’s’. The four group names made were Stargazers, Orkidz, Sunflower, and Pussytoes. Additionally, everybody was asked to prepare their drinks for the assembly.

The meeting started with an opening love letter from OrComSoc’s president, Ms. Gelle Esposo. She expressed her gratitude and appreciation for various members of the organization, from the organizers to the attendees. She also emphasized the importance of self-love and learning to recalibrate amid everything that has happened throughout the past semester.

Afterward, each group was sent to their respective breakout rooms to do the first activity of the evening entitled “Sharing is caring for yourself.”. In order to get acquainted with each other, each member was asked to share what they are grateful for and/or what they do to comfort themselves when they are feeling down. After five minutes, all groups were sent back to the main room to discuss the mechanics for the first game of the evening, which was “binGO Little Rockstar”

“Look what you made me do.”, the second game of the GA consisted of several tasks to be accomplished by each player of the group. The order of which each task is to be done is determined by the player number of the group. After this was explained to everybody, they were sent to their respective breakout rooms once again where they fulfilled their tasks involving various ways of reinvigorating and encouraging one another. These activities included complimenting each member of the group, sharing words of affirmation, telling their life goals, and saying their favorite qualities about themselves. As each group finished their tasks, they were sent back into the main room to be serenaded by the first performer, Austin Reine.

The third game for the night was called “I philia.”. In this activity, one member from each group is selected to represent their group. This game incited each player to think quickly. The hosts will give a specific category like “things couples do during valentines” which will then be answered by players in a round robin format. Players who cannot give an answer within three seconds are eliminated; the sole remaining player wins.

The final activity of the night is named “I’m drunk; I love you (self).”. Everyone was asked to open their cameras and show their drinks. The emcees will tell them various experiences about love and struggles. For each statement that a person has confessed to experiencing, they will take a shot at their drinks. 

The closing moments of the assembly began with another musical performance. This time, it was UPM Chorale trainee Mr. Charles Daniel Allaga who blessed the attendees with his soothing tunes. This was then succeeded by the awarding ceremony.

There were three awards given for the night by the head of the Logistics Committee, Elycia Deang. The first award was the “Beshie ng Lahat” award which was given to Eugene Cutillar who had the most outstanding background for the event. For “Most Jowable”, Christine Chagas won the award for having the most remarkable smile. Lastly, the overall champions for the night were the Orkidz group who showed their competitiveness in the various games done throughout the assembly.

To formally conclude the event, the Junior Executive for Events, Jasmine Santos, gave the closing remarks. She expressed her gratitude for the success of the event and said her well wishes to everybody. After a short picture-taking session, the meeting ended.

Photos by Leanne Dinglasan