Prior to booking our first game, Clarita, Grace and I, met several times, hashing out our club goals, coming up with suggested names and finalizing our temporary roster of players. We all wanted the same thing, to have a club that is RUN by WOMEN, for WOMEN, and for the purpose of developing good, lady golfers by providing them with an opportunity to hone and develop their playing skills through regular weekly golf games, free golf clinics with Clarita and Ching Schneider, two of our best players who have graciously agreed to volunteer their time to the cause, and by pairing "newbies" with the more seasoned golfers, hope to impart to all the members, the rules of the game, sports"woman"ship, and a deeper love and respect for the sport that has brought us all together.
CLARITA REUER is an accountant by profession, a Controller win ECKHART CONSTRUCTION in Roselle, Illinois and lives in Schaumburg with her husband RON and her son KEVIN, all golf aficionados and good players.
GRACE DYSICO is an Engineer and Vice President at TRANSYSTEMS in Schaumburg, a single gal who finally gave in to her love of golf by joining Golfinos with Clarita.
As for myself, I just want to play with good golfers, male or female, and was fortunate enough to have joined AAGI through ROY and LYDIA ESPINO's invitation, but because of all the controversies surrounding men and women mixed leagues, I decided that it was time to stand up and be counted among the ladies who love the game enough to be an autonomous force in the playing field of golf. The three of us put our heads together, worked on recruiting the members and voted on the logo.
After-dinner
round-table discussions begin amonst the ladies: Standing behind:
PHOEBE TAN, Seated First Row (L-R): AIDA MERCADO, HELEN ANINAG, LYDIA
VILLANUEVA, MARY DY, CHING SCHNEIDER, GIRLIE PASCUAL, CLARITA REUER,
RUBY MERRILL, GRACE DYSICO; Seated Second Row (L-R): ANGIE RAGNER, DELY
FULGAR, & MELY EUGENIO
Seated, Second Row (L-R): ANGIE RAGNER, DELY FULGAR, MELY
EUGENIO C
Seated Second Row (L-R): ANGIE RAGNER, DELY FULGAR, MELY EUGENIO
Last December, RUBY MERRILL hosted our first official Christmas party at her lovely, luxurious condo in Burr Ridge, where we feasted on lechon, barbeque, native dishes and delicacies, plus sumptuous desserts paired with wines and lively libations that evoked the warmth and festive spirit of the upcoming holidays. Ruby, always the gracious hostess and charming story teller, cooked and entertained all of us while we talked about the game, exchanged anecdotes, and generally tried to get to know each other. After all, with a minimum 4-hour round every weekend, the party was a good way to introduce ourselves to each other, and get a feel for our fellow players, and I must say, it was a a roaring good time!
After dinner, everyone converged at the all-white, ultra- modern living room of Ruby, and with the attendees present, along with other non-playing guests, we all had a chance to talk about ourselves and why we play the game. Of course, jokes, laughter and humorous quips from the ladies peppered the conversations, but when it came time to discuss our mission goals, as well as the rules and regulations of the game, everyone was all ears as Clarita, Grace, and myself fielded questions from the members. With Clarita as our OVERALL COORDINATOR for PHIL-SWING, and with Grace and I as her Assistant Coordinators, we talked about member expectations and ours, how we hoped to foster unity and genuine camaraderie, and how to treat each other with respect by not entertaining negativity and pessimism in the group, a tall order, I must add, because let's face it, Filipinos love drama. Men or women, young or old, "drama" is our middle name. It is etched into our genetic DNA and is fostered by our culture, parents and environment, so we appealed to all the ladies present to make sure that at the outset of any "incident" to come to either Grace, Clarita or myself, so we can address any and all issues, before it takes hold and becomes a cancer in the organization.
This, I believe, was the most important message of the evening, and the one that could make or break us, as a group. All in all, there was a palpable, positive energy that night, and everyone agreed that it was an excellent start to our fledgling organization. We cannot do it without the members' commitment, and they cannot do it without ours. Together, we all need to pull together and make this league all that it was meant to be--an all Filipina Ladies League that plays by the rules while having fun in competition, and looking good doing it! Now that's what I call a surefire formula for success!
To CLARITA REUER and GRACE DYSICO, great job in putting together a good plan and good luck to all of us for the 2010 Golf Season.
To RUBY MERRILL, thank you for hosting a great night out with the women and we look forward to more great parties in the future, to all the golfing ladies who have participated in our first game and our first party, THANK YOU, and we will see you all on the golf course for our first game of the sea.
