Mt. Pinatubo sure knew how to make attention- grabbing headlines
from around the world when it reawakened from its centuries- long slumber on
June 15, 1991.
Its after effects were felt around the world when it spewed tons of minerals
and metals into the surface and adversely affected the stratospheric conditions
of the globe.
It did not only change the landscape of the affected areas in Central Luzon and
alter the lives of people in those areas but also threatened to mar the
successful staging of the 1991 Bohol Sandugo Festival. Talk about perfect
timing.
But no volcano or typhoon could stop Boholanos from celebrating
the Blood Compact which is regarded as the first international treaty of
friendship forged between two races. Another reason for the heightened
excitement was the holding of the 1991 Miss Bohol Sandugo Pageant.
The bevy of beautiful Boholanas in its official line- up of candidates made it
the most anticipated highlight of the annual month- long Sandugo Festival
EARLY FAVORITES FOR
THE CROWN
Miss Tagbilaran Joanna Cheryl “Chewee” Evardone and Miss Candijay
Haidee Ingking were pegged by pageant experts and mediamen as among the
frontrunners for the crown. Both girls first came into the limelight when they
made the Top Five of the 1989 Campus Girl Search, a Tagbilaran City- based
inter- school personality search for high school and college students.
Chewee and Haidee finished not only as 1st and 2nd in that year’s
Miss Tagbilaran Search but also as Class Valedictorian and With Honors during
their high school graduation, respectively.
Truly epitomizing beauty, brains and breeding
Other favorites were Miss Antequera Mylene Indino and the
statuesque Miss Duero Theresa Virtusio, a BS MedTech student from Cebu Doctors
College.
It was also a return bout for three lovely and popular campus
figures that represented their respective colleges in the 1991 Miss DWCT Search
held in February. They were Miss CAS Jennifer Mejorada now representing Loon,
Miss Nursing Recelle Adlaon who was representing Jagna and Miss Education
Geneva Baja representing Guindulman
Trivia # 1.
Did you know that the
1991 pageant edition is the first and only time that the pageant was held in an
open air venue?
A stage rose from the middle of the CPG Sports Complex with the cordoned off
VIP section surrounding it. General admission tickets were seated at the
grandstand area. It wasn’t a wise decision since July is a rainy month.
A slight drizzle in fact threatened to cancel the event. Since then, the
pageant has been held in an indoors venue
PAGEANT HIGHLIGHTS
Finally, after an hour- long delay brought in part by an
uncooperative weather and the huge turn- out of Boholanos, festival visitors
& guests and tourists, the annual search for Bohol’s fairest maiden kicked
off with the girls garbed in traditional Filipiniana attires parading onstage
with their respective city and town mayors escorting them for the Traditional
Introduction of Candidates.
The appearance of the top local city and municipal executives sent
the message that the pageant which was on its second year as Miss Bohol Sandugo
was strongly supported and endorsed by the participating local government
units.
The girls also brought with them their towns’ popular or best- selling product
which they also introduced to the jampacked crowd. For instance, Miss Jagna Ma.
Recelle Adlaon brought with her the very famous calamay which is synonymous
with the name of her town.
For the Casual Wear Competition, the girls wore identical red
sleeveless dresses with white polka dots and they sashayed and strutted to the
beat of Roy Orbison’s famous hit “Pretty Woman”
The girls then competed in Swimsuits, Evening Gowns and Interviews
before the names of the 1991 Miss Bohol Sandugo and her runners up were
revealed.
Insiders revealed that the original plan to have a Top Five who will undergo a
final interview round was scrapped because of the inclement weather.
Of course, the judges still had to deliberate and make their final
selections from among the five highest ranked ladies.
According to very reliable sources, Recelle won the judges over to her side
with her angelic face, her refreshing candor and spontaneity, her natural and
unrehearsed ways, her winsome smile and the great personality projection that
was very evident in the interviews
Trivia # 2
Did you know that for
the first time ever, the girls were allowed to express themselves in
any
language or dialect during the Q & A portion with no point deduction on
their scores.
FAREWELL WALK:
Before the reigning Miss Bohol Sandugo 1990 Tiffany Matuod Yap of
Jagna stepped onstage for her final walk as Miss Bohol Sandugo, 1988 Mutya sa
Bohol Elizabeth Anana of Guindulman and 1989 Miss Bohol Fiesta islands Winnie
Moreno Lim of Tagbilaran City made a special appearance
SPECIAL AWARDS
Miss Duero Theresa
Virtusio was Miss Diet Coke
Miss Tagbilaran City Chewee Evardone was Best in Gown
Miss Talibon Marissa Autentico was Miss Avon
FINAL RESULTS
1st RU Miss Duero Theresa Virtusio
2nd RU Miss Tagbilaran City Chewee Evardone
3rd RU Miss Talibon Marissa Autentico
4th RU Miss Candijay Haidee Ingking
BOHOL’S QUEEN FOR 1991
It was then the time for the pagant emcees Mr. Loi Palapos and Dr.
Disi Yap- Alba to reveal the name of the new queen. “And the 1991 Miss
Bohol Sandugo is …Miss Jagna!.”
A visibly shocked
Recelle couldn’t believe her ears when her name was called as the big winner
that night.
Although she was pressured by fellow Jagnaanons to duplicate the victory of
Tiffany Yap as Miss Bohol Sandugo the previous year, she never had any high
expectations.
“But of course, I was
fully armed when I went to the battle” Recelle added.
She then left everything to Divine Intervention after she had conditioned
herself to accept whatever the results would be that night.
She believed that whoever would be crowned that year’s Miss Bohol Sandugo would
surely be the most deserving.
PAGEANT INVOLVEMENT
It was such a sweet victory for the introverted daughter of Engr.
Celestino M. Adlaon and the late Mrs. Remedios S. Echevarria whose only reason
for joining pageants was to overcome her shyness and improve her interpersonal
skills.
Truly, her triumphant journey on the way to bagging the crown was already
written in the stars
Her first pageant experience was the 1990 Miss Young Jagna Search
which she won thus earning the right to represent her town in the Miss Bohol
Pageant for 1991.
Early that year during the DWCT College Days Celebration, she was
handpicked to represent the College of Nursing in the 1991 Miss DWCT Search
after the original candidate who also came from Jagna withdrew from the
pageant.
Despite the short notice, she accepted the challenge and gave a
good fight. She placed 4th overall and won Best in Cocktail Wear.
Trivia # 3
Did you know that the
Municipality of Jagna is the first town in Bohol to achieve a back- to- back
victory in Bohol? It would become a threepeat when another Miss Jagna, the sultry and smart U.P.
Diliman educated Celevel Ranoco, won the crown in 1992. The record still stands until now
In addition, Jagna scored another three-in-a- row victory of a
different sort when Soccorro Llido 1993, Genevieve Jamisola 1994 and Shiela
Sumalinog 1995 placed as First Runner Up durin their respective years of
participation in Miss Bohol Sandugo
LIFE AFTER MISS BOHOL SANDUGO
EDUCATION & WORK EXPERIENCES
After taking and passing the Licensure Exams for Nurses, she
worked briefly at Lim’s Community Hospital. Recelle also worked at the then
DWCT now Holy Name University College of Nursing as a Clinical Instructor, a
reviewer, Level 4 Coordinator and Academic Chairman.
While still with DWCT, she pursued a degree in BS Education major
in General Science. After completing the academic requirements, she took and
passed the Licensure Exams for Teachers. She also finished her Masters in
Nursing major in Medical- Surgica Nursing.
She is also an OB Gyne Rationalizer at HRD Review Center
DOMESTIC BLISS
Recelle and her husband Engr. Emmery Santino G. Paredes will
celebrate their 10th year wedding anniversary on December 22 this year. Their
marital union has been blessed with a pretty and precocious daughter Reanne
Ella A. Paredes who is now eight years old.
Presently, she is working at her husband’s call center company
and, at the same time, fulfilling her role as a full- time wife and
mother
ADVICE FOR BEAUTY PAGEANT HOPEFULS
Recalling her involvement in pageantry during her younger days,
Recelle averred that winning a crown is a matter of destiny and of course, hard
work and discipline.
Her advice for beauty candidates who aspire to become beauty
queens?
”Just be yourself, reach out and make new friends and most importantly, enjoy the experience.
That way, you wouldn’t become bitter
should the crown prove to be elusive for you.
Expect the worst but hope for the best. At the end of the day, after the pageant has ended,
you are left with nothing except the memories”
