Santacruzan

The Hotel, Resort and Restaurant Association of Cebu, Inc.  (HRRAC), and Waterfront Cebu City Hotel & Casino (WCCHC) and Clothes for Life Foundation, in cooperation with the Department of Tourism, will relive and retrace Filipino heritage, culture and tradition in a spectacular and glittering Santacruzan that will be held on May 9 at Waterfront Cebu City Hotel & Casino.

The event will include 36 reinas and zagalas led by Ms. Marguerite Lhuillier as Reina Emperatriz and Ms. Tricia Gullas as Reina Elena dressed in Filipino-inspired creations by Cebu’s leading fashion designers. The event will start with a Holy Mass at 4 p.m. to be concelebrated by Rev. Fr. Carmelo Horlador, MSP and Rev. Fr. Frederico Dizon, MSP at the hotel lobby. The procession in the hotel grounds with the life-sized statue of Our Lady of Manaog done by sculpture artist Dan Awa will follow, which will culminate in the Cebu Grand Ballroom. The Flores de Mayo honoring the Blessed Virgin Mary will see little angels offering flowers. A Filipino Dinner Buffet will cap the colorful evening.

The past Reina Emperatrizes include Amparito Lhuillier (2000), Ingrid Sala Santamaria (2001), Teresin Mendezona (2002), Gov. Gwen Garcia (2005), Elvira LuYm (2006), Margot Osmeña (2007) and Mariquita Salimbangon Yeung (2008).

There will also be a Santacruzan 2009 Exhibit at the North Wing of SM City Cebu, which will feature the photos of the reinas and their gowns and will run from May 3 to 10.

Clothes for Life Foundation, Inc., a group of fashion designers who have bonded together in pursuit of its charitable missions and the Mission Society of the Philippines, a group of Filipino missionary priests who spread the word of God in Asia Pacific Region, are the beneficiaries of this event.

Major sponsors of this spectacular religious event are: Globe Telecom, Graphic Star Imaging Corporation, Alcordo Advertising, SM City Cebu, The FREEMAN, Cebu Daily News, Y101, RCTV, Jon Unson Photography, Mikel Ansign of De Luxe Accessories, Nancy Roble of Artecoli Regalo, Pink Flora, Café Laguna, HP Solutions and PAGCOR Casino Filipino.

For further information, please call HRRAC Executive Director Aissa dela Cruz at tel no. 232 5101.