EVOLUTION Dawning
of a New Age...
There in the stars are my highest aspirations it may not reach
them, but I can look up, see their beauty, believe in them and follow where they lead.
One of the most amazing thing a LOM can do
is to dream big and later translate that dream into reality And that bis true with The General.
The General or the idea of it traces its humble beginnings in the
year 2000, when several concerned Jaycees noted that, for members to sustain their interest and become active participants
in any chapter's activities or projects, they should at all times be updated of the worthwhile undertakings of the organization,
in the local community as well as, in the national level. 1997 LOM President and 2001 National Treasurer JCI Sen. Hans Chu,
1999 LOM President and 2002 National Vice-President JC Nestor Nolasco, the then incumbent 2000 LOM President Allan Licera,
2000 Secretary-General Jose Lasalita, Jr., 2000 VP-Internal Angelito Cerna, 2000 VP-International Maria Victoria Cantos, 2000
EVP Mary Antonette Baltazar, 2000 Director Julius Trinidad, and 2000 Director Mary Beth Guarde, among others, stressed that
lack of information had become the major reason of members sporadic participation, then.
A series of meetings and consultations with
the members (past and present) followed and a Long-Range Planning Committee was created to address this issue, with special
focus on strategies at effective membership recruitment and retention As a result, the idea of coming up with a regular LOM
publication was hatched.
The original name of our LOM publication
was The General Santos Leader, patterned after the Philippine Jaycees' and Junior Chamber International's Leader Magazine.
However, no active Jaycee member was identified then as a serious writer or had had any journalistic experience, making the
creation of an Editorial Board of the General Santos Leaders a difficult task. The magazine cover for the said publication
though printed, and several articles from members were gathered. But time, finances, other aspects of newspapering and the
implementation of a number of major LOM projects compelled the LOM Board to temporarily shelve the plan.
In 2001, the chapter
elected its first lady and youngest President JC Mary Antonette Baltazar. It was also the year of our hosting of the 21st
Mindanao Area Conference. The hosting of the conference became the focus of the chapter, necessarily suspending the plan to
publish the first issue of The General Santos Leader.
Another year came to pass and in the
year 2002, under the leadership of President Jose Lasalita, Jr., the LOM was able to finally launch its official newsletter,
this time under a new name, The GENERAL. Four issues of The General went in circulation, from January to April of the year
2002. However, due to a not so aggressive marketing, the LOM Board once again decided to suspend the publication's circulation.
It seemed that time, a dark cloud hung over The General making its future somehow bleak.
The lessons learned
those three prior years, including two failed attempts, and aborting publication after four months of regular circulation
became the major concerns of 2003 President Caesar Amor Capili before he took on the challenge of reviving The General. Looking
for corporate partners that can help sustain the cost of publication for one whole year became the chapter's consequent focus.
Accordingly, sponsorship contracts and MOA's (Memorandum of Agreement) were signed by the LOM with The Professional Group
Corporation, Philippine Fuji Xerox and JRS Business Corporation, making the future of The General certain when it came to
publication cost, giving The General a lease of life, at least for a year.
That year, for the
members of the Editorial Board, every issue is a labor of love, and everyday, something new is being learned. Ten big issues
in the next eleven months came into circulation, and were widely distributed not only in the LOM, but also in the local community,
in the whole Southern Mindanao Region, as well as, in the Philippine Jaycees as a whole.
Articles on chapter activities, programs and
projects, regional, JCP and JCI news, leadership lessons and insights, business news and other issues on community concerns
were topics that were dealt with and enthusiastically tackled by the LOM Board for its growing readership. The General has
almost become a household name among Jaycee chapters all over Mindanao. It has also become a very effective vehicle of the chapter to get closer to other
Jaycee chapters. It has helped establish the chapter's
name and integrity as a serious and mature LOM. In fact, 'The General' has given the chapter a new and better image, noted
JC Sonny Sagalongos.
The high expectations
for the Twin Star Jaycees membership that The General helped establish later made some members of the Editorial Board very
fussy about the choice of articles submitted for possible publication. They observed that there is a need to further improve
the publication, enhance its appearance and layout, and at the same time, make it more relevant and responsive to the times,
as well as to the needs of the Jaycees and The General's wide readership. It must not just be considered a journal of our
past achievements, of our projects and activities for our local community. Rather, it should also serve to inform and educate
our readers. Most of all, it must strive to promote the values of principled leadership, they would say.
According to some Twin Star Jaycees Past Presidents, The General
certainly has found its unique niche among the prominent Jaycee LOMs of the Philippines, after winning as MOST OUTSTANDING LOM PUBLICATION of the Philippine Jaycees in the 2003 Bidbook
Competitions during the National Convention held in Tagaytay. It has unwittingly joined the elite circle of the Manila Jaycees
and Perlas Pasay Jaycees, the almost perennial winners in LOM publication competition. Certainly, it will always be our pride
to be the first and maybe the only LOM in Mindanao to have a publication that has been conferred with this award, PP
JC Allan Licera enthused.
The General is making
its journey slowly to the top. It is serving its noble purpose - to the Twin Star Jaycee members, to the community, to the
Philippine Jaycees, including the Junior Chamber International in terms of molding better leaders for the future, and promoting
national and international understanding. But still, there's a long way to go. As Robert Frost would say, the woods is cold
and dark and deep, and I have promises to keep, and miles to go before I sleep, and miles to go before I sleep.
To the Jaycees who started The General, to those who dreamed of excelling
in spite of certain journalistic handicaps, we only see brighter prospects ahead of these woods. To the Young Generals the
new batch of Jaycees who have taken the cudgels for this year's LOM publication, and to the others who will yet to become
a part of this endeavor, let us enjoy this journey in the woods A JAYCEE ADVENTURE, you may say.
