Even heroes need to rest, reset and rejoice in “Rise and Shine in Vibrant Paradise”.

The 43rd Visayas Area Conference (“AreaCon”) held in the Philippines’ premier tourist destination – Boracay, is a labor of love. The host – JCI Aklan Kalantiao’s (“JCI-AK”) unwavering focus to deliver a national event that emphasizes:

L – to (support) local businesses,

O – to organize it well to unburden participants but create impact,

V – to value members and their needs, and

E – to embrace uncertainties

This labor of love is directed toward JCI Philippines’ (“JCIP”) members and the province of Aklan and is yet to recover from the Boracay closure and COVID-19 pandemic which decimated its tourism industry.

The Start

Taking more than a year to prepare, JCI-AK bid to host the 43rd AreaCon in September 2022 – and started to work immediately. A month after – during the 2022 National Convention (“NatCon”), the organizers set-up a booth (no other AreaCon hosts did) to promote Visayas AreaCon and sell NatCon rate fees – in a span of less than 2 hours all the tickets were sold! This set-up JCI-

AK’s initial capital of PhP280K. A testament to JCI-AK’s financial savvy and budgeting prowess.

The Journey

Big ticket items were ticked-off as soon as possible (i.e. venue, food, fellowship). Teams were set-up and monthly reports were religiously followed. This allowed JCI-AK to move efficiently and to quickly pivot to avoid issues. Highlights include:

Restructuring of Teams – after identifying the weaknesses amongst our members, changes were made to cater to our individual strengths

Budget Alterations – to cut-off unnecessary expenses

Well analyzed promotions, and

Partnerships with other organizations for success

The Steepest Climb

Moving towards the due date, JCI-AK realized there were unanticipated expenses which caused a negative projected income. This prompted the teams to refocus on sponsorships for resources. In a span of less than 2 months, JCI-AK was able to gather more sponsorships using its network – driven by an almost lunatic focus to unburden participants and JCI-AK members. Sponsorship for as low as PhP500 was agreed and more than 200 letters were sent out. Two weeks before AreaCon. The projections came out with a positive income.

“The Best AreaCon Ever” – was the common sentiment from participants of the 43rd Visayas AreaCon. Training events were unique (i.e. not given in previous AreaCons) such JCIdeas, History and Footprints and Beach Tennis training (to promote a rapidly popularizing sport). JCI-AK made sure participants were not rushed – giving ample time in between events, to enjoy the beautiful weather in the world’s best beach.

The program of activities aimed to offer REST, RECHARGE members and to REJOICE in being JCI.

Community actions were unique to Boracay – and showcased pressing issues of the island (i.e. seas debris with beach clean-up drive, and plight of the Ati community with an outreach program).

The main events consisted of – Opening Night, Quadro Night, and Visayas Night, which were planned for JCI members to celebrate their one year of service, as well as continue to build camaraderie within JCI Visayan LOs . JCI-AK showcased its AtiAtihan hospitality, along with a performance from a local group of drummers to illustrate and give a glance into Aklan’s “sad-sad”

or street dancing, giving homage to the “Mother of all Philippine Festivals” – “Ati-Atihan”. Nights of dancing, fellowships, and a beach body competition were all enjoyed and persisted  into the early hours of the morning after.

Paradise for All

JCI-AK made sure all the venues were within a 5-minute walking distance – this saved participants on transportation costs and allowed for them to find suitable accommodations for their budgets. A “Kalantiao Survival Guide to Boracay” was provided to all participants as an easy reference on how to experience Boracay as a local.

LOVE on Top

In the end, the 43rd Visayas AreaCon is the best areacon for the year. Participants came home on cloud-nine as seen by their social media posts and feedback. Moreover, PhP1.02M was collected from participants while PhP1.44M was received from generous sponsors. For an average fee of PhP3,077 per participant – lower than average event cost in Boracay (PhP10,500), JCIAK stood by its principle to LOVE and to unburden others.

For JCIP members, during this very difficult time – the Kalantiao’s worked hard to make them “Rise and Shine in Vibrant Paradise”.