BOx Barkada recommences, encourages companionship between members

Written by Vince Albarillo
Illustration by Dani Danao, Bianca Sy, and Matthew Profeta
Published 1 November 2021

The BOx Family System is a program under the organization’s Department of Membership Affairs (DOMA) where members were grouped into “Barkadas” that would be their companions for the rest of the school year.

It is currently spearheaded by VP for Membership Affairs Jan Raphael Pangilinan and AVP for Member Relations Ynno Viktor Salloman.

This year-long project’s current iteration was initially implemented on October 8, during the organization’s first general assembly [1].

The objectives of the program include fostering relationships within the organization, creating a safe environment where everyone is welcomed and free, and giving members some breathing room in the midst of a hectic academic year.

“Since we are unable to meet our classmates and friends in real life because of the pandemic, I believe that being around other people is beneficial,” Salloman said.

He added that companions could help one stay positive when dealing with the long, draining hours of online classes.

Last year’s iteration of the BOx Family System had members volunteer to be the heads for their respective families. Unfortunately, there were incidents when some heads could not be contacted by their fellow family members.

The family heads for this year’s iteration of the BOx Family System are the Executive and Central Board members. Each family was headed by two members, with the exception of Family 1, which is currently headed by the BOx President, Glu Lanuza.

Members were randomly assigned into each family, putting at least three people per year level per family. The upcoming family heads made further adjustments to their initial families before their first meeting on October 8.

Certain adjustments to the groupings were made, taking into consideration the BUMP Mentor-Mentee assignments, which Salloman recommended be done for future iterations of the program. These would then become the set “Barkadas” for the remainder of the academic year.

Salloman added that these families will experience different activities together, such as Tambay Days, as the school year progresses.

Under the Barkada System, Tambay Days is an event where people can meet up, bond, and relax together on the organization’s official Discord server [2]. Salloman emphasizes that these are not required events, as that would contradict the essence of the event.

“We hope to have given [the members] a sense of togetherness and comfort as we have already introduced them to their respective families,” Salloman said. He added that he wishes that the members were having fun not only with their “Barkadas,” but also with the organization.

There may be some games or other fun activities for BOx Barkadas, so members of the organization should keep a look out.

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