San Simon, Pampanga organized a series of activities for Simonians to mark 250 years of culture, heritage, and identity of the municipality.

“San Simon has evolved over the decades and the entire community is proud of what it has become: a progressive municipality with a rich history of catering to the needs of its people and ensuring the welfare of Simonians,” San Simon Mayor Leonora Wong said.

Bearing the theme “I am the Light of the Town”, the celebration kicked off with a poster-making contest for students followed by a creative-wear contest among barangays to show the culture, identity, and art of barangays comprising San Simon.

Winners of these contests were awarded during the culmination of the celebration. Megan Veronique M. Camacho bagged first place in the poster-making contest with her own interpretation of San Simon’s history and evolution. She was closely followed by John Louie Villamena and Steven Xander Malonzo.

Barangay Sta. Monica won the Best Creative Wear and Best Videography with their elegant buri-woven dress, followed by first runner-up and Most Creative Barangay awardee Barangay Concepcion and second runner-up and People’s Choice Awardee Barangay San Pedro. Several barangays also received special awards: Barangay San Juan for Best in Historical Presentation and Barangay San Pablo Libutad for Standout Model Award.

Adding to the celebration was a clean-up drive in 14 barangays for a fresh start of the community on its anniversary. Mayor Wong also had a motorcade where she visited these clean-up sites and provided food assistance to the cleaners.

“Celebrating our history and culture allows us to reflect and decide on how we move forward,” Wong said. “Celebrating 250 years of San Simon as one community is a testament that Simonians hope for an achievable and brighter future that we can all look forward to and work on together.”