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UniPro Summit issues challenge for FilAms to recognize other communities
UniPro Summit 2015, a conference hosted by the organization Pilipino American Unity for Progress (UniPro), will return to New York City on June 6 with the theme “Recognize.” This year, the Summit will challenge young Filipino Americans to recognize other communities by addressing the issues they all face as underrepresented communities in the United States. […]
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Gail Banawis to sing PHL anthem at May 2 Pacquiao-Mayweather match: ‘Great blessing!’
By Cristina DC Pastor The multi-talented, well-liked teen from the Bronx, Gail Banawis, has been handpicked to sing the Philippine National Anthem at the Pacquiao-Mayweather fight in Las Vegas on May 2nd. “With God, all things are possible, right?” writes Gail, as she announced the news on Facebook. Gail, 19, will perform the Philippine anthem, […]
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How theater musicals helped me overcome shyness
By John Sapida I started performing in musicals in the 7th grade. As a shy immigrant boy of about 12 or 13 years old, it was hard for me to make friends and talk to people. I was having a serious case of culture shock! Over the years, I stepped out of my shell when […]
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A nurse’s daughter
April 16 was a typical day for Guillermo Fabro. He was at work at New York-Presbyterian Hospital in Manhattan where he is a registered nurse at the Medical Intensive Care Unit. Toward noon, Guillermo stepped out for his lunch break and there he saw his daughter Chrissi, the chairperson of Anakbayan New York, about to […]
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The FilAm tables at UniPro’s Opportunity Fair, finds students who love to write
By John Sapida This past Sunday, March 8, I had the opportunity to table for The FilAm magazine at UniPro’s Opportunity Fair at NYU Palladium, attended by hundreds of young Filipino Americans. The event, organized in partnership with the New York University’s International Filipino Association, was created to showcase several dozen community and government organizations, […]
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SO Jannelle!: California teen collects school supplies for children in Leyte
By Jannelle So She’s living the dream in Palos Verdes in California while dreaming of visiting Guintigui-An in Leyte. “I have never been to the Philippines. My dad has always wanted to take me and my sister, however traveling there and back as a family is very costly,” said Tatum Rae Contreras, 16, whose father […]
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Second-gen FilAms and the constant struggle to prove their parents’ move to America was ‘not in vain’
By Christian Catiis Being raised by immigrant parents in the suburbs of a predominantly Caucasian neighborhood, I struggled with preserving my Filipino identity. My Filipino mother had her sight set on emigrating to the U.S to accomplish her American Dream. Unknown to her at the time, she would later set a foundation of success not […]
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JCI North Jersey kids send love to the troops
By Cristina DC Pastor How well do mothers and daughters work together? In the case of Rahway, N.J. mother of five Joyce Andes-David and her oldest daughter, Jazmine, they work best when community teamwork is at stake. Joyce and Jazmine put their heads together when conceptualizing a monthly activity for JCI North Jersey, a newly […]
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Has ‘crab mentality’ crept into the ranks of second generation FilAms? (Part 3)
By Kristina Rodulfo During a meeting at NYU, I met with Ronald Rapatalo, the 1995-1996 president of the NYU’s International Filipino Association, where I was president. IFA started in 1985 originally as an intramural campus basketball team and evolved into a full-fledged organization with educational, cultural and social programming. Rapatalo told me of his involvement […]