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TOFA100 to celebrate distinguished FilAms on Oct 31
By Rasmin Diaz A second batch of TOFA100 outstanding Filipinos in the fields of media, business and entrepreneurship, education and research, fashion, culinary and public service was announced last week by The Outstanding Filipinos in America (TOFA) Awards. “Entertainment and public service are among TOFA’s bigger categories because Filipino excellence truly shines through in these fields,” […]
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Through the Malong, Lydia Querian seeks to empower weavers and for FilAms to express their identity
Daily Malong, an ecommerce store promoting the indigenous malong, is on a two-pronged mission: To empower weavers and artisans and to extend an appreciation of indigenous crafts to the Filipino communities across North America. The site encourages the use of this versatile tubular clothing – can be used as skirt, scarf or wraparound dress — […]
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On Sept. 21 to 27 Climate Week, New Yorkers urged to go car-free for one day
New York State has launched the “Car Free for Climate” campaign as part of the state’s recognition of Climate Week 2020 from Sept. 21 to 27. The goal of the campaign is to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by encouraging New Yorkers to pledge to forego driving their vehicles at least one day during Climate Week. […]
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A wedding in the woods with seven guests
By Cristina DC Pastor It was a wedding planned a year ahead. When the Coronavirus contaminated the world and made New York a public health hotspot, Andre ‘Dindi’ Zabala and his bride Kris Bayos decided to just go through with it “not knowing if the situation would improve or get worse.” So, on a hot […]
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The Conways: A Filipino American family
By Cristina DC Pastor They’re not the Conners where the head of the family, Dan, works as a contractor, and his wife Roseanne ran a diner in a fictional working-class suburb called Lanford in Illinois. We are talking about the Conways where the head of the family, George, is a high-powered Manhattan lawyer, and his […]
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What I’ve learned from staying home and living in dread of a pandemic
When my parents needed to teach me a lesson, it usually began with, “Nung panahon ng Hapon…” as they recounted what were unspeakable hardships during the three years Japan had occupied the Philippines. They hid in bunkers, divided a piece of fish among 10 siblings, and feared neighbors with paper bags over their heads. Some […]
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Juliet Payabyab ‘honored’ to be appointed to Astoria community board
By Cristina DC Pastor On May 31, community leader and retired banker Juliet Payabyab became a member of the community board of Astoria in Queens. She will join 49 other individuals who will be advising elected officials and agencies about matters ranging from land use planning to scheduling of garbage collection. She was appointed to […]
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FilAm businesses reopen amid uncertainty
By Cristina DC Pastor Glenda Villajuan welcomed children back to her CitiTots day care in Brooklyn on June 8 as New York City began Phase 1 of its planned return to normalcy. In New Jersey, Amable Yalong announced his men’s wear shop in downtown Englewood will reopen on June 15, pledging to assure the safety […]
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At ‘drive-by parties,’ cars honk Happy Birthday
By Cristina DC Pastor Once upon a time, children reveled in the passage of each birthday celebrated with friends and relatives over grilled hotdogs and parlor games. COVID-19 has changed all that. Two families shared with The FilAm how they organized their daughters’ ‘drive-by parties’ where guests stayed in their cars honking their greetings and […]