NaFFAA Founders and Leaders Attend the 3rd Global Summit of Filipinos in the Diaspora, Manila Organized through the assistance of the Commission of Filipinos Overseas (CFO), the Global Summit of Filipinos in Diaspora has successfully ended its 3rd historic year. Once again, NaFFAA leaders joined other Filipino expats to inspire one another by advancing personal and regional advocacies toward good governance and nationbuilding.
NaFFAA’s Loida Nicolas Lewis (seated 3rd from left) was joined by otherFilipinos coming from about 30 countries at the 3rd Global Summit held on February 25-27 at the Manila Hotel.
What’s Inside? Missouri Events…....…..... 2 New York Assembly.……..3 Michigan Event…......…….4 Research for Fil-Ams.......5 Reunification…...…………..6 Announcement……………..6 Membership Form..……….7
Photo by Bernie Duro
Spotted NaFFAA Leaders at the 3rd Global Summit: Loida Nicolas Lewis (NY), Rodel Rodis (CA), Emraida Kiram (WI), Anthony Guevarra (TX), Jelly Carandang (IL), Erlinda Santos (CO), Ely & Evelyn Natividad (IL), Jing Espiritu (NV). Names of those who attended, but were not included here will be announced in the next issue—editor. 1
NaFFAA Missouri State Chair Bares Major Fil-Am Events for 2015 Sunday, May 17th Annual Flores de Mayo and Santacruzan Celebrations This year will be held at National Shrine of Mary, Mother of the Church in Laurie, MO. This venue features the biggest outdoor statue of Mother Mary that moves in a rotational direction. Its solemn and beautiful ambience offer a perfect setting for the outdoor mass. Fr. Pat Dolan, along with 15 other priests will be attending this year’s big event. The Hispanic community in MO expressed their attendance to this Fil-Am event. The planning and preparation for 3rd Annual Flores de Mayo and Santacruzan celebration will be spearheaded by Hermana Mayor Jen Jen Pratt of Laurie, MO to be assisted by Analiza Lochirco. Saturday, July 11th – Chicago Philippine Consular Outreach Sponsored by NaFFAA MO, in cooperation with the Isle of Capri Casino, Boonville, MO, this consular service will be held at the Isle of Capri Ballroom. This is a great opportunity for Filipino Americans in MO and surrounding cities to avail of consular services through the Philippine Consul General Chicago’s office. Filipino Americans from neighboring states of Iowa, Kansas, Nebraska, and Oklahoma are invited. The Isle of Capri is located along I-70. There is no traffic while you are in town, and there are plenty of free parking spaces available. Saturday, October 10th Annual Filipino-American History (FAHM) Celebration. This year, the annual FAHM will be held in the elegant ballroom of the Isle of Capri Casino. In addition to the dignitaries and very special guests who will be attending, the event will also be graced by the most requested talent and entertainer, Mr. David DiMuzzio, who speaks many languages and dialects, including Tagalog and Visayan. NaFFAA MO is currently headed by Anecita Alvizo. Next month, she will provide representation for the Filipino American community to the Neighbors Helping Neighbors food distribution (March 12), YMCA’s 5K/10K St. Patrick Stroll (March 21), and the Pick-Up Boonville, which is an annual city clean-up event in Boonvile, MO. Please contact Anecita via email at anecita_alvizo@islecorp.com for NaFFAA MO volunteer opportunities.
2014 FAHM with NaFFAA MO Chair Anecita Alvizo (2nd from Right), with Guest, Chicago’s Philippine Consul General Generoso Calonge and NaFFAA MO Officers.
2013 Santacruzan
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NaFFAA Leaders Attend the First General Assembly Hosted by the Philippine Consul General New York
Over 100 Filipino American leaders from the Northeast gathered at the Kalayaan Hall of the Philippine Consulate General of New York on Saturday, February 7, 2015 for the 1 st General Assembly. In his Keynote remarks, Consul General Mario Lopez de Leon Jr. summarized the activities undertaken by the Consulate the past year which include culture promotions, entrepreneurship, outreach programs as well as partnerships with the private sectors to promote business and entrepreneurship that benefits not only Filipinos here but also NaFFAA National is a monthly newsletter with the back in the Philippines, for example hosting the Philippine Business goal of circulating information on NaFFAA’s advocaand Trade Road show in May 2014. He also laid out planned activi- cy events and projects, appointments, messages from ties for 2015. In closing, he underscored three “take home notes,” leadership and other related activities in the Filipino and encouraged everyone to emulate. First, on the issue of visibility, American community. to continue to hold community events and invite elected officials. Second on giving back, to continue helping the motherland through ongoing fundraising efforts. Third and foremost, is to engage the 2 nd and 3rd generation Filipino Americans. The sustainability of the existRyan Tejero ing organizations depends on our emerging leaders. “It is time to reEditor-In-Chief purpose,” Consul General de Leon said.
Editorial Staff
The discussions that followed at the breakout sessions were dynamic. Each group of 10 leaders tried to identify which of the activities of the previous year to emulate, and what else could be done. It was evident that great minds think alike for at each group’s report at the end of their deliberations revealed similar outcomes. Engage the future generation of Filipino Americans, services for the seniors, support the voter registration initiatives, civic and political engagement, and Philippine culture promotion came up at the top 5.
ryantejero@yahoo.com
Contributing Editors
Eduardo “Ed” Navarra ejn0115@aol.com
Jon Melegrito jdmelegrito@gmail.com
Bing Branigin MCBranigin@aol.com
NaFFAA Leaders who were in attendance include: Steven Raga, BOG-member/NY State Chair, Merit Salud, National Director Please forward event announcements and news articles in your community for March issue by the 25th. of Advocacy, Rommel Rivera, National Director of Health, Aida Ri- Submission must be in word format and pictures are vera, Region 1 Chair, Frank Celoza, Region 1 Vice Chair, Lidy in jpeg or jpg formats. Chan, MA State Chair, Brad Baldia, PA State Chair/Executive DirecThank you to all February contributors! tor Region 1, Ernie Gange plus few other members. Ple
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NaFFAA Michigan Hosts Informational Meeting on Presidential Executive Actions on Immigration "You do not need to pay money today to secure future legal services", advised Adonis Flores, who was the guest speaker at the Administrative Relief Information Session, held last February 21, 2015 at Fuji Restaurant. Flores is from Michigan United. He talked about the Filipinos having the longest waiting time for visas to come to the United States to get re-united with their families. Flores pointed out that people will have a lot of speculations about President Obama's immigration relief executive action. He encouraged people to seek legitimate advise from competent immigration attorneys, and to be vigilant about immigration scams. He added that there are so many criteria for a potential applicant to qualify for this administrative relief. One of the qualifications is to be placed on high enforcement priorities as defined in the new civil enforcement guidelines. Many may not qualify, and could face deportation if their application is denied. Flores advised, "Anyone who falls under the civil enforcement guidelines should speak to an experienced attorney before applying.” Immediate NaFFAA National Chair, Ed Navarra, said that “I support the immigration reforms, provided it is not being used by politicians to advance their political agenda.” Atty. Carol D'Agostino moderated the open forum. As an immigration lawyer herself she explained a lot of details regarding applicants with previous felony charges that can discourage potential applicants from taking advantage of this administrative relief. D'Agostino further explained various ways to prove that an applicant had stayed in the United States to satisfy the qualification on the date of entry. She offered a private consultation with other attendees to talk on specific immigration case. This Administrative Relief Session is a pioneering initiative of NaFFAA Michigan, in collaboration with Michigan United. The event’s host and facilitator was Amy Risvold, who also introduced the guest speaker. It was attended by many community leaders in Michigan.
NaFFAA MI State Chair Willie DeChavez (L) with guest speaker, Adonis Flores.
Immediate Past NaFFAA National Chair, Ed Navarra and MI State Chair Willie DeChavez (seated center) with other NaFFAA MI members and other community leaders.
NaFFAA’s Campaign to Change Tour Bus Policy in San Francisco Gets Mayor’s Support Speaking during the press conference of the Launch of Large Vehicle Training Program to increase street safety on February 10, 2015, San Francisco Mayor Ed Lee expressed his strong support to NaFFAA’s initiative recommending to change the tour bus policy, in the light of several fatal accidents in the city. The most recent accident involved a 68 year-old City employee who was struck and killed in front of City Hall.
San Francisco Mayor Ed Lee
Mayor Lee said “I support this efforts to make sure the driver has no other destruction when they drive around the city. I will get down on conversation with the Board and hope to pass something that the drivers have to commit to.” 4
NaFFAA Endorses Research on Fil-Ams The NaFFAA Health Directorate assists and facilitates Fil-Am research as part of its advocacy and empowerment initiative. Dr. Regilda Romero of Argosy University is doing research on Fil-Am's mental health as it relates to acculturation. Her team would like to survey 500-1000 Fil-Am adults (18+). NaFFAA National Director of Health, Dr. Rommel Rivera calls everyone to participate by completing a survey that will just take approximately 10-15 minutes to answer. This survey is divided into 4 parts:
Rommel Rivera, M.D.
Demographic information Mental health status (mood, self-image, eating habits, interpersonal relations, etc.) Locus of control Acculturation
Your answers are completely confidential. Your name or your residential status WILL NOT be asked. Since no name will be attached to the answers, it is important that you answer this survey only once and answer each item. The research aims to collect information on 500-1000 adult (18+) Filipinos/Filipino-Americans residing in the United States. Please feel free to forward the survey to people who you think might be interested and meet the criteria. Please know that you are not obligated to take this survey or forward it to others, but any help is appreciated. Please feel free to contact filipinoresearch1@gmail.com for your questions. English Survey: https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/Fil_Am_Study_English_Version English/Tagalog Survey: https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/English_Tagalog_Version The NaFFAA Health Directorate would also like to know the following from each Region: 1. On-going Fil-Am Health Studies from your Region 2. Groups or organizations needing assistance on Fil-Am Health Studies in your Region 3. Notable Health Researchers and Notable Health Research done in your Region. We are compiling a National Database of Fil-Am Health Research and Health Researchers. Please email inquiries to Dr. Rommel Rivera at rommel9144855@comcast.net.
NaFFAA Endorses Research on Fil-Ams As life in deep midwinter starts to kindle, it is my deep privilege to extend a new initiative to all from Rommel Rivera, M.D., Director of Health of the National Federation of Filipino American Associations (NaFFAA). Please see email below.
Dennis Apuan Region 5 Chair
Some of you may recall the tragic episode of a Fil-Am woman who was shot to death at a VA Costco in 2013. Even as the Philippine Embassy extended its deepest sympathy to the family of Mylene de Leon Scott and members of our community expressed concerns that law enforcement officials may have responded with disproportionate force, the tragedy also brought to light that Fil-Ams are not immune to mental health disorders.
In any given year, one in every four people (26.2%, according to the National Institute on Mental Health) is dealing with a mental illness, also known as brain disorder. For this reason, I urge your participation in a research study to determine the level of acculturation of Filipino / Fil-Am adults as it relates to their mental health. The findings will be part of NaFFAA Health Directorate's advocacy and empowerment initiative. To our civically engaged medical practitioners from Region 5 cc'd herein -- Drs. Piedad, Ashmann, Yrastorza and Pasion, R.N., et al. -- I hope you will also respond to additional questionns as they relate to regional Fil-Am health studies, notable health research and researchers. Please direct your responses to Dr. Rivera at rommel.rivera@naffa.org, and kindly cc your responses to giselle.rushford@naffaa.org and dennis.apuan@naffaa.org for inclusion in our annual regional report. Rosalynn Carter, former First Lady of the United States and leading advocate for numerous causes, perhaps most prominently for mental health research once said, "People with mental health problems are our neighbors. They are members of our congregations, members of our families; they are everywhere in this country. If we ignore their cries for help, we will be continuing to participate in the anguish from which those cries for help come. A problem of this magnitude will not go away. Because it will not go away, and because of our spiritual commitments, we are compelled to take action." Thank you in advance for your participation, even as we at NaFFAA acknowledge and affirm the worth of everyone in our communities.
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NaFFAA Commends Family Reunification WASHINGTON, D.C. – The National Federation of Filipino American Associations (NaFFAA) commends Congressman Mark Takai (D-HI) for introducing the Filipino Veterans Family Reunification Act of 2015 (H.R. 483). This bill would amend the Immigration Act of 1990, which led to the naturalization of Filipino World War II veterans. However, the law did not apply to their spouses and children. “We thank Congressman Takai for resuming previous efforts to reunite Filipino veterans with their families, many of whom have been waiting for more than 20 years to obtain a green card,” says NaFFAA National Chair JT Mallonga. “Because of numerical limits in the 1990 law, children of Filipino World War II veterans have had to wait up to 23 years to come to the U.S. Our veterans are in their late 80s and early 90s and being separated from their loved ones is a big sacrifice. We hope Congress will act on this bipartisan bill soon, as a humanitarian gesture and as a way of thanking our veterans for their own sacrifice and service during the war.” Mallonga also thanks Rep. Joseph Heck (RNV) for co-sponsoring the measure. This latest initiative comes in the heels of another legislative proposal by Sen. Mazie K. Hirono, Sen. Dean Heller and U.S. Rep. Grace Meng to ensure that Filipino World War II veterans receive their rightful benefits. Called “The Filipino Veterans Promise Amendment,” the bill will provide Filipino World War II veterans a process to prove that they indeed served and are eligible for the benefits they have been promised. About 4,000 veterans whose claims were rejected, have appealed to the Veterans Administration. They maintain that their rejection was based on unfair procedures in determining service eligibility. Filipino American veterans advocates are also working on a separate issue that would secure a Congressional Gold Medal Award for Filipino veterans who served between December 1941 through July 1946, as members of the US Armed Forces of the Far East (USAFFE), Philippine Scouts or guerillas. 6
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