DIARY | Lectures and Teaching at Faculty of Arts, Charles University in Prague in Czech Republic

PRAGUE |   Every morning I wake up in Dejvicka, a quiet residential district located northwest of the city center of Prague, and my first thought is that I have to go teach today.  There are several colleges nearby where they teach architecture, civil engineering, chemistry and theology.  I look out my window, I see huddles of Czech students either going to their classes or heading toward the dining hall, and the second thing in my mind is, "How can I, an American who does not speak Czech and (most important) who is interested in the arts and in aesthetics, connect with them?"  After grabbing coffee and running out to the Metro Line A, I head out to Staromestske, and the next thought I have is, "Might there be anything useful for me to share to the Czech students of the Faculty of the Arts, Charles University that would actually be helpful in their unique situation here in Prague?"

Charles University in Prague

I momentarily forget my worries, anxieties and questions as I walk up the stairs of the Staromestske station.  The city of Prague is well known as one of the most beautiful cities in all of Europe. Its central location makes traveling to other parts of Europe quite easy, especially to the neighboring countries of Germany, Austria, Slovakia and Poland.  

The archway of the main building of the Charles University on Jana Palacha square looks grand on this cold, grey morning. When you hit the top of the stairs, you see the Vlatava River and beyond it the imposing Prague Castle. Around noon, the sun creeps out, and the sight of all of it is epic. Every time I walk into the classroom, I sneak a peek out the window to see the red-shingled rooftops and impressive vistas. "I could get used to this," I joke to myself.

It is November. Unlike in the summer when you have difficulty seeing this charming city for the swarms of drunken tourists and party-hardy visitors, the fall in Praha enchants.  There are mornings when I feel like I have Charles Bridge all to myself. And there are shadowy evenings, the air filled with fog and lit only by the dull-yellow streetlights, when I begin to glimpse the melancholy labyrinths that must have fired Franz Kafka's imagination. A number of world theater figures from Asia have been invited to visit Charles University, a traditional center of Czech scholarship since 1348 and the most important Czech educational institution oriented toward the humanities. Prior to my arrival, the Prague university's Faculty of the Arts has hosted Gao Xingjian, the Nobel Prize winning Chinese émigré novelist, playwright and critic; Stan Lai, the influential U.S.-born Chinese playwright and director Stan; Shigeyama Motohiko, the Japanese kyogen actor; and Galina Sinkina, Russian playwright, director and founder of Teatr.doc.

I was asked to lead a series of workshops on American theater and criticism and to offer a lecture on what it is like to practice theater criticism in New York. The audience is composed of young writers, emerging scholars and students of theater studies, Anglo-American studies, film studies and other disciplines. We take in Czech productions in the evening: a Czech production of David Mamet's presidential comedy November at MeetFactory and German writer Katharina Schmitt's Sam, staged by Studio Hrdiny Prag at the National Gallery. 

On Tuesday, I present a formal lecture on the present state of criticism at a time when the media is transitioning from print to online. I worry that for the Europeans, who are more steeped in theory and more addicted to state-government funding than the more practical-based Americans, my talk might not be too engaging. It might be too much about the media business. But I have no choice but to specifically discuss how critics need to become entrepreneurs in the digital age. The future of the art of criticism is what's at stake. 

On Wednesday, I had hoped to focus on new trends in contemporary American drama, but I was informed that except for a few famous names like Arthur Miller, Edward Albee, Tennessee Williams and David Mamet (and even then they knew only their most famous works), the students who were present did not have a strong knowledge of how American theater has historically evolved into its present state. No critic can begin to offer authoritative opinions on new drama without grasping the apparatus, so my lecture which I originally designed to center on new 21st century American drama explodes to become a survey of 20th century U.S. theater,

On Thursday, it is my turn to learn. Prior to arriving I had made a strong point that the Czech students should prepare to give a short presentation on who they personally think is an important Czech artist of the moment. I asked them to tell me what this artist's most significant work is, and what is their least significant, and to outline whether they think this artist should be known internationally. Setting aside the fact that I am clearly also fishing for insider knowledge about Czech theater artists, this session, I feel, is the most successful, because I get to see, hear and learn from the students and the other people present what their values are in terms of art and aesthetics.  You cannot write criticism out of a vacuum, and you certainly cannot discuss criticism without a context.  So focusing specifically on how the students viewed their own Czech artists provides a glimpse on how I was about to approach the next session.

On Friday, the session focuses on how to write great criticism.  Originally, I had intended to provide a lecture on "Narrative Architectures: How New Advances in New Technology Has Changed the Way We Shape Theater," as well go deeper into a sundry of topics like hip-hop theater, theater by women, African American theater (August Wilson's Pittsburgh cycle in particular) and Latin American Theater. But I have to change my m.o. so that I could specifically respond to the expressed needs in the room. By now I have learned that the students were all interested in writing strong reviews and criticism.

All throughout my stay in Prague, I keep repeating that I would give a lecture on American musicals. And so I do on Saturday in what I feel was one of the most entertaining lectures I have ever given. I have given this lecture before on musicals in other cities in Europe, notably the International Festival of Musical Performing Arts "Life Is Beautiful" in Bucharest, Romania. But this lecture in Prague is great fun because it doubles as a listening party. At the back of the room sat a Czech guy who simply loves musicals — his name is Patrick Fridrichovsky, a dramaturg at the Vinohrady Theater and a noted radio producer — and so it was a special challenge to also have another musical theater lover in the room.  For the most part, I tie the evolution of musical history to shifts in American society and culture. I pay special attention to the elements of a musical and its anatomy.  I have to say that I never felt more American than after spending nearly four hours in Europe lecturing on American musicals.

It is now the weekend: I will plan to visit the MeetFactory again in Smichov where I will renew my acquaintance with two hip-hop-loving Czech painters who have a studio on the top floor of that former slaughterhouse, now owned by David Cerny, the bad-boy of Czech sculpture. (If I am lucky, maybe I will meet Cerny again, and he will grant me an interview or show me to his studio!) Meanwhile, the violence in the Gaza Strip flared anew while I have been here, and I am sad that I was not able to delve deeper into Middle East American dramaturgy, even though I gave the students scripts by the Egyptian-American playwright Yussef El Guindi and the British-based American writer Naomi Wallace. We discussed their plays, but if I had more time, I would have asked the writers to write even more extensively on the Israel/Palestinian conflicts on stage.

Coming to Prague, I was filled with worry and trepidation. I don't know for sure if what I had to offer as an American is useful to the Czechs I met, but now those feelings are mixed in with guarded optimism and, well, hope. As Vaclav Havel once said, "Hope is not the conviction that something will turn out well but the certainty that something makes sense, regardless of how it turns out."

ACCEPTANCE SPEECH & VIDEO | Distinguished Alumni Award during a centennial anniversary celebration

This year, Paco Catholic School celebrates 100 years (1912-2012) of quality academic education and Christ-centered moral formation.  

From humble beginnings, with a handful of students in a small chapel in the Peñafrancia section, Paco Catholic School (PCS) has grown leaps and bounds. A co-institutional private school operated and managed by the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Manila, the school is located in the district of Paco in the City of Manila, Philippines. It is now home to more than 5,000 students who are formed to excel in academics and are striving to live the school motto, "Noblesse Oblige."

PCS ushers in the centennial celebration with numerous activities from November 5 to 10, 2012.  On November 8, the school holds its Distinguished Alumni Awards ceremony and a Centennial Dinner. I am honored to be unanimously chosen as one of this year's Distinguished Alumni Awardees by the Committee on the PCS Search for Distinguished Alumni. 

What follows below is my thank-you speech:

Magandang hapon po.  My name is Randy Gener, an editor, writer and artist in New York City.  I deeply regret that I am not able to return to the Philippines this year. It is just not in the cards.  I regret I am not able join my fellow Paconians in this most significant occasion: the 100th anniversary of the founding of PCS.  Unfortunately, a series of life events has made it tougher for me to return for a brief stay.  A week ago, when superstorm Sandy slammed the East Coast, I couldn't even ride a subway train to reach downtown New York, where there was a power outage and where some areas remain flooded.

Two years ago, I returned to a PCS reunion for the first time.  I remember entertaining a hopeful thought; perhaps someday I might be able to return to the PCS campus.  During that Christmas reunion, I was reminded that I had been away for far too long.  I renewed old friendships, rekindled great memories and wondered how different my life would be had my family chosen not to permanently leave the Philippines for the United States.  What I did not realize then was that PCS would ask me to return so soon.  What I could have never anticipated was that the impetus for this invitation would be this grandest of PCS occasions.  What surprises me is that I would be selected to receive a Distinguished Alumni Award.

My time at PCS meant everything to me.  It formed and determined the person I am today.  About 6,600 miles and a couple of decades separate the young student that I was at PCS and the older (and not much wiser) New Yorker that I am today.  Yet in an utterly profound way, most of what I really need to know about how to live, and what to do, and how to be, I learned in the sandbox at PCS.

The other day I was interviewed on a talk show on satellite radio.  The radio host asked me, in a voice of incredulity, how was it possible that a boy from the Philippines would one day grow up to become an award-winning New York writer, let alone be associated with arts and culture. It was not the first time I was asked this question.

I gave the radio host my standard answer.  I have always felt, when I first arrived in the U.S., that I had unfair advantage on other young Americans: I was blessed that I studied at PCS.  In high school, I read great literature — Emerson, Thoreau, Dickinson, Whitman, Melville, Shakespeare, Dostoyesvsky, Francisco Balagtas, Jose Rizal — and learned to appreciate learning for learning's sake.  I recalled the first time I went to Norway. In Oslo I blithely pointed out how fascinating it was for me to see the two statues that stood in front of the National Theater: one of Henrik Ibsen and another of Bjørnstjerne Bjørnson.  "You know who Bjørnson is?" my surprised Norwegian friends exclaimed.  I replied, "Of course. In high school, I used to read the folk stories Bjørnson had written."  I wasn't kidding.

Sandee Masigan holds up the award

Thanks to my PCS teachers, I received what amounted to an early Ivy League-type education.  To this day, my command of Tagalog is strong, thanks to Mrs. Emma Olila-Sison.  I trace my love of American and English literature to my time at PCS.  Ms. Olivia Demingoy was one of advisers of the PCS Gazette, and to this day, I am proud to be able to say I had my early start in journalism as news editor of PCS Gazette.  A chemistry teacher, Miss Evelyn Navarrete, pushed me to do well academically and drilled me after classes so that I could hold my own during national spelling bees, science contests, debates and math competitions.  These teachers, along with many others, believed in me as a young person.

I would like to thank my dear friend Sandee Masigan for accepting this Distinguished Alumni Award in my behalf.  Asking Sandee could not be more appropriate and personal. You see, Sandee was the features editor of the Gazette.  Here in the United States, I am blessed to be still the best of friends with other former Gazetteers — Helen Formanes, our literary editor; Kimlou Conigliaro, our poetry editor; and Mark Santos, our associate editor — who, as destiny would have it, moved to the U.S. at roughly the same period of time.  We have kept in close touch over the years.  We visit one another’s homes.  We spend holidays and marriage ceremonies and baptisms. We’ve seen one another grow and mature; some have children.  So we remain the dearest of life-conspirators forever linked by this strong and lasting bond called Paco Catholic School.

I would like to thank the members of the PCS Search Committee for selecting me to receive this award. I especially thank Mrs. Helen S. Orbino for her good cheer and persistence in tracking me down. Maraming salamat po, Mrs. Orbino.

What an incredible honor it is to receive this lovely award during PCS's Centennial Anniversary year!

I look forward to seeing all of you the next time I am able to return to Manila. Maraming salamat po, PCS. Maligayang kaarawan, PCS. At magandang hapon po sa inyong lahat.

October 08, 2012

Randy Gener
New York, NY

LETTER OF CONFIRMATION

Congratulations!

We are pleased to inform you that you have been unanimously chosen as one of this year’s Distinguished Alumni Awardees by the Committee on the PCS Search for Distinguished Alumni.

We are greatly honored to invite you to grace the Awarding Ceremonies to be held on November 8, 2012 at 2:00 pm at the Jaime Cardinal Sin Auditorium on the occasion of the Centennial Anniversary of PACO CATHOLIC SCHOOL in order to receive your award.

Please come in formal attire and prepare a two–minute response. Kindly send us your latest picture(s) for AVP presentation.

Sincerely in Christ.
Mrs. Helen S.  Orbino
Human Resource Management and Development Officer

DIARY | What it is like to be a guest on Sirius XM Satellite Radio

NEW YORK CITY |   She is as classy as she is beautiful.  I was interviewed this morning on Sirius XM Satellite Radio. The interviewer was Pia Lindström, the award-winning host of "Pia Lindström Presents," an exclusive weekly interview show on Sirius XM Book Radio, where she gives listeners a glimpse into the world of books, plays, movies, and current issues. 

Pia Lindström and me.

Every week Pia talks with guests from the world of books as well as film directors, producers, literary insiders and more.  Previous guests have included best-selling authors Danielle Steele, Lorrie Moore, Anne Rice; playwrights like David Mamet; musicians such as Kenny Rogers, Jimmy Webb, Judy Collins; Forensic Scientists, Stuntmen and Mystics.  For her first show, Pia sat down with her sister, Isabella Rossellini to discuss Isabella’s new book, Green Porno, based on her Sundance Channel web series. 

I was nervous, but she made me feel at ease. I was anxious, because she wanted me to talk about the world of performing arts, as well as the present state of democracy and the arts in Europe, Asia and Africa, but she wanted me do this in a way that would clearly communicate to a broader audience. Pretty esoteric subjects, I suppose, in our mainstream-only U.S. media. To be honest I lost sleep at the mere thought of losing the interest of her millions of listeners while I had to describe and expound on global experiences and international encounters. After two cups of strong coffee, I dared to go on the radio anyway. I kept breathing to myself my mantra: "Transform your passion into a pop-culture conversation."

My favorite moment was when I got to say "Pussy" on air. I said it twice. In what context? Pia was interested in discussing issues of censorship and repression of artists, and she mentioned Putin. So there it was: my opening (no pun intended). I described the Pussy Riot debacle in Russia as one example of the repression of artists in illiberal democracies after the so-called death of Communism.

Pia Lindström, the first child of actress Ingrid Bergman and Dr. Petter Aron Lindström (a Swedish American neurosurgeon), couldn't have been sweeter and nicer.  It helped that she is an accomplished movie and theater critic, so we shared a common lingua.  I was most especially struck by her anecdotes about what it was like for her when she was starting out in broadcasting. 

Born in Stockholm, Pia began her career in San Francisco at KGO-TV, co- hosting a two-hour morning talk show.  A long time trustee of the Theatre Development Fund, the largest arts service organization in the country, she is also on the Board of Trustees of the American Theatre Wing and a member of the Tony Award Nominating Committee.  Lindström worked in television journalism for three decades in California and New York. She received two Emmy Awards and the New York Associated Press Broadcasters Award for news reporting.

Looking back, I wish we had more time to dig our heels deeper into discussing contemporary Swedish performing arts. Perhaps there will be another time. Who knows?  If our conversation sparks true and deep interest, we might broadcast about performing arts direct from Sweden in the near future. It could happen.

Stay tuned to Sirius XM Radio.  --rg

THANK-YOU SPEECH | Accepting Fil-Am Heritage Achievement Award at LA City Hall

Tonight there is a party in Los Angeles that I am sadly unable to attend.  I am being honored as one of the country's first-ever recipients of the Filipino-American Heritage Achievement Awards. This national recognition honors Filipino Americans who, in the estimation of the Los Angeles Filipino Association of City Employees (LAFACE), "helped shape the last 425 years of Fil-Ams in United States." 

Headed by Cora Aragon Soriano, LAFACE is the only Filipino-American employee organization in the City of Los Angeles. LAFACE's Fil-Am Heritage Achievement Awards are being formally presented (right now!) at Los Angeles City Hall during an all-day celebration called "425 Years of Filipino-American History." 

A second before posting this, I received a text from LA. It says that each awardee actually receives five awards: a Heritage Achievement medal, one plaque from LAFACE, and one plaque each from the State of California, the County of Los Angeles, and the City of Los Angeles.  I tell you: New York does not treat people as well as L.A. has toasted me tonight.

This is the thank-you letter I composed for the occasion.

Dear Cora Aragon A. Soriano
Dear Board Members of LAFACE
Dear Councilmembers Eric Garcetti, Jose Huizar, Richard Alarco
Dear Mayor Jejomar Erwin S. Binay Jr.
Dear Acting Philippine Consul Daniel Espiritu
Most of all, Mga Kababayan of the Los Angeles Filipino Association of City Employees:

Sayang talaga. Sayang na sayang. Nanghihinayang ako. Kasi narito ako sa New York. At lahat kayong mga nagpupuri at mga itinatanghal ay nasa Los Angeles.

This is a letter from Randy Gener in New York. How I wish I could celebrate with you tonight!  How I regret that I am not able to express my tremendous gratitude in person. This lovely gentleman reading this letter is Mark Santos. He is my best friend from Paco Catholic School.  We grew up together.  We performed and sang in school shows. We served as editors for our high school paper.

I kid you not, but on this very beautiful Friday evening, this very moment that Mark is reading this letter now in LA City Hall, I am standing on a stage, performing my own original piece of writing at Nuyorican Poets Cafe in Manhattan. This dramatic work was inspired by the historical legacies of Fil-Am farm workers and union organizers in California and Seattle. I have been collaborating with a group of young Fil-Am writers and performers to open a theater piece about Filipino identity. Had tonight's celebration happened a week earlier or a week later, there would have been no problem for me to come to LA. I am deeply moved that, despite my absence, you decided to publicly honor me anyway.

What a stunning award! What significant event tonight is! If you consider that Filipinos first set foot on the coast of California 425 years ago, tonight's gala is remarkable. This is still a society where we exist on uneven playing fields. As long as this is the case, we need groups like LAFACE to help recognize the achievements and contributions of people of color in this country.

Johnny Itliong, who received a posthumous award for his late father, the legendary Larry Itliong.
With Bernardo Bernardo, Heritage Awardee. | Photo by Paul Consignado

Among the 21 awardees tonight, five of them are being awarded posthumously. This record is completely unheard of. This LAFACE event serves as a model for the U.S. national scene. I join everyone here to salute the late Larry Itliong, whom you have recognized with a posthumous award. An important Filipino labor organizer, Itliong died 35 years ago at the age of 63.

I am jumping for joy that tonight you are honoring the late Gladys Celeste Mercader. A virtuoso pianist with international credentials, Mercader was a hidden treasure of the American music and ballet world. She had worked in the shadows of Jerome Robbins, Rudolf Nureyev, and Mikhail Baryshnikov. She died in 2008.

Heritage Achievement Awardees

With these posthumous awards to Itliong and Mercader and others who are no longer with us, LAFACE sends an important message: that we Filipino Americans truly value and acknowledge the excellence of our own people, especially those performing artists like Mercader whom the larger U.S. culture had overlooked.

I sing the praises of Bernardo Bernardo, Heritage Awardee, also for Music/Entertainment.  Ever since we first met at Perseverance Theater in Juneau, Alaska, Bernardo has amazed me with his lacerating wit, his joie de vivre, his acting talents, and his community leadership.

I salute Cora Aragon Soriano and the Board Members of LAFACE.  What you have created here tonight is to build an instrument of legitimacy for our people. I thank you for allowing me and Mark to play a small role in it. I thank whoever it was who nominated me for this award.

I grew up in the slums of Santa Ana river, studied near the outdoor markets of Paco church and immigrated to America with aspirations of becoming a writer. This award blows my mind. You have given this kanto boy something to treasure, something to live up to. Whenever I receive yet another rejection or life deals me another terrible or unfair hand, I will remember your munificence tonight: Once upon a time, in California, on the 425th year of Fil-Am historical presence in America, there was an association of LA city employees. These wonderful people, these kababayans, bless them, they took a look at the body of my work so far and said, "Job well done."

To be a success is about being happy with what you’re doing, constantly growing as an individual, and contributing to other people in measurable and meaningful ways. I will work hard to live up to your astounding generosity. I will find hope and good cheer and perseverance in this lovely gesture from LAFACE.

Maraming salamat po. Mabuhay kayo! At magandang gabi sa inyong lahat.

Warmly,
Randy Gener
Friday, October 12, 2012
New York City

ANNOUNCEMENT | Heritage Achievement Awards given out at LA City Hall

LOS ANGELES |  Two important Filipino American artists will join the country's first-ever recipients of the 2012 Heritage Achievement Awards.  These Fil Ams will receive national recognition in an unprecedented event that takes place October 12 at Los Angeles City Hall.

In the estimation of LAFACE, these Filipino Americans "helped shape the last 425 years of Fil-Ams in the United States" through their "major contributions."

LAFACE stands for the Los Angeles Filipino Association of City Employees. Headed by Cora Aragon Soriano, LAFACE is the only Filipino-American employee organization in the City of Los Angeles. The historic event is called 425 Years of Filipino-American History.

For the first time in Los Angeles City Hall, there will be a celebration of 425 years of heritage and culture of Filipino Americans in the United States. The day-long event consists of three parts: an official recognition from Los Angeles City Hall, a ribbon-cutting ceremony to unveil the historical exhibits of Filipino Americans in the USA; and a formal evening gala, by invitation only, which will gather together LA City Council members, Filipino local elected officials, LA City employees, Filipino community leaders, members of the Filipino community, and 2012 Fil-Am Heritage Achievement Awardees.

At the gala, LAFACE will hand out the first-ever 2012 Fil-Am Heritage Achievement Awards to "exceptional Filipino-Americans, organizations, and posthumous awardees" in a number of categories. At the end of this note, you will find LAFACE's announcement in Asian Journal and a complete list of its 2012 Heritage Achievement Awardees.

I would like to give special mention to two Filipino Americans. They are the late Gladys Celeste Mercader and Bernardo Bernardo.

Gladys Celeste-Mercader, a deceased Fil-Am musician, rehearsal pianist and performance soloist at American Ballet Theatre, will finally receive long-delayed national recognition in the USA. Her children will be coming to Los Angeles to pick up a posthumous 2012 Fil-Am Heritage Achievement Award in the category of Music/Entertainment.

Celeste-Mercader had worked with the world's most elite dancers: Rudolf Nureyev, Carla Fracci, Cynthia Gregory, Mikhail Baryshnikov, Gelsey Kirkland and Julio Bocca. She is also associated with the most notable choreographers of the 20th century among them, Jerome Robbins, Agnes DeMille, Eliot Feld, Mark Morris. Her career in the ballet world spanned over 40 years (ABT, Feld Ballet, Cleveland Ballet, Dance Theatre of Harlem and Ohio Ballet). With these companies she has performed piano concertos by Prokoviev, Shostakovich , Mendelsohn and piano solos by Debussy, Brahms and Strauss at New York's Metropolitan House as well as theatres throughout the United States as well as some famed International theaters, like the Paris Opera House and Teatro Colon in Buenos Aires, Argentina. To this day, her ballet-music recordings are being taught in ballet school all over the country.

Bernardo Bernardo is a performing artist par excellence. He is a mover and shaker in the Filipino American community in the United States. Most recently, he was awarded the L.A. Weekly Theater Award for Best Direction for the 2012 productions of The Romance of Magno Rubio and Ang Romansa in Magno Rubio. The two versions of the same play ran in repertory at Inside the Ford Theatre, from November 4 through December 11, 2011. Bernardo is a triple threat: a host, singer and stand-up comedian. He is an actor of stage, film and television. With his wicked sense of humor, piercing intelligence and seductive singing voice, he wows audiences in Seattle, Chicago, San Francisco, San Diego, Sacramento, Los Angeles, Juneau, Las Vegas and New York. He is a complete entertainer.

Although I have known about him for years through his film and television work, I first met Bernardo in Juneau, Alaska, when I wrote the cover story, "Alaska Is In the Heart," for the July/August 2005 edition of American Theatre magazine. He appeared in two Perseverance Theatre productions there: the musical THE LONG SEASON and the documentary play VOYAGE.

Congratulations to both the Mercader family and Bernardo Bernardo.

A Personal Note: In late September, I received a letter from LAFACE. It stated that I was nominated and selected to receive a 2012 Fil-Am Heritage Achievement Award in the disciplines of Arts/Literature and Media/Entertainment. 

I would like to publicly thank Cora Aragon Soriano and the LAFACE Selection Committee for including me in this historic "425 Years" event. Not the least of which because it happens during the Filipino American History month of October. What a gorgeous honor!  Maraming salamat po.

“425 YEARS OF FILIPINO-AMERICAN HISTORY”

2012 FIL-AM HERITAGE ACHIEVEMENTS AWARDS

ANNOUNCEMENT by Cora Aragon Soriano

LOS ANGELES |  We are honored to announce that we are recognizing the following exceptional Filipino-Americans, organizations, and posthumous awardees, who by their outstanding achievements and contributions have made historical presence and exceptional contributions to the Filipino heritage, culture, humanitarian efforts, progress and development, and professional contributions in the United States of America (USA).

The celebration in Los Angeles City Hall has been rescheduled to Friday, October 12, 2012.

Formed in 1982, LAFACE currently represents over 2.500 Filipino City employees. In addition to fostering advancement of Filipinos and its members in the City, LAFACE’s objective is to promote the economic, educational, social, and cultural advancement of Filipinos in the community. According to the LAFACE website, "We believe this celebration is the perfect opportunity to celebrate 425 years of Filipino-American achievements, contributions, and historical presence in the United States."

2012 Fil-Am Heritage Achievement Awards

Eliseo Art Silva
Arts/Literature (LA/Philadelphia)

Randy Gener
Arts/Literature/Media (New York)

George Gange
Cultural Preservation – Rondalla (Daly City)

Jose Omila
Cultural Preservation – Filipino art/music/dance (Florida)

Dr. Fe Ludivico Aragon & Dr. Enrique Aragon
Education (City of Irwindale)

David Tupaz
Fashion & Style (Woodland Hills/Las Vegas)

Cora M Tellez
Health/Medicine (Oakland, CA)

Grace Mercado Ouano
Health/Philanthropist /Entrepreneur (La Canada)

Donald Plata
Historical Contributions (Washington, DC)

Francine Maigue
Humanitarian/Arts/Community Service (San Diego)

Cora Oriel
Media (print) – LA

Jannelle So
Media (TV) - LA

Dr.  Michael W. Cruz, MD
Medicine/Health, Public Service, US Military (Guam)

Bernardo Bernardo
Music/Entertainment (LA)

Lt. Colonel Shirley S. Raguindin, USAF
US Military (Maryland)

Posthumous Awards:

Helen Brown
Cultural Preservation (LA)

Remedios “Remy” V. Geaga
Community Service (LA)

Larry Itliong
Historical Contributions (Delano)

Agripino Mallado “Pinoy” Jaucian
Historical Contributions (Philadelphia)

Gladys Celeste Mercader
Music/Entertainment (New York)

Organizational Award:

Filipino Community, Inc., State of Alaska
Community Service (Alaska)

CONGRATULATIONS to all our awardees!

425 Years of Filipino-American History
at Los Angeles City Hall

Let us celebrate 425 years of heritage and culture of Filipino Americans and their achievements, contributions, and the historical presence of Filipinos in the United States.

(“On October 18, 1587, 33 years before the pilgrims arrived in New England and 20 years before the founding of Jamestown in Virginia, Filipinos were a part of the Spanish Unamuno’s Expedition that landed on the coast of California.”)

Councilmembers Eric Garcetti (CD 13, Jose Huizar (CD 14), and Richard Alarcon (CD7);  and The Los Angeles Filipino Association of City Employees (LAFACE), sponsored by TFC Filipino Channel, cordially invite everyone at our celebration of 425 Years of Filipino-American History at Los Angeles City Hall.

Mayor Jejomar Erwin S Binay Jr., Mayor of the City of Makati, Philippines, Sister City of the City of Los Angeles, will also be joining the celebration.

This event honors the many contributions of Filipino Americans to the United States and will include local dignitaries, community members, 2012 Fil-Am History Awardees, and an official recognition from the LA City Council.  The celebration is comprised of the following components:

Friday, October 12, 2012
Members of the Public are invited at the morning event

10:00 a.m.  Los Angeles City Council Proclamation, Filipino History Month in LA; Resolution to be presented to LA Consul General, Local Elected Officials and Filipino community,  at LA City  Council Chambers. 3rd floor, LA City Hall, 200 North Spring St., LA, CA  (use Main Street entrance)

11:00 am  Ribbon Cutting of Filipino Historical Art Exhibits in LA City Hall Bridge
(Filipino Art One-Month Exhibit:   October 2nd to 26th, 2012)

11:30 Light Reception at the LA City Hall Rotunda

RSVP/Parking To determine amount of food to order, please RSVP by emailing alex.banares@lacity.org; for free parking, email Alex car info, i.e.: model, license, make, color
Suggested Attire:  Filipiniana/Barong or Business

Evening Event (by invitation only to 2012 Fil-Am Heritage Achievement Awardees)

6:00 pm GALA Event to honor Fil-Am History Achievement Awardees,
Tom Bradley Towers, LA City Hall (formal event – Filipiniana/Barong or Formal)