Issue 20 | November 2017

Wellington Filipino Community Choir Stages Gloria

by Geo Robrigado

The Filipino Community welcomes Christmas early through music.

On 4 November 2017, the Wellington Filipino Community Choir staged their annual Christmas Concert entitled “Gloria” at the Filipino Community Centre in Petone. Under the baton of choirmaster Robert Ty, the choir serenaded its audience with an array of sacred, popular, romantic, and holiday tunes. Some of the songs the choir sang were Light of a Million Mornings, Duerme Negrito (Sleep, My Little One), Deck the Halls, Kampana ng Simbahan (Church Bells), Minsan Lang Kitang Iibigin (I Will Only Love You Once), and the title track, Gloria in Excelsis Deo.

Also present in the concert were the officers and staff of the Philippine Embassy led by Ambassador Gary Domingo as well as National MP Chris Bishop.

Proceeds of the concert will go to the maintenance and upkeep of the Filipino Community Centre.

Catching Up With Highlights From the Beginning of the Year 2017

Wellington Celebrates Philippine Festival 2017

Geo Robrigado

The beautiful morning sun that welcomed Wellingtonians that Saturday morning was the perfect beginning to a very successful Philippine Festival 2017.

Wellingtonians, as well as a few from Auckland and Palmerston North, flocked to the Walter Nash Stadium in Lower Hutt to celebrate Philippine Festival 2017, a showcase of Filipino food and culture. It was a follow-up to last year’s very successful Taste of Home 2016. This year, the festival expanded to include Taste of Home as well as a new segment called “Pamana at Kultura” which showcased Filipino culture through exhibits, photographs, games, song and dance, and storytelling.

Filipino home cooks throughout Wellington once again showcased their cooking for the community. It was highlighted by a demonstration by Billy Javines of Kravings. Also showcasing their cooking are Andrew and Jess of Nanam, a newly established Filipino restaurant in Auckland which serves deconstructed and reimagined version of classic Filipino dishes. Andrew and Jess created a pop-up restaurant and served their cooking for the Festival’s Boodle Feast. Lita Mendoza created special tablecloths for the event. Meanwhile, guests are treated to a display of Filipino culture through the Pamana at Kultura. Exhibits featuring Filipino costumes, landscapes, as well as the idyllic Filipino bahay kubo. Children and kids-at-heart were also treated to a storytelling by Lola Basyang, played by Bianca Benavidez, and Lolo Bosyong, played by Kenji Mendoza. There was also a dance performance by the children of Filifest.

We hope that through the Festival, we immersed you gleefully with the best that Filipino culture has to offer.

Missed the Festival? A highlight reel of the festival created by our videographer Michael Engelbrecht is available on Vimeo! Here is the link: https://vimeo.com/225555149. You can also visit the Philippine Festival Facebook page to view photos taken by our photographer Craig Philips during the festival.

Latin Dance Ball

Oddie Madrisa

Continuing on with the Philippine Festival 2017 was the Latin Dance Ball on the night of 1 July.  People had fun dancing the night with Latin and other ballroom music. The bonus part was the demonstration of different ballroom dances lead by May Young.

Bulwagan Foundation Trust Celebrates Philippine Festival Volunteers

Geo Robrigado

Following the success of Philippine Festival 2017, the Bulwagan Foundation Trust organised a small get-together to thank those who volunteered during the Philippine Festival 2017. The get-together was held on Saturday, 4 August, at the Filipino Community Centre.

A small merienda cena salu-salo, which included food primarily prepared by our dear Mommy Fe Muriel, was followed by a handing out of Certificates of Appreciation for all the volunteers. After the volunteers’ certificates, plaques of appreciation were handed out to two former trustees of the Bulwagan – Odette Madrisa and Judith Mendoza – as gratitude for their hard work in advancing the objectives and goals of the Bulwagan.

The small get-together was capped off by a karaoke party because, as they say, no Filipino party is complete without karaoke!

Kingsman: The Golden Circle

The movie fundraising was a success! The tickets were sold out, and donations came in as well from those who couldn’t make it to the movie but were more than happy to contribute towards the cause.

Proceeds from this effort will certainly help to ensure the Filipino Community Centre’s continuous operation and benefit the community at large.

Once again, our sincere gratitude to you all for your generosity and continued support!

Continuously Building The Community

The Filipino Community Centre