Filipinas Who Inspire

PF Correspondent Cherie Querol Moreno focuses on Edith Superio Cabuslay ("She Wants You To Have a Healthier Lifestyle"), the Health Systems Program Services Manager of San Mateo County in California. The county includes Daly City where the largest concentration of Filipinos in the US resides. 

Our Video of the Week zeroes in on Aimee Carandang-Gloria, the first Filipina commercial pilot who has since switched gears and now heads a foundation that trains OFWs as professional service providers.

A formidable Filipino in the news lately is former Ombudsman Conchita Carpio-Morales. Read Again veteran journalist Marites Danguilan-Vitug's feature on this feisty, no-nonsense rule of law guardian. http://www.positivelyfilipino.com/magazine/2013/3/dont-mess-with-conchita-carpio-morales

Another Read Again for literature lovers: my column on Angela Manalang-Gloria, one of the Philippines' beloved women poets. http://www.positivelyfilipino.com/gemma/the-enigmatic-poetess

A new gathering place for Fil-Ams in San Francisco is the Filipino Cultural Center. Lorna Lardizabal Dietz, who sits on the board, tells us its genesis.

We're starting a new collection called Our Turn: Millennial Voices and, with this first contribution from Jazmine D. Tabili ("Maginhawang Buhay: A Nearly Impossible Dream for Tourism Workers"), we encourage the youth to tell their stories. Send them to positvelyfilipino01@gmail.com

 For this week’s In The Know links:

Duterte Says, ‘My Only Sin Is the Extrajudicial Killings’
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/09/27/world/asia/rodrigo-duterte-philippines-drug-war.html?fbclid=IwAR3zxZn1EzpL6_wdg01bZ7uHjoCY0bKC_klnFVXnAvEYPoXjfU0JCedrqco

100 Best Filipino Films Directed by Women
https://pinoyrebyu.wordpress.com/2019/03/23/100-best-filipino-films-directed-by-women/?fbclid=IwAR0fc76dCOEkL66mwlDoNChS8YUALa53pCebFehRCUz1bBRqGYH4ML28dk4

The Haunting Story Behind Grand Heritage House MiraNila
https://www.townandcountry.ph/people/heritage/miranila-heritage-house-library-and-pavilion-new-manila-benitez-family-a1866-20190324-lfrm3?fbclid=IwAR04pM3RR3AD3K-psm0i0ZV99wknVauLV_8II29q8icJcKZiXikOY3TcPac

FOX makes first Filipino film
https://www.philstar.com/entertainment/2019/03/16/1901759/fox-makes-first-filipino-film?fbclid=IwAR0CwZEbM4-JFeFo_jUpk2iNrHXyJ9BJrX8U7D_RuPLRfWzbnhd052tt-AM

And our Happy Home Cook recipe is Jojo Sabalvaro Tan's personal recipe for Mango Bars, being that Red Ribbon is out of reach in her area.

Yes, Women Can

We join the entire world in celebrating Women's History Month 2018, well aware that through persistence and unity, women are making their voices heard loud and clear against their oppressors. We will be featuring stories of Filipino women who have made their mark in various fields, among them Armida Siguion-Reyna, whose long-running TV show Aawitan Kita kept the kundiman tradition alive through the generations. Armida isn't just an entertainer; during her heyday, she was also a feisty cultural activist, a producer of shows, and most of all, a doting mother and grandmother to her brood. In "We Call Her Mahal," Sara Siguion-Reyna writes lovingly about her beloved grandma.

PF publisher Mona Lisa Yuchengco recalls a visit to the small town of Amagi in the Tokunoshima island in Japan and tells of the historic role Filipino women played in keeping the town alive.

For my blog this month, I focus on the poet Angela Manalang-Gloria, one of the leading lights of early Philippine literature in English, whose famous poem "Soledad" captivated me when I was younger, and titillates my imagination to this day.  

It's official, folks. And it has been official since it was enshrined in the 1987 Philippine Constitution: the national language of the Philippines is Filipino, not Pilipino. How did the F win out? Poet/translator and language expert Marne Kilates gives us the backstory on how the F, along with C, J, Ñ, Q, V, and Z have now been added to the previously 20-letter Filipino alphabet.

Our Happy Home Cook recipe this week comes from graphic artist/writer Alex G. Paman who just came out with his second book, Filipino Barbecue. Enjoy Alex's version of Chicken Inasal.

Here's the In The Know line-up:

The 19 Best Filipino Restaurants in Los Angeles, 2018 Edition
https://la.eater.com/maps/best-filipino-restaurants-los-angeles-adobo-lumpia

Oscars 2018: Robert Lopez becomes the first person in history to double EGOT
http://ew.com/awards/2018/03/05/oscars-2018-robert-lopez-double-egot/

Rita Moreno wears the same Pitoy Moreno dress she wore to Oscars in 1962
https://www.today.com/style/rita-moreno-wears-same-dress-oscars-she-wore-1962-ceremony-t124430

To design costumes for 'Black Panther,' this artist drew on his Filipino upbringing
https://www.nbcnews.com/news/asian-america/design-costumes-black-panther-artist-drew-his-filipino-upbringing-n852856

For Video of the Week, CNN Philippines The Story of the Filipino looks into lives of 3 women: Aya Fernandez (founder and head of Project Lily PH), Cha Roque (a filmmaker and Dakila Communications Director) and Kelsey Hadjirul (a young LGBT and Women's Rights Activist).