A Good Month for Remembering

/

“There is something about listening to the stories of our Filipino-American elders that touches me at the soul level,” posted Fil-Am biopharma entrepreneur Lieza Marie Danan after attending last Saturday’s tribute to community manongs and manangs, sponsored by Positively Filipino. [See report by Lorna Lardizabal Dietz.]

Lieza's words speak to something deeply Filipino: our instinct to remember, to honor those who came before us, and to carry their stories forward. Wherever Filipinos may be in the world, our history travels with us—in memory, in family stories, and in the communities we build.

August is a good month for remembering. The Cry of Pugad Lawin, the founding of the Aglipayan Church, and the arrival of the Thomasites all took place in this month. Marcelo H. del Pilar and Manuel L. Quezon were born in August; and on August 21, 1983, Ninoy Aquino Jr. was assassinated, changing the course of Philippine history. [More on this date next week, but read Howie Severino's Ninoy story in this issue.] 

These are the familiar milestones. But history is also found in the quieter stories—the lives of our elders, the struggles they endured, and the communities they built. To celebrate them is, in a small but important way, to celebrate ourselves.

This Week’s Stories

Honoring Our Manongs and Manangs 2026 by Lorna Lardizabal Dietz

The Only Unhappy Aquino in America by Howie Severino

A Childhood My Children Will Never Fully Know by Elena Baldwin

Adoring the Philippines from Afar by Anthony Maddela

[Read It Again]

Day Trips to Culinary Heaven by Elizabeth Ann Quirino

Mark of Four Waves by Mel Orpilla

[Video of the Week]

San Jose’s Filipino American Community

In The Know

Conrad Ricamora Hopes His New Role Will Make You Rethink Your Relationship To AI
https://www.huffpost.com/entry/conrad-ricamora-disruption-play-

Inside Kapusod, Howie Severino's Lakeside Paradise Where Thoughtful Living Takes Root
https://www.spot.ph/things-to-do/weekend-guides/howie-severino-kapusod-batangas-a5138-20260724-dyn?ref=home_wgt3-weekender_read-more

Fil-Am Jacob Batalon ties the knot as ‘Spider-Man’ shatters records
https://usa.inquirer.net/205862/fil-am-jacob-batalon-ties-the-knot-as-spider-man-shatters-records

Lorna Tolentino becomes Philippine Navy reservist
https://www.pep.ph/pepalerts/pep-troika/193316/lorna-tolentino-philippine-navy-reservist-a4118-20260807 

Filipino American activist detained in the Philippines
https://asamnews.com/2026/08/08/filipino-american-activist-christina-pasion-detained-arrested/?

Hear Them Roar

/

When award-winning Filipina author Linda Ty-Casper was coming of age in the post–World War II Philippines, the literary spotlight was mostly reserved for men. Women like her? Expected to stay in the background—supportive, quiet, focused on pamilya first and career second. That was the script.

But Linda didn’t follow scripts.

After marrying American literary critic Leonard Casper, she moved to the U.S., raised two daughters, ran a household, earned a law degree, stayed active in civic organizations—and somehow wrote 20 critically acclaimed books. Not safe books. Not “nice” books. Books that challenged cultural and political norms and refused to shrink themselves to make others comfortable. Two of her novels, in fact, were banned during the martial law years.

Talk about main character energy.

This Women’s History Month, we’re celebrating Filipinas who refuse to be boxed in. Like immigration lawyer-turned-artist Elaine Bordeaux, who found her creative calling in sculpture. Like Fil-Am actor Shelby Rabara, who teamed up with her husband Harry Shum Jr. to write a children’s book—expanding representation for the next generation.

These are women who refuse to be sidelined. Women who are done being saling-pusa. Women who take up space—loudly, proudly, unapologetically.

We’re here. We’ve always been here. And yeah—you better get used to it.

[Read It Again]

Hilda Koronel Has Come Full Circle by Cathy S. Babao

Clemencia Lopez, Independista by Lyca Benitez-Brown

June Dalisay, Art Healer by Serina Aidasani

[Video of the Week] Historic Filipinotown |Lost LA

/ /
, , ,

Staff

Celebration Time!

/

And just like that we're already midway through 2025!

While May was a month of fiestas and celebrations, June is a month of parades and commemorations. Look at the big events we can look forward to: June 12 Philippine Independence Day, June 19 Rizal Day and Juneteenth (in the US), June 15 Father's Day, and June 20 the Summer Solstice in the western hemisphere. All throughout the 30 days of June, we celebrate Pride Month and, according to Google, African-American Music Appreciation Month. There are of course the daily commemorations that border on the ridiculous, like National Go Barefoot Day, National Hug Your Cat Day and Love Conquers All Day, among others.  

Positively Filipino considers these important dates as landmarks that guide, but not limit, our coverage. June or not, we stand in solidarity with the LGBTQ community. We also wish Filipinos all over the world festive Independence Day and Rizal Day celebrations, and fathers, as always, reasons to be loved.

Our lineup this week:

A new book from the celebrated Filipino nonagenarian author, Linda Ty-Casper, titled Lives Remembered, is reviewed by literature professor Lynn Grow;

Our Toronto-based contributor Odette Foronda walked the Camino de Santiago the first time to pray for a child for her daughter, and the second time in gratitude for her twin grandsons. 

Another Angono, Rizal artist, Cecille Artillaga, emerges in the Philippine art scene.

And in women's soccer, an eyewitness account of Angel City FC's recent game. 

Read It Again:

In the End, Love Wins by Manzel Delacruz

My Father and Gay Pride by John L. Silva

Filipino Sports History: It’s In the Cards by Mark John Sanchez

[Video of the Week] SOMA Pilipinas: San Francisco's cultural district revitalized with art 

In The Know

OFW in Canada gifted with million-dollar house by employer
https://www.pep.ph/lifestyle/lifestyle/186893/ofw-canada-gift-million-dollar-house-a717-20250523?

More than buko pie: Sweet treats to eat in Los Baños as recommended by a local
https://lifestyle.inquirer.net/507002/los-banos-eats/

When “Honest Review Lang” Becomes Harmful: The Real Cost of Viral Food Criticism
https://www.simpol.ph/when-honest-review-lang-becomes-harmful-the-real-cost-of-viral-food-criticism/?fbclid=IwY2xjawKsAPtleHRuA2FlbQIxMABicmlkETFhR0dQaGczSHB4NFlxZm5lAR4rXko6XVPng_sy6ZxPzlkLMFvV37ae6LWk7OlbfArJJHvXuFSEbpBivVJz9A_aem_6ftimwXs3_AYo3dhmvRojA

Lilo & Stitch star Tia Carrere gushes over her trans teen son
https://www.out.com/celebs/lilo-stitch-tia-carrere-trans-son-jude?

San Francisco scooter fanatic gets back in the saddle to open new cafe
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-1BroN4hJgw

/ /
, , , , , , ,

Staff