June 2013 Edition - Filipino Star

4
From Page 1 FAMAS Golden Gala
when Osdon said, “In a civilized society,
we should build our community, not
destroy it.”
One of the highlights of the
evening was the controversial honouring
of 50 Filipinos in the community in
conjunction with the 50th anniversary of
FAMAS.
The criteria are: Impact of the
nominees’ efforts on Quebec society,
Impact of the nominees’ efforts on the
Filipino community, and cultural/core
and FAMAS core values
The list of the honourees are the
following (in alphabetical order):
CORAZON SANTIAGO ABERIN
– She served as a church warden at the
Parish of Saint Malachy. The peak of her
community services was when through
her fundraising efforts, she raised almost
$10,000 for the FAMAS Munting Binibini
pageants in 2000 and $10,000 in 2010.
ALBERT0 “Bert” ABIERA – As a former
publisher of the Filipino Star, he had
promoted the Filipino identity in Quebec.
He is one of the three people
responsible for the installation of Dr.
Jose P. Rizal’s bust in the Mackenzie
King Park. He voluntarily accommodates
newly-arrived Filipinos in his onebedroom
apartment. DELIA ALURA –
Alura immigrated here as a caregiver.
Through hard work and dedication, she
is working now as supervisor in the
Security Department of a prestigious
company. MARLON “dj” QUEST
BALINTEC – He has played in Montreal’s
premiere night clubs such as Coliseum,
Del Rey, Van Gogh. WARLIE D.
BASBACIO – She organizes monthly
social events for the Filipino seniors to
beat isolation and loneliness. CHRIS
BAUTISTA – He is the Team Captain at
the World Tournament on the Filipino
Martial Arts held in the Philippines in
2012. His winning in the competition
brought honor to Canada. ALICIA
LOYOLA BUSTAMANTE – She is the first
and only Filipino nurse in Quebec who
holds the distinction of Director of
Nursing for 10 ½ years. She is involved
in the community in a supervisory level.
MAGDALENA B. CALCETAS – A nurse,
she is expert in management /leadership
training Outside of work, she was the
only Filipino who works as Educations
Consultant – taught middle and upper
management Canadian nurses across
Canada. EVELYN MONDONDO
CALUGAY- She is hailed as the unsung
hero because of her concern for
Filipinos who are victims of abuse and
the marginalized members of our
community. JOSE IMUS CALUGAY, SR.
– He has rendered his expertise on
Immigration Laws and a very good
resource person to the Federation of
Filipino-Canadian Associations of
Quebec.. FELY ROSALES CARINO –
She taught as a special Education
specialist at the Kateru Indian School for
12 years and received appreciation for
dedicated service from the Protestant
School Board of Chateauguay. Her
advice to community leaders - ”Read
your constitution.“ JAMES DE LA PAZ –
Impact of efforts on Quebec society. He
paved the way for Filipinos to be
recognized not only in Quebec but also
in Canadian society. Impact of efforts on
the Filipino community. He is
responsible for the rezoning of the
FAMAS building, installation of the bust
of Dr. Rizal and of a basketball court at
the Mackenzie King Park, renaming of a
park on Queen Mary Rd. after our
national hero. FAMAS core values. De la
Paz serves as the chairman of the
FAMAS Board of Trustees. SALOME
MAY DRILLON – Founder of the United
Filipino Homemakers Association of
Quebec, Drillon promoted and
safeguarded the rights of Filipino
caregivers. TERRY ESGUERRA – In
2009, she spearheaded the
establishment of the FAMAS Auxiliary
and took the chairmanship of this
committee. She is the prime mover of
fund raising activities. ALFRED ‘Freddie”
ESPINOSA. –Since 1982, he has been
serving as the Master of Ceremony of
various associations like Pamana,
Kapampangan Association and FAMAS.
FRANCIS ESPIRITU- He has been a
catechist of St. Kevin’s Church for many
years. Many children have improved
academically because of him. EDITH
FEDALIZO – She has been the pianist
and coordinator of the Filipino Panday
Tinig Choral Ensemble of Montreal since
its inception in 1985. CRESCONIA
FERNANDEZ – When her sister died of
breast cancer, she took care of the five
children. Since 2009, she has been
doing Breast Cancer Fund raising for the
benefit of MUHC. MARIFE ‘BIC’ FLORES
– She promotes good music through her
brothers who are DJs. ANTONIO FOZ –
He touched many families in Montreal
and gained new brothers and sisters in
faith and considered his adopted
families. ALBERT GUTIERREZ –
Because of his love for culture and
tradition, he founded the Philippines
Dance Troupe of Montreal. PAUL
IMPERIAL – Imperial has been
instrumental in establishing the Panday
Tinig Music Scholarship in the
Philippines. MARIA JANICE GALVEZ –
The first Filipino singer who made the
semi-finals of TVA “La Voix”. NANCY
KARIDIS – As president of the Quebec
Associations of Canadian-Filipino
Teachers, she made sure that the
Filipino language and culture was taught
to Filipinos and non Filipinos. ZENAIDA
FERRY KHARROUBI – Efforts’ Impact on
Quebec society. She is the first Filipino-
Canadian to have founded a private
college, Gilmore Business Institute, in
Quebec and to have started the first
Filipino Scouts Group. Efforts’ impact on
the Filipino community. She has been
teaching and helping new immigrants, in
particular, Filipino caregivers in learning
French. Her passion is to educate and
empower those who are not aware of the
resources available to them so that they
can be better prepared and equipped in
being successful professionals in our
community. FAMAS core value. Through
her newspaper, she has been promoting
FAMAS. MANNY LEGASCA – A graduate
of Political Science at Letran College, he
served as FAMAS director for two
consecutive terms. EUGENIA F.
MAGALIT - During her term as president
of the FNAQ, she opened memberships
to nursing graduates from the
Philippines which helped them to find
their way to becoming Registered
Nurses and Registered Nursing
Assistants. RENE LOPEZ – He holds the
record of the longest service of a FAMAS
treasurer. He was a volunteer event
treasurer of the Gawad Kalinga “A Night
of Rebuilding Hope. JAKE MAGUIGAD –
He is one of the founding members of
the PBAM in 1971, the first Inter Color
League led by Bert Abiera in 1975 and
the youth focused PYBCOMS in 1994.
PYBCOMS is a bold initiative merging
The North American Filipino Star
www.filipinostar.org
the two solitudes of the Canadian-born
and the immigrant Filipinos. AMELIA
ANAM MANON-OG – A coordinator in
nursing, Manon-og believes that
education is the best legacy that one
can give. JACINTA PANGANIBAN –
Panganiban was a business woman in
the Philippines before coming to
Canada as a caregiver. She worked hard
to be where she is now – a financial
adviser at a big company. She is also a
candidate for the CPA profession.
NATALIE PELAUSA – She is the founder
of the Philippine Benevolent and
Scholarship Society of Quebec. This
association inspires Filipino students to
excel in their studies by giving
scholarships. WILFRED G. QUIAMBAO –
Efforts’ impact on Quebec society. He
broke the barrier when he became the
first and only freelance writer for the
Gazette. Because of his writing, he was
able to promote the Filipinos and their
culture to Quebec society. Impact of
efforts on the Filipino community - As a
volunteer writer for the North American
Filipino Star, he was able to promote the
youth’s achievements and the
inspirational stories of the unknown
members of the community. As a former
director of the Federation, he was
responsible for applying for government
grants that enabled the association to
implement its projects. He is a supporter
of FAMAS. PASTOR ORLAN RACACHO
– The highlight of his civic involvement
was his collaboration with the Federal
Government as a member of the
Consultative Committee on Immigration,
Citizenship and Multiculturalism. He was
a recipient of a Silver Medal on the
occasion of the 25th Anniversary of Her
Majesty the Queen. MONICA REGACHO
– She has volunteered with different
organizations such as Baron
Mercovitchz, Project Genesis and
FAMAS. RICARDO RIBAYA – He founded
the Filipino-Canadian Association of
Montreal in 1982 to bring together all
Filipinos who have a common interest in
playing and promoting tennis. KEN
RILLO – A graduate of Dome Theatre,
Rillo is a professional actor and dancer.
His credits include some works like The
Curious Case of Benjamin Button,
Being Human and Ondek. REUBEN T.
SANTOS – Santos is a co-founder of the
Filipino-Canadian Tennis Association of
Montreal. He teaches tennis lessons not
only to Filipinos but also to non-
Filipinos. He was also a volunteer with
International Mariners House in
Montreal. He donated books,
magazines, clothing and things to the
members of the Filipino community.
MYRNA SARMIENTO - She is a
passionate worker in every field of
endeavor she gets involved in. She was
a director of the Federation, president of
the Novo Ecijano Association of
Montreal and Suburbs and Regent of the
Daughters of Isabela. CARIDAD
ALEJANDRINO TABUNAR – As a
community leader, she organizes,
manages and leads fellow seniors,
identifies their pressing needs and make
sure their needs are met. MALU
TANANTAN – Tanantan does not turn her
back when asked to support a
worthwhile project JOSE ‘PEPING’
TOLENTINO – His hard work and
dedication to his job was recognized
when he received the Dr. Ross Hill
Award in the Radiology Department of
the Montreal General Hospital. He is a
member of various organizations that
include FAMAS, Doce Pares Club of
June 2013
Quebec, Filipino Catholic Mission.
REGINA CEOLI TOLENTINO – She was
12 years old when she was chosen to
represent Canada at the 2005 World
Robocup robotics competition. A
consistent scholar, she has received
many awards in her endeavor such as
The First Choice Health Science. She
was scouted to become a member of
Concordia's University Science College
and was one of 10 to 15 new members
they admit every year to become
participants in the research and
resolution of current scientific problems
alongside professionals. The selected
students of Science College show a
greater interest and ability for science
than the average students.
ED VASQUEZ – Owner of the first
Filipino bakery in Montreal, is a strong
promoter of great community
involvement by organizing the Filipino
Montrealers in an abundance of venues.
JAY JAY VILLANUEVA – Her main focus
was the interest of the youth. She
organized the Little Miss Philbecan, Little
Miss Manileño, Miss Teen Manileño.
ALVIN D. VELOSO - Visionary, educator,
advocate of Filipino culture, service to
the church and a proven community
leader are hallmarks that distinguish
him. He is a recipient of the Ten Most
Outstanding Filipinos in Toronto and
Twenty Outstanding Filipinos in the
United States and Canada. NORMA
FLORES-VOHRA – Impact of efforts on
Quebec society. Filipinos’ passion for
beauty pageants like Miss Universe and
Miss Earth is one of our identities.
Vohra’s involvement in beauty pageants
such as Miss Global Petit and
International and Miss Earth made us
known to Quebec society. Impact of
efforts on the Filipino community. She
conceptualized the Binibning Pilipinas,
one of the biggest fundraising events of
FAMAS. The Philippine Foundation of
Montreal where she is a co-founder
donated $10.000. GRACE Yip – She
presented to the Parliament in Ottawa to
justify the caregiver program to prevent
their abuse, deportation and problems
with visas. JAYNE MARTINES YUMOL –
Her story is inspirational. She was 23
when she was diagnosed with Acute
Myelogenous Leukemia. Her doctors
gave her nine months to live. What
saved her life was a stem cell transplant.
NORMEO ZABALA – He is a musician
who has performed in Montreal Jazz
Festivals, World Expo in Vancouver, and
Bermuda Music Festival.
Other parts of the program are:
Natonal Anthem by the Panday Tinig
Choral Ensemble, Lupang HInirang by
Mariel Melendrez, Invocation by Fr. Jess
Dimafilis of St. Kevin’s Parish, Welcome
Remarks by Au Osdon, Entertainment
numbers by the Philippine Chamber
Rondalla of New Jersey, Inc., Folk
Dances by Pamana ng LuzViMinda,
Vocal Solos by Maria Galvez and Mariel
Dimayuga, Miss Philippines Montreal
Ambassador of Goodwill, Serenade by
Freddie Espinosa, and the Inspirational
Remarks by the Philippine Ambassador
Leslie Gatan. Emcess: Freddie Espinosa
and Andy Neufield.
Source: Edited profiles in the FAMAS
souvenir program
Have a nice summer
and keep fit.