Filipino Heritage Month: June 2024

6/30/2024

We wrapped up Filipino Heritage Month with participation in various celebrations, and we're gearing up with July with our own events and our annual summer picnic!. Here are some highlights from the past month!

June 8: Flagraising at the Filipino Plaza

Members and friends alike join UFCABC's flagraising and community fiesta.

UPAABC's very own Mark Panganiban together with siblings, also known as the Romanaks, and Ian Zeta represented UPAABC with the singing of the national anthems along with marvelous song and dance performances for the crowd!

June 15: Philippine Heritage Gala

UPAABC represent at the annual heritage gala hosted by the UFCABC! We are joined by regular and new members such as Jelda Miranda, Deniece Liza!

Congratulations to outgoing UFCABC Vice President Rene Alcantara for a successful term, and congratulations to former UPAABC President Mylene Lim for joining their Board for 2024-2026!

June 22: Pinoy Festival at Burnaby

UPAABC joined the community parade with FAM; and set up a booth at the Pinoy Festival: Panahon na Para Magsaya 2 in Burnaby!

Many thanks to Gilbert Bercero, Rene Alcantara, Deniece Liza, Jelda Miranda, Jholina Gamboa, JM Caquilala, and Jasper Mallonga for manning the booth, and thank you to everyone who stopped by to say hi! We also received ~50 sign ups from prospective members. Exciting!

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President's Message

Dear UPAABC Comrades,

It is 4AM, and it has taken me forever even to just give a quick notch at my keyboard to type this. I have to be stupendously honest that I have been having anxiety to even start writing. The last time I’ve been into this very same mood and situation was when I delivered a speech in front of a graduating class that asked me to become their Guest Speaker. And, yes, I have gone through the same struggle. I was only able to make out a good write up that I thought – actually -- made sense two hours before I was made to join the class upstage. Having narrated all these, I don’t think I’d be able to make the kind of sense that will satisfy your true-blue, forever-hungry-of-new-knowledge, green-and-maroon minds and souls.

But… Here it goes! On behalf of the Board, I will try and do my utmost best to deliver in the same way I have come to realize just how humble and open-minded you all were to give me this chance to serve our Isko floor with the highest post and honour– given, at first, my “reluctant” leadership behaviour—for 2023 and 2024.

To an Iskolar ng Bayan, to serve is always pleasurable. There is this indescribable tinge of mixed anticipation and excitement that comes with a bit of anxiety and gratefulness whenever the trumpet of service and calling sounds its horns. Yes, the trumpet always howls from up the mountain to make sure that everyone down in the valley hears the loudness of the message. And, sure, the whole UPAABC township never fails to grasp and decode the Morse code of “pagtatanghal” ng mga “humayong” hinubog na anak ng bayan galing sa pambansang pamantasan ng Pilipinas, ang Unibersidad ng Pilipinas.

It is of an august honour to serve as President of the University of the Philippines Alumni Association in British Columbia for years 2023 and 2024. The new Board is here not to shake and rattle. We are here to keep up because you guys have already been shaking and rattling and swinging the UPAABC wagon amid the constantly changing winds of time. We are here to uphold and respect legacies and footprints that are meant to stay, as we all are also here to work with you the necessary transformations that our organization will need to continue thriving in the next long years, as it already did for almost five golden decades now.
Allow the new Board and I to polish the specifics of our Strat Plan and Proposed Calendar of activities for 2023. Your suggestions have been heard, and we want to make sure that one and all is happy to participate in each of the mapped activities. We will retain traditions that define the UPAABC family; we will introduce exciting youngblood programs that will make this family and comradeship even more impactful.

Allow me to express the deepest, warmest accolade and respect to our President Emerita, Anita “Cookie” Aytona, and the past board for their invaluable contributions, projects, and unconditional support to the newly-boarded officers. Without you all being our mentors, who would we be today and tomorrow? Many thanks for the untiring calibrations! Without all these timely tools, how do we carry on from today until the boat is ready to sail on its own? There are no words to properly express our gratitude.

On behalf of the 2023 and 2024 Board of Directors, maligaya at malikhaing Bagong Taon! Thank you, unreservedly, in advance, for your soaring and cradling support!

Gracias,

Maribel “Bella” Balisi Bevilacqua
President, University of the Philippines Alumni Association in BC
A.D. 2023 & 2024

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