Maniolas

Pearl Alba-Donapel stands up to discrimination with knowledge of US culture and society. CONTRIBUTED SAN FRANCISCO — “I grew up in a small village in Sangat, M’lang, Cotabato where television was nonexistent and there was no electric power,” recalls Pearl Alba-Donapel, 41. Now she is raising her kids in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, where she stands up to any form of discrimination by being proud of her heritage and challenging herself to be armed with knowledge. Growing up in a farming village without electric power at night did not hinder her education. Pearl walked five kilometers to attend a Catholic high school in Cotabato. After college, she went to Davao City to work. In 2001 she met her husband, Steve, now 46. Eventually, they became engaged. Pearl flew to Philadelphia in 2002 where they got married on October 12, 2002. Marrying an American does not make an immigrant an instant citizen. It took five years before Pearl got her citizenship. She was a full-time mother to Chynna, Stephen and Christian Matthew. Her husband owns a commercial plumbing company and rents and sells flipped houses. In mixed marriages cultural differences cannot be set aside. Pearl has to struggle on this too, but in the end mutual respect and love tend to prevail. “My husband likes to express himself and (is) straightforward. I am not used to it. In our culture if you have a displeasure with something, you choose your words wisely and sometimes, we, Filipinos tend to hide it to avoid confrontation Read More …

Chicken adobo at Chicago’s Adobofest. FAN/FILIPINO KITCHEN CHICAGO ­­– Five home cooks will compete in an adobo Taste-Off Oct. 2 at the 9th annual FAN Adobofest at Kultura Festival hosted by the Filipino American Network (FAN) Chicago and Filipino Kitchen. Adobofest has been held for years at St. Paul and LaBagh Woods on the city’s northwest side. Potential contestants can sign up for the adobo home cooking contest at the FAN website. Their work will be judged by a panel of chefs and restaurant professionals to find “Chicago’s Best Home-Cooked Adobo.” Additionally, the annual balut eating contest will also be held to promote voter registration. Balut, a Philippine street food, is partially developed duck or chicken duck embyro. “Since 2008, Adobofest has grown by bringing our community together around food, family, culture and fun,” said Edgar Jimenez, executive director of Adobofest. “Year after year, we are so proud these home-cook competitors get recognized by their community, food professionals, restaurateurs and chefs. The trophies are well deserved!” “When we use the hashtag #pinoyssupportingpinoys on our social media, it’s not a gimmick. It’s a real strategy to get our community moving forward together,” said Natalia Roxas, co-founder of Filipino Kitchen. “We wanted to find a way to make a joint event work for the community, and we’re so pleased to host Adobofest at Kultura.” Kultura is a contemporary Filipino American food and arts festival taking place at Logan Square’s Emporium Arcade Bar and Surf Bar, 2363 N Milwaukee, on Sunday, October 2, Read More …

PORTSMOUTH, New Hampshire – On September 11, 2006, a fire truck was found on top of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s Great Dome. It was a spectacularly odd sight, but it had a totally simple explanation: It wasn’t a real truck but scraps of various materials carefully assembled on-site to look like the real one. While quite dramatic, it was really just a typical project by the notoriously creative MIT student hackers to commemorate 9/11. The sight of Donald Trump in the hustings as the official Republican nominee evokes the same mind-boggling how-did-that-happen puzzlement to many political observers, including virtually all talking heads who greatly exaggerated reports of Trump’s early political demise. Why did the Republicans end up with such a bizarre and pompously vacuous far-right populist with zero political experience and a track record of business bankruptcies? Similarly, Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte’s widely reported uncouth behavior (often mocked by late night comedians in the U.S.) and his open disdain for human rights make many people, especially those in the West, wonder how such an odd character ended up at the very top the Filipino people’s political Great Dome. In search of an explanation   In Trump’s case, various explanations have been posited, including his wholesale appeal to what Hillary Clinton recently called a “basket of deplorables” (bigots, misogynists, xenophobes, homophobes, etc.). But surveys suggest that his support actually cuts across demographic lines, including age, gender, income, education and religiosity. There is one group of social scientists who are suggesting Read More …

A lifeboat safety drill on the Norwegian Breakaway cruise ship killed two Filipino seamen in Bermuda. SAN FRANCISCO – A Filipino seafarer died after spending a month in intensive care in Jackson Memorial Hospital in Bermuda following a cruise ship safety drill accident that earlier killed another Filipino. Ben Buenaventura died from the injuries sustained in the tragic incident when a Norwegian Breakaway lifeboat fell into the water last July 20, during a weekly lifeboat drill while the ship was docked in Kings Wharf, Bermuda, according to a report by Crew-Center.com. http://crew-center.com/2nd-crew-member-dies-hospital-after-ncl-breakaway-accident Four crewmembers were in the lifeboat when line snapped and one crewmember, 41-year old Diogenes Carpio was killed immediately. Buenaventura was flown to Jackson Memorial Hospital with fractures to both legs, hip, right arm, punctured lungs and traumatic brain injuries. The maritime and admiralty law firm Lipcon, Margulies, Alsina & Winkleman, P.A. represents Buenaventura’s family in a legal case against Norwegian Cruise Line. Buenaventura had been a waiter on NCL for more than a decade. He leaves behind a wife and 5-year-old son. RELATED STORY: Filipino sailor dies in cruise ship safety drill accident in Bermuda Latest Duterte on De Lima’s ouster: Senate is not my territory Duterte:  Another bombing may happen Duterte’s war won’t stop until last drug pusher is dead MNLF seen as key to safe release of Abu Sayyaf captives Recommended Disclaimer: Comments do not represent the views of INQUIRER.net. We reserve the right to exclude comments which are inconsistent with our editorial standards. FULL Read More …

Jollibee Food Corporation Foundation gifted the University of Chicago Medicine Comer Children’s Hospital with $25,000 in appreciation for the warm and successful launching of its first Midwest store in the Chicago area. Pictured from left are Foundation President Grace Tan Caktiong, JFC founder and chairman Tony Tan Caktiong, Comer’s Vice president Karen Stratton, Comer’s Director of Child Life Jennie Ott, JFC CEO Ernernesto Tanmantiong, JFC President for North American Jose Minna and Maribeth dela Cruz, JFC general manager for USA. PINOY/ANONG SKOKIE, Illinois –After its “most successful opening” last July 29 weekend in this village, just north of Chicago, all the top executive officers of the Jollibee Food Corporation (JFC) gathered here, Sept.15, to show their appreciation for the “overwhelming reception” that Filipino Americans in the Chicago area and neighboring states had given to their very first Jollibee restaurant in the Midwest. JFC Chairman and Founder Tony Tan Caktiong and his wife, Grace, president of the JFC Foundation, personally handed an oversized check for $25,000 to the University of Chicago Medicine Comer Children’s Hospital, which was represented by Karen Stratton, Comer Children’s vice president for Women’s and Children’s Services and Jennie Ott, the hospital’s director of Child Life and Education. Tan Caktiong led his officers including CEO Ernesto Tanmantiong and JFC Group President for North America Jose Minana in expressing their company’s dedication to family and children’s values and their desire to give back to the community. Also attending the appreciation day was Consul General Generoso Calonge, who expressed his Read More …