4 November 2013 - As the month-long celebration of Filipino-American History Month comes to a close, San Francisco Mayor Edwin Lee hosted a reception in honor of this annual event. The reception was held on October 30, at the San Francisco City Hall Rotunda, and was graced by leaders and members of the Filipino-American community, local government officials, the media and the officers and staff of the Philippine Consulate General in San Francisco.
This year marks the 9th annual Filipino-American History Month celebration. In his remarks, Mayor Lee stated the importance of recognizing the history of the city and its immigrants, their hard work that made San Francisco a successful city. The Mayor also mentioned the contributions of the early Filipino immigrants in the construction of the Golden Gate Bridge. He stressed that the city needs more heroes, more people from the Filipino-American community to serve and innovate and to make the city more valuable. He also encouraged the Filipino community and its leaders to become a stronger ethnic group.
Mayor Lee’s remarks ended with a presentation of the Official Proclamation declaring the month of October of each year as Filipino-American History Month. As Deputy Consul General Jaime Ramon T. Ascalon received the Proclamation, he expressed the deep appreciation of the Philippine Consulate General to the City’s support to the Filipino-American Community. He also stressed the importance of understanding and continuing to celebrate how the FilAm community came about and to how it is today.
The reception also gave recognition to outstanding Filipino-Americans and Filipino-American organizations belonging to the various districts of San Francisco, who has made significant contributions and accomplishments in the community.
The reception for the Filipino-American History Month Celebration was held in sponsorship with the San Francisco Mayor’s Office, the SF Board of Education, the Filipino American Arts Exposition and the Philippine Consulate General. END