PH Consulate General Pays Tribute to WWII Veterans on 77th Anniversary of Bataan Death March
Parade of Colors during the 77TH Anniversary of Bataan Death March at Golden Gate National Cemetery on 06 April 2019. (San Francisco PCG photo)
SAN BRUNO 03 May 2019 - Consul General to San Francisco Henry S. Bensurto, Jr. joined the Bataan Legacy Historical Society (BLHS) and the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (U.S. VA) in paying tribute to the veterans of the World War II in the Pacific and the Philippines at the Golden Gate National Cemetery on 06 April 2019.
The BLHS, led by its Executive Director Cecilia Gaerlan, in partnership with the Philippine Consulate General in San Francisco, the U.S. VA, the Filipino Veterans Recognition and Education Project (FilVetREP), and the Golden Gate National Cemetery, honored Admiral Chester Nimitz and Filipino, American and Mexican veterans of World War II.
Among those honored was Filipino veteran David Tejada, a survivor of the Bataan Death March. In a media interview, Consul General Bensurto emphasized, “we will not forget the heroism of our veterans.”
In her welcome remarks, Ms. Gaerlan underscored the importance of teaching the World War II in the Philippines in U.S. History curriculum so that high school students would learn about the sacrifice of Filipino and American soldiers in the war. In 2016, the California State Board of Education approved its inclusion in the US curriculum for Grade 11.
Major General Eldon Regua, whose father is Filipino, hosted the commemorative program and spoke about the heroism of veterans. The national anthems of the United States and the Philippines were played during the parade of colors at the national cemetery and the Consuls General of the Philippines and Mexico laid a wreath during the event. High school student Alex Ruivivar, a great grandson of a veteran, read a poem about the Bataan Death March.
The Philippines celebrates April 9 of each year as Araw ng Kagitingan (Day of Valor) as Filipino forces fought alongside American soldiers in the last strongholds of Bataan and Corregidor during the Japanese occupation of the Philippines in the World War II. END
Consul General to San Francisco Henry S. Bensurto lays a wreath in honor of the 77TH Anniversary of Bataan Death March on 06 April 2019. (San Francisco PCG photo)
Mr. David Tejada, Filipino World War II veteran and survivor of the Bataan Death March (San Francisco PCG photo)
For more information, visit www.sanfranciscopcg.dfa.gov.ph, www.philippinessanfrancisco.org or https://www.facebook.com/PHinSF/.