PH Consulate General in Chicago Conducts 8th Consular Outreach
The Philippine Consulate General in Chicago's Consular Outreach Mission Team with the leaders and members of the Fil-Minnesotan Association (FMA). (Chicago PCG photo)
CHICAGO 02 September 2019 – Upon the request and in partnership with the Fil-Minnesotan Association (FMA), the Philippine Consulate General in Chicago conducted a consular outreach on 24 August 2019 at Maplewood, Minnesota.
The outreach, which was held at FMA’s Philippine Center, served a total of 406 applicants and rendered passport renewal, civil registration, and notarization, authentication of documents, dual citizenship and provided information and advice on various issues related to correcting entries in civil records, adoption, retirement to the Philippines, and settlement of estate.
Led by FMA’s president Vicente “Jun” Nacionales Jr. and Emmanuel Torres, the Association’s leaders and members served as volunteers, providing much-needed logistics and keeping the lines and flow of applicants pleasantly in order. A number of applicants came as far as North Dakota, South Dakota, and Wisconsin.
The consular mission team headed by Consul Melchor Lalunio Jr. was composed of Joseph Alcantara, Sheridan Sabeniano, Cornelio Santiago, Radegunda Velasco Dela Cruz, and Wenilyn Capote.
The Consulate General and FMA arranged a formal program on the sidelines of the outreach, which featured short presentations on issues that directly affect the lives and livelihood of all Filipinos in Minnesota. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (Minneapolis, Minnesota) staff Charlotte Czarnecki touched on the subject of discrimination at the workplace while National Labor Relations Board Regions 18’s Field Attorney Chinyere Ohaeri gave an overview on workers’ rights.
An Inter-Agency Council Against Trafficking video about human trafficking was shown during the program while Consul Lalunio gave a short overview about the initiatives that are currently being implemented by the government in partnership with civil society organizations to combat this scourge.
The Consulate General’s Youth Leaders in Diaspora (YouLEAD) Immersion Program II, scheduled on 03-09 January 2020 in the Philippines, was also launched during the Outreach. YouLEAD is designed to help young Filipino-Americans trace their roots, discover their heritage, and realize their potential as up-and-coming leaders in the community through a better understanding and appreciation of their ethnicity.
A non-profit organization that was formed in 1952, the 66-year old FMA continues to promote and share Philippine heritage and culture. Through its many academic, medical, and charity-related projects, the organization continues to proactively serve over 14,000 Filipino Minnesotans. END
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC-Minneapolis, Minnesota) staff member Charlotte Czarnecki talks about the various forms of discrimination at the workplace that the law prohibits. (Chicago PCG photo)
National Labor Relations, Region 18 (NLR-18) field attorney Chinyere Ohaeri, reminds the public about workers’ rights and how NLRB could assist in situations where workers' rights are being violated. (Chicago PCG photo)
Consul Melchor P. Lalunio, Jr. (fifth from left, in white polo barong) with the new dual citizens. The Consular Mission processed 93 dual citizenship applications during the outreach—by far, the biggest number of applications that were processed in a single day. (Chicago PCG photo)
For more information, visit https://www.chicagopcg.dfa.gov.ph, https://www.chicagopcg.com or https://www.facebook.com/PHinChicago/.