Consul General Ferrer Opens Golden State Warriors-Houston Rockets Game on Filipino Heritage Night

CONSUL GENERAL FERRER OPENS GOLDEN STATE WARRIORS-HOUSTON ROCKETS GAME ON FILIPINO HERITAGE NIGHT

Philippine Consul General in San Francisco Neil Frank R. Ferrer leads the ceremonial bell-ringing upon the entry of the Golden State Warriors and Houston Rockets at Chase Center in San Francisco on 7 November 2021. He was joined in the center court by Franco Finn, the Filipino American “hype man” of the Golden State Warriors. (San Francisco PCG screenshot)

SAN FRANCISCO, USA – Basketball fans in the San Francisco Bay Area were treated with a night of Filipino culture and food in the 13th Filipino Heritage Night of the Golden State Warriors at Chase Center in San Francisco on 7 November 2021.

Philippine Consul General in San Francisco Neil Frank R. Ferrer opened the Filipino Heritage Night in front of a full house, which pitted the hometown team against Houston Rockets in the Western Conference of the National Basketball Association (NBA).

Consul General Ferrer led the ceremonial bell-ringing upon the entry of the two teams for their very first match-up of the 2021-2022 Season. The Filipino Heritage Night also coincided with the Golden State Warriors’s 75th anniversary season.

“I wish to congratulate the NBA, the Golden State Warriors, and the Filipino American Arts Exposition for spearheading this season’s NBA Filipino Heritage Night. This was an event where the Filipino Community in the Bay Area came together not only to cheer their hearts out for the home team, but also to show why Filipinos are the most passionate basketball fans in the world,” Consul General Ferrer said.

The NBA Filipino Heritage Night featured San Jose-based choir group Bytes and Notes, who performed the Philippine National Anthem, and a halftime performance by Delano-based Sikaran Arnis Academy, who showed off their skills in the Filipino martial arts of arnis, kali and eskrima.

NBA fans also got their taste of Philippine-inspired food from The Sarap Shop with a menu that consists of Longanisa Dirty Dog, “Impossible” Curry Lumpia made from a plant-based food product, and “Chippy” Pie from a popular Filipino snack. Filipino Heritage Night t-shirt, featuring the Golden State Warriors logo with Filipino motifs and designed by local artist Orly Locquiao, were also given to ticket-paying patrons. END

Members of the Sikaran Arnis Academy of Delano, California gives a Filipino martial arts demonstration during the halftime program of the Golden State Warriors’ Filipino Heritage Night at Chase Center in San Francisco on 7 November 2021. (San Francisco PCG screenshot)
Philippine Consul General in San Francisco Neil Frank R. Ferrer and Mrs. Miriam M. Ferrer (right) join the organizers and sponsors of the Golden State Warriors’ Filipino Heritage Night in a photo opportunity, at Chase Center in San Francisco on 7 November 2021. (Al Perez photo)