DALY CITY, BAY AREA’S “PINOY CAPITAL,” MARKS 10 YEARS OF PH FLAG-RAISING AT CITY HALL FOR PH INDEPENDENCE DAY
(San Francisco PCG photo)
DALY CITY, CALIFORNIA, USA – The skies of Daly City were uncharacteristically clear as the Philippine national flag was raised for the 10th time at the Daly City Hall on 14 June 2024, in celebration of the 126th Anniversary of the Proclamation of Philippine Independence.
Consul General Neil Ferrer led the Philippine Consulate General in San Francisco in the milestone 10th Philippine flag-raising ceremony at the City Hall, hosted by the city government and the Filipino community group Pilipino Bayanihan Resource Center (PBRC).
In his remarks, Consul General Ferrer thanked the organizers of the celebration, the Daly City Government and the Pilipino Bayanihan Resource Center (PBRC), which was recently awarded as the 2024 Nonprofit of the Year for California Assembly District 19.
“Thank you for hosting events such as today’s Philippine Independence Day celebration as well as the Kasayahan sa Daly City every October for Filipino American History Month, giving Filipinos and Filipino Americans in your city a venue to take pride in their unique culture, history and identity,” Consul General Ferrer said.
Consul General Ferrer also recognized the contributions of Filipino Americans in Daly City.
“I take great pride in the exceptional leadership of Mayor Juslyn Manalo and the many other Filipino Americans who chose to make a positive impact on their city through public service. I recognize the diversity and dynamism of the Filipino-owned businesses in your city; and I offer a special mention to Fil-Am Cuisine, which was recently inducted into the inaugural class of Daly City’s Legacy Business Recognition Program,” Consul General Ferrer said.
The Philippine Consul General said that he looks forward to working with the government and people of Daly City on matters that will forge closer relations between the Philippines and the United States, including the sister city cooperation between Quezon City and Daly City.
In her message, Fil-Am Daly City Mayor Juslyn Manalo extolled the Filipino community spirit of bayanihan, which continues to animate the Filipino American Community in her city.
Mayor Manalo handed over to Consul General Ferrer a proclamation signed by all members of the Daly City Council, declaring 14 June 2024 as “Philippine Independence Day” in the city.
According to the proclamation, the sister city ties between Daly City and Quezon City aim “to foster an awareness of Filipino culture, to encourage the integration of Filipino residents of Daly City into the civic life of the city, and to encourage trade and commerce.”
The said proclamation also recognizes Kasayahan sa Daly City, the official Filipino American History Month celebration every October, as the city’s “largest community festival of the year.”
Following the speeches, Consul General Ferrer and PBRC founder Perla Ibarrientos, who initiated the very first Philippine Independence Day flag-raising at the Daly City Hall in 2014, led the hoisting of the Philippine national flag. Following the outdoor flag-raising, the PBRC hosted a luncheon featuring Filipino fare inside the City Hall.
Other dignitaries in attendance included: California State Senator Scott Wiener; San Francisco Board of Supervisors Member Catherine Stefani; Japanese Deputy Consul General Hajime Kishimori; Fil-Am Daly City Vice Mayor Rod Daus-Magbual; Fil-Am Daly City Councilmember Glenn Sylvester; and Daly City Councilmember Teresa Proaño.
Unofficial figures estimate that more than 30 percent of Daly City’s total population of more than 100,000 people are of Filipino descent, the highest concentration of Filipinos and Filipino Americans in the United States. University lecturer Benito Vergara Jr. chronicled the history of the vibrant Filipino American Community in the city in his 2009 book, “Pinoy Capital: The Filipino Nation in Daly City”. END
Philippine Consul General in San Francisco Neil Ferrer delivers his remarks during the Philippine flag-raising ceremony in Daly City, California on 14 June 2024. Joining him is Fil-Am Daly City, California Mayor Juslyn Manalo. (San Francisco PCG photo)
Philippine Consul General in San Francisco Neil Ferrer and Pilipino Bayanihan Resource Center founder Perla Ibarrientos lead the hoisting of the Philippine national flag at a special ceremony at the Daly City Hall on 14 June 2024. Looking on are Fil-Am Daly City, California Mayor Juslyn Manalo, and California State Senator Scott Wiener. (San Francisco PCG photo)
Philippine Consul General in San Francisco Neil Ferrer receives from Fil-Am Daly City, California Mayor Juslyn Manalo (extreme left) a proclamation, declaring 14 June 2024 as “Philippine Independence Day” in Daly City. Also in the photo are: Fil-Am Vice Mayor Rod Daus-Magbual (extreme right); Fil-Am Councilmember Glenn Sylvester (center-right); and Councilmember Teresa Proaño (center). (San Francisco PCG photo)
A signed copy of the proclamation of the Daly City Council, declaring 14 June 2024 as “Philippine Independence Day” in Daly City. (San Francisco PCG photo)
Consul General Neil Ferrer and the Philippine Consulate General officers and personnel, with the “Daly City-Quezon City” street sign outside the Daly City Hall. (San Francisco PCG photo)