FIL-AM COMMUNITY IN VALLEJO MARKS PH INDEPENDENCE DAY AT HISTORIC MARE ISLAND NAVAL SHIPYARD
The Philippine Consulate General in San Francisco on 18 June 2022 joined the annual Pista sa Nayon at the Mare Island Coal Sheds in Vallejo, California. Organized by the Philippine Cultural Committee, in cooperation with the City Government of Vallejo, Pista sa Nayon assembled Filipino American cultural performers, martial artists, and food and handicraft pop-ups at the former Mare Island Naval Shipyard.
In his remarks, Vice Consul Adrian Baccay expressed his gratitude to the City of Vallejo for its continued recognition of the significant contributions of the Filipino American Community, and looked forward to the revitalization of the Vallejo-Baguio Sister City relations. Vice Consul Baccay was joined at the event by Philippine Tourism Representative Soleil Tropicales.
This year’s Pista sa Nayon theme, “Where It All Began”, follows the Mare Island Naval Shipyard’s history as the origin of the battleships that took part in major American military campaigns in the Philippines, such as the Battle of Manila Bay and the Second World War. The old naval shipyard in the early 1900s also attracted Filipinos to work and eventually settle in Vallejo, creating one of the first Filipino Communities in the United States.
Following the success of the Pista sa Nayon a week prior, Consul Jed Llona and Consul Vanessa Bago-Llona represented the Consulate at the Philippine Cultural Committee’s Philippine Independence Day gala and dinner at the Filipino Community Center in Vallejo on 25 June 2022. (San Francisco PCG, Parangal Folk Dance Group, and Island Warriors Balintawak photos)