SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO CELEBRATES FILIPINO AMERICAN HISTORY MONTH FOR SECOND STRAIGHT YEAR
From left to right: Councilmember Eddie Flores; Councilmember James Coleman; Youth Commissioner Nika Mariano; Councilmember Mark Addiego; Mayor Flor Nicolas; Consul General Neil Ferrer; and Madame Miriam Ferrer. (San Francisco PCG photo)
OUTH SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA, USA – The Philippine Consulate General in San Francisco, led by Consul General Neil Ferrer and Madame Miriam Ferrer, took part in the second annual celebration of Filipino American History Month in South San Francisco, California, spearheaded by the city’s first Filipino American woman Mayor Flor Nicolas at the City Hall on 21 October 2023.
South San Francisco’s official Filipino American History Month celebration also marks the unfurling of the Philippine national flag from the balcony of the historic City Hall.
In his remarks, Consul General Ferrer thanked Mayor Nicolas for holding the Filipino American History Month celebration at the City Hall for the second consecutive year, and took pride that “for the first time in the city’s 115-year history, two Filipino Americans are serving together in the top two posts in South San Francisco.”
Consul General Ferrer took pride in the invaluable contributions of the Filipino American Community in South San Francisco, including in the fields of healthcare, biotechnology, and high technology.
“We recognize the rising number of Filipinos who are now making waves here in the Bay Area—including Aldo Carrascoso and Dr. Carlito Lebrilla, the Filipino co-founders of the South San Francisco-based life science company InterVenn. We commend the Filipino and Filipino American engineers and scientists in Silicon Valley who are now active partners in Philippine development,” Consul General Ferrer said.
The Philippine Consul General also said that he looks forward to the revitalization of the sister city relations between South San Francisco and Pasig City in the Philippines, and the resumption of cultural, educational, scientific, technological, trade and business exchanges between the two sister cities.
Mayor Nicolas and Filipino American South San Francisco Nika Mariano also gave their respective speeches during the celebration, while the Saint Augustine Children’s Choir performed Filipino and American songs during as part of the event. Filipino food was served courtesy of South San Francisco-based Filipino restaurants Karilagan and Ongpin, and Daly City-based Starbread Bakery.
According to the latest U.S. census, around 16,000 Filipinos and Filipino Americans reside in South San Francisco, which is the Bay Area’s biotechnology and life sciences hub. END
Philippine Consul General in San Francisco Neil Ferrer gives a speech during the official celebration of Filipino American History Month in South San Francisco, California on 21 October 2023. (San Francisco PCG photo)
The Philippine flag flies proudly atop the South San Francisco City Hall following the celebration of Filipino American History Month on 21 October 2023. (San Francisco PCG photo)