Jersey City celebrates Philippine-American friendship

Philippine singing sensation and soon-to-be-a-dad Kris Lawrence was all about celebration.

At the June 24 FilAm Friendship Parade and Festival organized by Pafcom, he was celebrating Filipino-American unity – and also the coming of his first child, KatRence, to be named after him and girlfriend Katrina Halili.

Watching the high-energy Kris at the Pafcom parade, one could tell he and Katrina have put the ugly sex scandal behind them. In 2009, Katrina figured in an illegally filmed and widely circulated sex tape with cosmetic doctor Hayden Kho. There was a congressional investigation and the next we heard about the actress was having a child with the Star in a Million singer.

“We’re here to celebrate something special,” Kris, an artist of GMA International, said.

He would later share with the crowd gathered at the Lincoln Park in Jersey City his feelings about his impending fatherhood.

“This is going to be a challenge for me dahil magkakaroon na ako ng anak,” he said. “I may lose some of my young followers. But talent will always prevail. I will continue to make more music and hopefully still touch the hearts of everybody. They don’t have to be a fan of me but they can be a fan of my music. A lot of my free time will go to my baby KatRence.”

The crowd welcomed Kris’ confession and went wild when he sang some Bruno Mars’ hits and his signature ballad “Kung Malaya Lang Ako.”

Kris was joined by fellow GMA artists R & B singer JayR and pop star Krista Kleiner. Krista, a former beauty titlist, did a couple of danceable numbers by Jennifer Lopez and Nicki Minaj, while JayR regaled with pop tunes and his popular “Bakit pa ba.”

The Sunday musical program also featured local talents Nina Mojares, Gail Banawis, Alyssa Shoemaker, Seven Odon, dancing siblings Craig and Samantha Abaya-Campos and Dennis Sy.

Festival chair Jeanette Mojares said the audience was “truly entertained by wonderful performances” from the GMA artists, Krista, JayR and Kris Lawrence. “We appreciate your professionalism,” she said.

Eduardo Pena, president of the Philippine-American Friendship Committee, said he was pleased at how the day turned out well. “Everyone worked well together. The event is a tribute to the teamwork everyone displayed.”

The segment GMA Celebrity Hour was hosted by Grace Hufano Labaguis, GMA International’s marketing consultant for the East Coast, and yours truly.

source: thefilam.net

The Filipinos of Fleet Week

Times Square was a sea of white this week as about 6,000 sailors, Marines and Coast Guardsmen flocked town for the annual Fleet Week tradition.

The FilAm spoke to some of the Filipino servicemen. One of them was Eileen Dueno, a hospital corpsman in the Navy.

“For me Fleet Week is celebrating the Navy and showing the world that we are here and we’re here to protect,” she said. “There are service people out there protecting the country, fighting our freedom, it also shows people who we are and that there are girls in the military also.”

The Manila-born said she joined the service for its nursing program.

“Right now I’m just enlisted as a corpsman, but the training will help me to go to nursing school,” she said. “I want to make this a life career. It’s fun, the training wasn’t hard as long as you’re physically prepared. There’s a lot of running, push-ups and sit-ups.”

It is Eileen’s first time to New York. She has been stationed since 2008 in Norfolk, Virginia; her parents — both working as nurses — are in Culver City, California.

“Being Filipino, family always comes first,” she said. “The biggest challenge is being away from your family, and not being there for stuff like cousin’s birthdays, weddings and births of niece and nephew. Other than that, I think mentally and physically even being a Filipino is not a challenge because we know already how to work hard and we know how to follow rules. I think that’s what makes it easier especially being raised by both pure Filipino parents.”

She recalled how her parents had a difficult time letting her go to join the military.

“I think being from the Philippines and not knowing the Navy, they were very hesitant and they were supportive, but they didn’t understand why and so I have to make them understand,” she said. “Over the years they understood much better.”

Fleet Week was open to the public to witness the latest capabilities of the Navy, the Marine Corps and the Coast Guard. It includes military demonstrations and displays as well as public visitation of the participating ships.

This year’s Fleet Week also commemorates the Bicentennial of the War of 1812 and “salutes all sailors and Marines who fought gallantly in that conflict,” says the press statement.

source: thefilam.net