Re-igniting Fil-Am fervor

Oscar Spence seated with his wife Cecille at his right and myself in black polo

by Susan Palmes-Dennis

OSCAR Spence, a former area representative of the Fil-American Community of the Carolinas (FACC) during the time of past president Paul Amigo talked about his experiences with the Fil-American Community and what he learned from them.

I met Oscar Spence on January 31 through the invitation of his wife Cecille to celebrate the “Sinulog.” Cecille Spence is from Cebu province, Philippines and started the annual Sinulog celebration in North Carolina five years ago. 

I learned a lot from him. After introductions were made, I learned that my gracious host was friends with Paul Amigo before he got married to Cecille and got recruited at the FACC.

Oscar served as the liaison between the FACC and the Fil-Americans at Albemarle and Salisbury. I heard about his helping the FACC and making sure that the folks at Albemarle and surrounding areas attend.  

“It would be nice to attend again but we are 40 miles away and we could not participate anymore with the Charlotte events because of my health,” Oscar said.
Oscar recalled that they “had people coming  from Gastonia, Concord, Monroe.” 

“There  seems to be people there who like to maintain the camaraderie but they don’t want to go Charlotte. They like to get together with Filipinos but they don’t want to go Charlotte, it's too far away,” he said.

When asked how he took on the job as FACC rep, Oscar said he was more of an informer. “But Filipinos, they love parties. They like to party and come to Gala.”

Among the challenges facing the FACC now is not only to sustain current members but also invite new ones especially the youth. 

FACC officers really work to enhance unity and friendship among members and serve as a source and proponent in the promotion of Philippine culture and heritage, interests and concerns. 

There are so many beautiful things about the Philippines and its culture that showed be known especially to the next generation of Fil-Americans here at Charlotte. 

This is a challenge not only to the officers but to the parents and guardians as well unless we let anything that's Filipino in us to evaporate to oblivion. 

It is becoming a challenge to ensure the participation of Fil-Americans since back home Filipinos are clustered first to the first big islands and the smaller islands. 

Fil-Ams in the area reflect that clustering back home but there is one moment when we do get together and that is when there is a party.  That's what myself and the rest of the current batch of FACC officers hope to achieve with “FACC: Beyond the Gala.”

(Susan Palmes-Dennis is a veteran journalist from Cagayan de Oro City, Misamis Oriental, Northern Mindanao in the Philippines who worked as a nanny and is now employed as a sub-teacher and a part-time teacher assistant in one of the school systems in the Carolinas.
Read her blogs on susanpalmesstraightfrom the Carolinas.com and at http://www.blogher.com/myprofile/spdennis54. These and other articles also appear at http://www.sunstar.com.ph/author/2582/susan-palmes-dennis.
You can also connect with her through her email susanap.dennis@yahoo.com as well as her Pinterest account at http://www.pinterest.com/pin/41025046580074350/) and https://www.facebook.com/pages/Straight-from-the-Carolinas-/494156950678063)

A warm welcome in Gastonia

Me in the middle with Pastor Terry Casino and Aloysius Palting

by Susan Palmes-Dennis

The people of Gastonia, North Carolina exude the Filipino's strong sense of hospitality to visitors like myself.

Visiting the area felt like I was home and home for me is the Philippines. The smiles that greeted me and the aroma of food made me nostalgic of my birth country one cold Saturday evening. 

I already visited twice Grace Point International Church under the stewardship of Pastor Terry “Tereso” Casino who is a town mate back home. 

Pastor Terry and I were not only town mates in Tagoloan, Misamis Oriental in Northern Mindanao, Philippines. We also breathe the same air as we reside in the same street and I knew in a heartbeat his family though he's younger than me.

It was in Gastonia that I first appeared in my capacity as president of the Fil-American Community of the Carolinas (FACC) and their warm welcome just encouraged me to do more. 

Maybe I was just longing for the Filipino in us—the talk, singing and dancing as well as food that made me go there every time I am invited. So last Saturday I was there again for the Valentine's Day party where almost everyone was in their best red colored outfits. 

I sought the attention of Cecille Casino, wife of Pastor Casino who is also a pastor and spent much of her 18 years in Seoul, South Korea doing mission work before migrating here in North Carolina and we talked about Grace Point International Church. 

She said the church is part of originally part of the CIC (Concord International Church). 

The ministry is in partnership with the Bethlehem Church.

When the couple was assigned to Gastonia to have their own church last year they started with only four persons.

A year after they grew like mushrooms and now they are a growing family of very active church goers who without fail would gather together for two hours every weekend. 

“They meet two hours including the dinner. They are doing 'discovery work.' 
Their discovery is similar to Bible study but they do a lot of integration and emphasized more on knowing the truth and applying it in their lives,” the soft spoken Cecille said.

She said the biggest reward is the transformation of their lives for the better. When asked how to measure transformation among the people, Cecille said it is manifested in how they talk, act and deal with people.

In talking about transformation, Cecille mentioned the book of James in the Bible which talked about the practicality of life and faith. 

“They discovered that they can be better people by listening and being slow to anger. And they discover this truth by reading the Bible,” she said. 

From four members, the church now number more than 40 persons excluding the number of kids who tag along with their parents.   

Aside from keeping their faith, the church goers cement their ties by sharing food with each other. That means native Filipino cuisine like pinakbet, escabeche, biko, fish stew, rice, fried fish and tinola. 

I sampled their version of ampalaya (bitter melon) which they cooked with vinegar, sugar and tomatoes along with other greens. I remembered my mama lecturing me and my siblings on the value of eating amaplaya which she usually cooks with eggs. 

It was only later in life that I learned that the ampalaya can help people with diabetes. Oh, but I strayed too far from the subject at hand which is the people of Gastonia. 

As I said, I always loved meeting them because their smiles and warm welcome encourages me to visit them repeatedly. They show me the best traits of a Filipino living in a land they call their second home.

photo courtesy Aloy Palting and Muffy P.Therrien

(Susan Palmes-Dennis is a veteran journalist from Cagayan de Oro City, Misamis Oriental, Northern Mindanao in the Philippines who worked as a nanny and is now employed as a sub-teacher and a part-time teacher assistant in one of the school systems in the Carolinas.
Read her blogs on susanpalmesstraightfrom the Carolinas.com and at http://www.blogher.com/myprofile/spdennis54. These and other articles also appear at http://www.sunstar.com.ph/author/2582/susan-palmes-dennis.
You can also connect with her through her email susanap.dennis@yahoo.com as well as her Pinterest account at http://www.pinterest.com/pin/41025046580074350/) and https://www.facebook.com/pages/Straight-from-the-Carolinas-/494156950678063)

Recycling fashion by Malou

Genevieve and Alyson model their mom's designs 

by Susan Palmes-Dennis

Recyclable gowns made by a Fil-American were on display at the lobby of the Blumenthal Performing Arts Center/Belk Theater for the premiere of the Italian opera La Traviata by Giuseppe Verdi here in Charlotte, North Carolina recently. 

The gowns were designed by Malou Tabada Cordery who was asked a year ago by the marketing director of Opera Carolina to create the ball gowns for the premiere  and the finale of La Traviata.

Cordery who considers practicality as her guiding principle in designing clothes created two recyclable gowns and materials provided by the Opera Carolina.

“The gowns were made of paper, brochures and pamphlets from the Opera Carolina,” Cordery said and it took her six weeks to design both gowns which earned raves from those in attendance.

A lot of the attendees posed with the models Genevieve and Alyson Cordery, daughters of Malou Cordery, before and after the opera. These gowns were also worn by Cordery's daughters during last year's hit Charlotte Fashion Week show.

“I think making designs and executing them requires artistic talent. When you have a vision or an idea it requires skill to carry it out,” Cordery said.

Alyson Cordery

Her works have been featured in both the Elysian Magazine and the Opera America magazine. Cordery said designing gowns or any clothing should be practical, functional and wearable. 

Cordery said she likes to improvise and introduce different elements that add dimension, style or visual interest. The gowns she made for the La Traviata were appropriate for the setting of the play.

“I am really into details, and I love embellishing my designs. I try to go for the wow factor but sometimes you’ll try something out, or think you have a great idea and it doesn’t turn out like you thought it would, so you have to rethink it,” she said.

Her penchant for designing recyclable gowns came into fore because of her experience with arts and crafts. She did crocheting and designing with recyclables in her younger days in Villanueva town, Misamis Oriental, Philippines. 

But it is not easy work especially since she has a family to tend to. Just like in any other passion, there are some things that come easily and one feels inspired to do it, she said.  

“Other times you have to overcome obstacles, like materials not working as expected. And of course there are always deadlines and juggling projects. It can be rather daunting at times, but it’s something that makes me happy and makes me useful,” Cordery said.

But Cordery would have you believe that she never had experience to cut patterns and use a sewing machine. 

“So I will cut a design using hospital lab gowns and then I use a hot glue gun to start adding textured materials and embellishments,” she said. 

Once she gets that sewing machine going, there's no stopping her from creating fashionable clothing out of ordinary items. “I call it upcycling. It’s like recycling but you’re using fabrics from Goodwill or the Salvation Army to make something original,” she said.

“It’s not as labor intensive as recycling. Last year I participated in the Color Me Goodwill Fashion Show in Asheville where I presented five upcycled designs and it was a lot of fun,” Cordery said.

Genevieve Cordery

When she became an officer of the Fil-American Community of the Carolinas (FACC) she kept busy making native costumes for Filipino cultural dances for a number of years now.

“I made Halloween costumes for my daughters when they were young and for children participating in FACC cultural activities. I have been actively working as a recyclable designer since 2011 and enjoy using my talents not only to showcase my daughters who enjoy modeling and fashion photography, but also using my designs to raise funds for charitable causes,” Cordery said. 

There is no telling where this petite mother would go as far as her designing passion goes and the same goes for her daughters. Speaking for myself, I am proud of Malou Tabada Cordery, a kababayan from Tagoloan town, Misamis Oriental. 

(Susan Palmes-Dennis is a veteran journalist from Cagayan de Oro City, Misamis Oriental, Northern Mindanao in the Philippines who worked as a nanny and is now employed as a sub-teacher and a part-time teacher assistant in one of the school systems in the Carolinas.

Read her blogs on susanpalmesstraightfrom the Carolinas.com and at http://www.blogher.com/myprofile/spdennis54. These and other articles also appear at http://www.sunstar.com.ph/author/2582/susan-palmes-dennis.

You can also connect with her through her email susanap.dennis@yahoo.com as well as her Pinterest account at http://www.pinterest.com/pin/41025046580074350/) and https://www.facebook.com/pages/Straight-from-the-Carolinas-/494156950678063)