FIL-AM Achievers Honored by Filipinas Magazine

"The best, the brightest, the boldest, the bravest. The pride of Filipinos worldwide."

This is how the recipients of the annual Filipinas Magazine Achievement Awards have been described in the eight years that the event has been held. On June 24, Saturday, at the 9th staging of what is considered the most prestigious recognition of outstanding Filipino-Americans, 10 achievers in various professions and fields of endeavor will be honored at the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts in San Francisco.

Filipinas Magazine publisher-editor Greg B. Macabenta announced the following awardees and their respective sponsors:

· Manuel Rodriguez, Sr., artist and print-maker, for Arts & Culture, sponsored by Catholic Health Care West;

· Gene Marcial, Business Week columnist and Wall Street sage, for Communication, sponsored by GMA Pinoy TV;

· Reuben Seguritan, New York-based immigration lawyer and community advocate, for Community Service, sponsored by Genentech;

· Maria Luisa Mabilangan Haley, senior director of Kissinger McLarty Associates and former aide of President Bill Clinton, for Corporate Leadership, sponsored by Wells Fargo;

· Mark Dacascos, martial arts expert and star of the TV show, “Iron Chef America,” for Entertainment, sponsored by Anheuser-Busch Companies, Inc.;

· Daniel Moran, president of Red Ribbon Bakeshop, for Entrepreneurship, sponsored by Merrill Lynch;

· Alex Esclamado, founding chairman of the National Federation of Filipino American Associations (NaFFAA) and former publisher-editor of Philippine News, for Lifetime Achievement, sponsored by AARP California;

· Dr. Lupo T. Carlota, Jr., president of the Medical Acupuncture Research Institute of America (MARIA) and foremost practitioner of scientific acupuncture, for Medicine, sponsored by Seton Health Services Foundation;

· Hawaii State Senator Ron Menor for Public Affairs, sponsored by AAA of Northern California, Nevada and Utah; and

· Jennifer Punsalan Wood, president of the Undergraduate Student Associate Council at the University of California, Los Angeles, for Youth Leadership, sponsored by State Farm Insurance.

The program will start at 4:00 p.m. with a Barrio Fiesta reception at which, for the first time, a Gallery of Achievers, featuring all past Filipinas awardees, will be displayed. There will also be promotional booths for sponsors and musical entertainment. The second part of the program will be the formal awards presentation.

Attending the awards for GMA Pinoy TV, are prime time star Ding-Dong Dantes, Master Showman German Moreno, and John Nite. Performing at the event are pop diva Miriam Pantig, the Sinag-Tala Performing Arts group and the Filipino Veterans Rondalla headed by George Gange.

Reception sponsors of the Filipinas Magazine Achievement Awards are California Transplant Donor Network, Charles Schwab, PG&E and GP Homes, Inc., with Citibank, Hotel Rex, Southwest Airlines, Western Union, Fortune Management Company and Lollicup Coffee & Tea as patrons.

Past Filipinas Magazine Achievement Awards recipients include Hollywood stars Lou Diamond Philips, Rob Schneider and Tia Carrere; Dean Devlin, producer of the hit movie, “Independence Day;” Columbia Tri-Star Home Video senior VP Fritz Friedman; business tycoon Loida Nicolas-Lewis; former Hawaii Governor Ben Cayetano; U.S. Army Lt. Gen. Edward Soriano; Silicon Valley entrepreneur and pioneer Dado Banatao; Broadway star Lea Salonga; Pulitzer prize-winning journalists Byron Acohido and Alex Tizon; novelist Jessica Hagedorn; and Fred and Dorothy Cordova, founders of the Filipino American National Historical Society (FANHS).