The 17th Filipino Appreciation Night at Saint John the Evangelist Church in Bergenfield last night was a great success. I predicted that perhaps 20 non-Filipinos would show up. My fellow parishioner Cris Gallagher thought the number may have been as high as 50. With elections close at hand, the towns mayor and council members as well as their opponents in the upcoming elections were out in force. Two young singers provided excellent entertainment, singing many tunes from Broadway musicals. One of the singers, Paulo Montalban, was brought to this country by his parents when he was a baby. A graduate of Saint Peters Prep, he grew up on Glenwood Avenue in Jersey City, just a few houses down from Saint Peters University. He is too young to remember the Glenwood Bar, a well-known hangout during my student days at Saint Peters. The top prize in the raffle was $3,000 in travel vouchers. The winner was Ivan Gomez, a young parishioner active with his wife in the Couples for Christ movement. I asked him where they will visit and he said he didnt know yet. I was happy to see them win. Thanks to Dalen (Magdalena) Parungao for inviting my friend Roseanne Lewie and me to be at her table. Since it was a bit cool, I also wore my UST (University of Santo Tomas) jacket. That is so often a conversation-starter in Bergenfield. Sitting at a table near me were staff members of Bodyworks, where I go for physical therapy. I wore a barang (Filipino shirt). I like wearing a barang much better than a jacket and tie. Unfortunately, it ripped. I am down to only one barang to bring to the Philippines with me. I will have to buy a couple more when I arrive there.
Posted on: Mon, 21 Oct 2013 02:40:56 +0000
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