Sept17,09 Filipino Cultural Association’s

TOWSON FILIPINO FESTIVAL

In June, Towson hosted Fiesta Filipiniana, a day to celebrate Philippine independence. This was my first time to attend this festival. FCA had a booth and we also marched in the parade. It was great to represent FCA and College Park. I believe we were the only school to march. Despite the hot weather, it was an all around good time. Festivities included cultural dance performances, games, kids activities, and bands rock-

ing out. We met new people (potential Turkeybowl play-ers), networked with other groups and businesses, and of course ate delicious filipino food. On a hot day like that, eating halo-halo really hit the spot. Overall, the festival was a success. So many people came out. It was evident in the long lines to get food. It was a fun and memorable day to hang out with friends and gather to-gether to celebrate Philippine independence. Valerie Reyes, Historian

Upcoming Events

Sept. 28: Freshman

Rep Applications

Due

Sept. 29: Freshman

Rep Interview

Oct. 1: 2nd GBM

Oct. 6: Dance Work-

shop

Oct. 10: Makinig at

Mason

Oct. 15: 3rd GBM

Oct. 29: 4th GBM

What we did during summer!

MESSAGE FROM THE PRESIDENT

Hello! I'm Alejandro Almario and I'm the

president of Filipino Cultural Association for

the 2009-2010 school year. It's always good to

see all the old faces again and nice to see some

new ones as well. If you don't know much

about our organization, we strive to achieve

excellence in increasing awareness and educa-

tion of Filipino-American culture.

(cont. pg2)

Quote of the week:

“If there’s a way, there’s a how.” Jeanine Reyes, Vice President

D6 PICNIC

It's a brand new year and we're starting off right. District VI kicked off the year with the annual D6 Picnic. For those of you who don't know, District VI is part of the Filipino International Networking Dialogue, which connects and unites Filipino-American students at colleges and universities throughout the East Coast. The DC/MD/VA area is known District VI. Our dis-trict likes to get together every once and awhile to bond with our neighboring schools, so we put on

events like the D6 picnic. Everyone was game for a tug-of-war between the underclassmen and the upperclassmen, and the balloon toss turned into a full on water-balloon fight. The picnic this year was a great suc-cess, with more than ninety people coming out to grab some food, play a few games, and meet new people. Come on out to the next D6 event to join in the fun!

Jitter Garcia, D6 Rep

(President’s Message, cont. pg1)

We do this in the context of

academic, social, cultural, po-

litical and athletic programs

within and around the sur-

rounding University of Mary-

land community. Don't be

afraid to come out to events,

meet new people and have fun

while hopefully learn a bit

more about Filipino culture.

It's going to be a great year so

I hope to see everyone soon!

Alejandro Almario, President

MESSAGE FROM THE EDITOR

Hello! Looking from this issue of The Islander, you can see that

it’s a bit scant of articles, but no wor-

ries! You can write for the Islander

about anything—your opinion of some-

thing, what you thought about coming

out to a GBM or an event, community

affairs—anything! So take out your lap-

top and start typing away and send your

articles to ncalaro@gmail.com!

With that said, also shoot any sugges-

tions and ideas for the newsletter to my

email and I’ll be sure to add it on for the

next one. I want to try to make this

newsletter as interactive as possible so it’s entertaining to read

while the GBM continues.

Nicole Calaro, Editor

Hey, freshmen! My name is Theresa, and I'm the freshman rep from the '08-'09 school year at UMCP. Though I've only spent a year with FCA, I

have to say that being a part of their executive board has been an incredibly fulfilling and memorable experience. As fresh-

man rep, I was called to bring the FCA freshman class to-gether, bringing me into close contact with several fascinat-

ing and unique individuals. I was able to develop amazing relationships with the people who are now some of my

very best friends. My fellow representative Gian and I arranged dinners for the freshmen, where we would

meet up at one of the diners on campus to eat and chat together. As freshman reps, we would also at-

tend the E-board meetings to plan for exciting GBM's and other events. When it was nearly

Christmas, we had a Secret Santa party exclu-sively for the freshmen! As a part of E-board, I

was able to take the freshmen's suggestions for fun events and bring them to life with the help

of the other E-board members. Among these was a scavenger hunt in D.C.'s beautiful Na-

tional Mall. The time I contributed to FCA was similar to a 1-credit class, manageable

and worth the effort. You'll have all these fan-tastic opportunities and more as a freshman repre-

sentative. So come out and be active! You'll have the time of your life!

Theresa Dauz, ‘08-’09 Freshman Representative

Attention! Are you a freshman? Are you a leader? Yes? Well

then, the Freshman Representative position is just for you!

The Fresh Reps (male and female) most importantly lead

their class and help them integrate easily into FCA,

bridging gaps between upperclassmen and lower class-

men. Some responsibilities include being a part of the

FCA executive board and organizing events for the

Ate/Kuya (older brother/older sister) program. As

fresh reps, you hold weekly dinners (North Campus

diner is most convenient) that allow the freshmen to

bond and form close relationships with each other!

This position takes time, similar to a 1-2 credit

class, but the memories you make will last a life-

time. Gian Bautista, ‘08-’09 Freshman Representative

SPORTS Soccer

FCA Soccer represented the other night with a 32-0 win over our opponents! Sike, we had to

forfeit; we were running on Fili-

pino time. Apparently, game time

is forfeit time. So just make a men-

tal note, future FCA Sports team

members, to be, at the latest, on

time. But it wouldn't be any fun to

talk about this past game since we

obviously destroyed our oppo-

nents. Last week's game, however,

had mulitple highlights. We started off with 5 out of a required minimum 6 players. About 3

minutes into the game, Jitter Garcia, Jessica "Swaggazar" Salazar, and Dan Maglasang strolled

by the Turf Fields and were pulled into the game. We were an amateur soccer team playing

against a real bona-fide Division A team, with the final score being 3-0 loss for us. But those 3

goals were only scored in the first 10 minutes because of yours truly's awful goal-tending; I let

in 2 goals. For the rest of the night, the goal was safe due to Paolo Astorga's "go-go

gadget" [other team's player quote] arm and our

defensive ability, even though on offense we

were unable to move the ball up the field. One of

the best moments of the game though was when

Matt Sinkiat decided to jump about 4 feet in the

air and plant his butt in one of the opposing

team's players' faces. Yes, he pretty much farted

on her. Of course, he was called on it but it was

nonetheless a hilarious accident. More laughable

incidences include the many times Paolo punted

the ball down the field only to go out, when Swaggazar got a ball kicked into her stomach, when

Jeanine Reyes would attempt to stop a guy twice as big as her, and the many times we failed to

properly stop or kick the ball. Even though we didn't win the game (though that would have

been nice), it was a great game. <Insert cheesy line here>.

Amy Wong, Female Sports Coordinator

Come out for Intramural Sports with FCA!During the Fall Semester there will be: SOCCER COED ULTIMATE FRISBEE BADMINTON 4VS4 VOLLEYBALL COED INNER TUBE WATER POLO

CONTACT AMY WONG OR PAOLO ASTORGA FOR MORE INFORMATION!

Enjoy Sudoku

EASY See you in two weeks... Or later tonight ;)

FCA