Canadian Filipino
Informing, Engaging and Connecting Community
My parents were born in the Philippines and immigrated to Canada in the 1970s. My sisters and I were born in Winnipeg, Manitoba and were raised in Vancouver, BC. We were lucky enough to spend a lot of time in the Philippines as we grew up. We were exposed to Filipino ways of living first hand.
A little-known fact is that Hollywood actor Matt Damon underwent three months of extensive training in Filipino Martial Arts (FMA) for role as amnesiac spy “Bourne Identity” movies. His new skill set made a credible action star out of Damon, whose fight scenes in this spy series are ranked among the best by movie insiders and combat enthusiasts.
“Not all of us can do great things. But we can do small things with great love.” - Mother Teresa
Journalist and film buff Mel Tobias feels blessed to be living his senior life in Vancouver.
Like many other skilled immigrants, he did survival jobs like dishwashing and warehouse work. He moved on to house renovation estimating and sales, and later, estimator in a structural steel company. He formed his own contracting construction company which he still runs today.
"Retirement to me is the reward for working all those years...Traveling, volunteering, and just smelling the roses and enjoying life are the things I'm doing now and loving it," he adds.
Location: Vancouver, B.C.
When I was six years old, I experienced what it felt to be left out and excluded. That experience has fueled me to ensure everyone I meet feels seen, heard and loved.
Drawn to archery at the age of 13, Crispin Duenas has a favourite motto: “Practice does not make perfect; perfect practice makes perfect.”
The Canadian Filipino community in Manitoba has said goodbye to Conrad Santos, the first person born in the Philippines to be elected to public office in Canada.