It helps students embrace their heritage

May 2, 2005

BY TERESA MASK
FREE PRESS EDUCATION WRITER

Like many children of Philippine immigrants, Connie Mangilin struggled to communicate with her parents and other relatives in Tagalog, their native language.

So in January, the 30-year-old lawyer from Livonia decided to end the frustration and enrolled in language classes at the Philippine American Community Center of Michigan.

"I was so tired of not being able to understand them fully," she said Sunday at the 20th anniversary of the Paaralang Pilipino, or Filipino School. "All of a sudden, they'd break into laughter and I never really knew why. That always bothered me."

Now, while not exactly fluent, Mangilin said she can carry on conversations with her family and was able to hold her own during shopping excursions on a recent trip to the Philippines.

She was among a group of adults and children showcasing their skills during the school's anniversary celebration Sunday in Southfield.

Barefoot and wearing bright colorful clothing, they performed hula dances. Young girls clapped coconuts together and swayed side to side for a traditional dance.

And as is customary, food was abundant. Traditional dishes such as pancit (noodles), egg rolls and bibingca, a sweet dessert, made the celebration a true party.

Ronald and Sol Whitaker's four children all are taking classes at the center. The youngest, 5-year-old Angel, has really embraced the hula dancing, her mother said.

"We wanted them to discover their Filipino heritage," said Sol Whitaker of Farmington Hills.

The school, which offers weekly classes, was created for that very reason, organizers said.

"My hope is they will say, 'I am an American with Filipino ancestry,' " said Fe' Desiar Rowland, director of the school, which found its permanent home in 2001 at Southfield's Philippine American Community Center of Michigan, 17356 Southfield.Some students already beam with pride about their heritage -- even when they make small mistakes that turn a word like taon, which means "year" into talong, which means "eggplant." The crowd laughed and applauded the effort.

Even those who showed no interest in their heritage growing up said they now want to know more.

"Especially the way the country is now, with so many cultures merging, it's important to hold on to your country and know it very well. This place fuels that," said Rica de Ocampo, a 22-year-old University of Michigan student who volunteers and takes classes at the school.

An estimated 19,000 Filipino Americans live in the metro Detroit area, mostly in Sterling Heights, Warren, Canton, Troy and Southfield. Their migration to Michigan goes back to the early 1920s, school organizers said.

Many undoubtedly have found their way to the Southfield center. Although it's open to anyone, officials said it's where Filipinos come to interact when they miss home, yearn for free food or simply want to see people who look like them and speak the same language.

Contact TERESA MASK at 248-351-3691 or mask@freepress.com.

Linked from: Detroit Free Press