Brainchild of Tony Mina, former president of the Filipino Association of Nova Scotia in conjunction with Jocelyn Weirathmueller and the Filipino community, the first unofficial assembly of the Filipino Association of New Brunswick (FANB) took place in July of 2007 with a vision of creating a united voice for NB’s Filipino community.

Thanks to the rapid response of the community, the first elected officers of the newly registered FANB were inducted by Ambassador Jose S. Brilliantes during his visit to New Brunswick in September 2007. The inducted officers were Clevan Lamason (President), Sally Lamason (Secretary), Luisa Misa-Toyer (Treasurer), Samuel Benigno (Auditor), Josie Sison- Livingstone (PRO) and Earl Denver Montanez (Business Manager).

December 2007 saw several chapters of the newly formed FANB hold Christmas celebrations bringing a touch of the Philippines to New Brunswick helping newcomers feel more at home. Dubbed Christmas for a Cause, members of the Filipino community demonstrated their caring nature in collecting boxes of food items for the local Food Bank. In addition, two highly successful fundraisers were conducted: the selling of Christmas parols crafted by Luisa Misa-Toyer and the auction of 20 photos generously donated by George Hachey.

The official FANB logo was also launched at the end of 2007. Duane Orozco won the logo contest with his entry showing the melding of the Philippine flag's sun, the maple leaf and the galley in the New Brunswick flag. The image portrays the association’s three major goals: unity, peace and diversity.

2008 saw the Association increase its visibility and voice in the community through their presence at several key events including the St. Thomas University Multicultural Fair, the multicultural festival celebrating the United Nations’ International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, the Asian Heritage Society’s Gala Night, the Canada Day parade and the year-end red carpet party.

During many of these events, the FANB Cultural and Heritage committee under the leadership of Julie MacDonald arranged for time-honoured folk dances to be showcased by members of the local Filipino community. These performances included renditions of the Pandanggo sa Ilaw, the Bulaklakan dance and the Singkil in beautiful traditional costumes.

2009 saw the association shift into high gear. The naming of Fredericton as a Cultural Capital of Canada served to increase the focus of the province on our cultural diversity and FANB played a major role in the numerous cultural events scheduled throughout the year. Performances highlighting many aspects of Filipino culture were conducted across the province with the Philippines being showcased in the annual Asian Heritage Month cultural galas launched with a spectacular show at the Fredericton Playhouse with over 700 in attendance. FANB also had a significant part in the 3-day Cultural Expressions Festival demonstrating the cultural diversity of New Brunswick.

FANB members also work tirelessly behind the scenes providing information and resources to newcomers as well as providing services for the NB Filipino community. One example of this is the mobile passport renewal event in Moncton where over 70 Filipinos were able to renew their passports.

The inaugural years leave a lasting legacy for the Filipino community moving forward to tackling new challenges. FANB received two grants from the New Brunswick government to profile the NB Filipino community and create a web portal aiming at attracting more Filipinos to the province.

“We have grown to over 100 members (after our first two years) and are working towards involving more Filipinos from across New Brunswick. One of the highlights of my term as president of the FANB was getting to meet Filipinos from all over the province,” said Lamason.

Verus Consulting
Dec 4, 2009