Ex-temporary worker gets Alberta’s Queen Elizabeth II Platinum Jubilee Medal 

Mike Bautista of Cochrane, Alberta receives a Queen Elizabeth II Platinum Jubilee Medal on Jan. 29 from Mike Amery, minister of Children’s Services, and Rajan Sawhney, minister of Trade, Immigration and Multiculturalism. (Rjan Sawhney/Facebook)

Entrepreneur and Filipino community leader Mike Bautista was awarded a Queen Elizabeth II Platinum Jubilee Medal at a ceremony hosted by Fiesta Filipino on Jan. 29 in Cochrane, Alberta, Canada.

The QE II Platinum Jubilee Recognition Act honors the contributions of outstanding Albertans.

Bautista came to Canada in 2007 from the Philippines as a temporary foreign worker. The father of two has since become a Canadian citizen, business owner and community leader reported Cochrane Now.

He has been the president of the Filipino Canadian Association of Cochrane Alberta (FCACA) for the past 10 years,

He led the creation of Sunday Hoops basketball clinic, which culminates annually with the eagerly awaited Friendship Basketball Showdown.

FCACA has organized community celebrations and raised funds for disaster relief in the Philippines.

Bautista thanked his family for their understanding and support and his mentor Edwin Aguanta, FCACA vice-president.

“This moment won’t be complete without thanking the officers and board members of the Filipino Canadian Association of Cochrane Alberta for their dedication and for everything they’ve been enlisted to serve, our community,” Cochrane Now quoted him.