Pasko sa FilCom brings joy to Filipino community in Honolulu

The karaoke singing contest was a big hit at Filipino Community Center’s Pasko sa FilCom. INQUIRER/Lalaine Ignao

HONOLULU — With Christmas almost here, people around the world are starting to celebrate, in their own special way. To keep the Christmas spirit alive in America, the FilCom Center in Waipahu, Hawaii has held Pasko sa FilCom for the past ten years, and held it again on December 3.

“The idea of this is to bring all the Filipinos together in Hawaii to celebrate the culture and show how we celebrate in the Philippines,” Director of Programs Arcelli Acosta said. “So we bring the Christmas from the Philippines here in Hawaii.”

This year’s theme was “Masaya at Mapayapang Kapaskuhan,” or “Joyous and Peaceful Christmastime.”

Waipahu high school students serve ice cream from a sorbetero cart. INQUIRER/Lalaine Ignao

Pasko sa FilCom has become a day filled with activities, food and performances because of all the hard work and dedication various Filipino organizations have put into making this year another memorable event.

Waipahu High School students served ice cream from a sorbetero cart; there was parol-making; University of Hawaii students served food. This year’s event truly showed the spirit of togetherness.

“All these that you see here, these are all things that we normally have during the Christmastime in the Philippines that the kids and the adults miss,” commented Sam Acosta, husband to Arcelli, a regular volunteer at the FilCom Center. “The fact that we can stage this and you can see all the people having fun, that’s what I look forward to. It’s for the community.”

A pabitin, or the Filipino version of piñata. INQUIRER/Lalaine Ignao

The event also featured various activities including the pabitin, the Filipino version of a piñata and contests in parol-making and karaoke and choir singing.

“Competitions are always fun because people go out of their way to practice and prepare for,” Various organizations and businesses featured various public service exhibits and others performed cultural dances for the community.

Pasko sa FilCom also featured a parol-making contest. INQUIRER/Lalaine Ignao

“There are different organizations involved, but it’s coming out to be a very good event because everyone is working behind this one celebration. I wish that we could have this kind of spirit in the community not only for Christmas time but the whole year,” Acosta added.

While this year’s Pasko sa FilCom was successful again, the husband-and-wife team hoped to get the word out more to the community, so that many more people can experience this event.

Arcelli added, “I hope for unity throughout the Filipino community. I want them to come together to celebrate Christmas and bring unity even if it’s just for this event.”