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Mel and Belle Orpilla, directors of the upcoming Pista sa Nayon: Filipino Cultural Celebration, have set their sights on accomplishing three major goals: They want this year?s event to highlight local Filipino achievements, showcase the culture?s rich talents, and broaden the majority community?s understanding of its largest minority group.

On Saturday, June 3, thousands are expected to attend the festival, which will be held on Vallejo?s waterfront. This year?s event will feature Filipino cuisine, handcrafts, native and traditional clothing, music and live entertainment.

?We hope the festival will provide a better understanding of our culture, ? said Mel Orpilla, who along with his wife, Belle, are active in local and state cultural affairs.

The family-oriented festival blends the old with the new. ?Older immigrants can get a better understanding of the new, evolving culture, while the young can learn more about their culture from back home,? Orpilla said.

Drawing a parallel to the recent ?Day without Mexicans? protest that swept the state and nation by calling attention to America?s dependence on its immigrant population, Orpilla said the lack of a Filipino presence would have a similar and devastating effect on Vallejo.

?Can you imagine a day without Filipinos in our city? Many small businesses would go broke.?

Orpilla pointed to the Filipino community?s local buying power, home and business ownership, as proof of the group?s importance to the city?s economic, social and political well-being. In 2000, the United States Census reported that Vallejo?s Filipino population, within a decade, increased by more than 4,000, bringing the total number to 24, 215. Orpilla believes the city?s Filipino population now stands at about 27,000. ?We are an integral part of this city and a major part of Vallejo?s workforce,? said Orpilla, who serves as a community and government relations manager for Kaiser Permanente in Vallejo. The Vallejo native is the author of the well-received Filipinos in Vallejo, published in 2005.

The festival committee is encouraging increased participation from Vallejo?s diverse population.

?There?s such beauty and richness in the Filipino and Filipino-American culture,? Orpilla said, adding, ?we want to show that off to the broader community. Here is an opportunity for other cultures to experience that richness first hand.?

Festival-goers will also have an opportunity to see how similar the Filipino culture is to many other cultures. ?Filipinos are known worldwide for our music. This festival will be an excellent showcase for our local talent,? Orpilla explained.

The festival theme will mark the national celebration of 100 years of Filipino immigration to America. In February, the Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Program kicked off a nationwide celebration to highlight historic Filipino milestones. On May 23 at the Vallejo City Council meeting, Mayor Anthony Intintoli will officially proclaim June as Philippine Cultural Month.

Honorees at this year?s festival will be Orpilla?s father, Nazario, who will mark his 100th birthday this summer, as well as Alice Realiza, who in 1915, was the first Filipino born in Vallejo.

For more information about this year?s festival and other activities for Philippine Cultural Month, call Orpilla at (707) 557-7683, or go to the festival website at www.vallejopistasanayon.com. For information about the Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Program, go to www.apa.si.edu.

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