Kasayahan! Kulay Pinoy’s maiden project

Kulay Pinoy, a new production outfit, is launching its first production entitled “Kasayahan!” on the 10th of May 2009. “Kasayahan!” is a concert featuring Filipino and British performers singing Filipino songs and excerpts from west-end and broadway musicals.

Take a look at KulayPinoy’s website: www.kulaypinoy.co.uk
Download the flyer

The Kulay Pinoy project started amongst a group of friends who have decided to set up a production company with the aim to showcase our cultural background and artistic talents. The Philippines has long produced world-class performers in the fields of theatre, dance and popular music worldwide. Pilita Corrales and Lea Salonga, amongst others, have become the blueprints to this legacy and many others are to follow.

The Philippines has won the respect of other countries worldwide not only due to the artistic talents of its people, but also because of work ethics and excellence in the fields in which they partake.

Kulay Pinoy Productions wishes to celebrate this excellence and unite Filipinos from all corners of the globe.

Kasayahan! is Kulay Pinoy’s maiden project and is a collaboration of both Filipino and British creativity bringing you an unforgettable musical extravaganza.

Filipino Children’s Fund

Kim Blasco, from the Filipino Children’s Fund, dropped us a note to ask that we post some information about the group. We don’t know about them but Kim says they have applied for registration with the Charity Commission and are recognised by the Philippine Embassy in London.

"Created in September 2007, the Filipino Children’s Fund (UK) is a Charitable Organisation, which has applied for registration with the Charity Commission and is recognised by the Philippines Embassy in London.

Our objectives are very specific:
• To make sure that every destitute child in 14 villages in the provinces of Laguna, Cavite, Batangas and Quezon has all he/she needs to attend school and to benefit from his/her attendance. These children need clothing, uniforms, footwear, school materials, books, etc., so that, despite their difficult beginnings in life, they can develop their innate capabilities.
• To provide text-books for school work and to create a library in each school within the area of our work. Although basic education is free in the Philippines, students have to pay for school materials and uniforms and a large number of families cannot afford them. Text-books are lent to pupils at the beginning of the year and have to be returned at the end, so that they can be passed on to the next batch of students the following year.
• To introduce school children to information technology by providing each school with at least one computer. The schools we visited did not have even a manual type-writer.
• To find ways of helping children with physical deformities and, in particular, children with cleft lip/palate and cataracts, by providing them with the operations they require. Often, these children are forced not to attend school, because of the bullying they are subject to. The incidence of oral cleft in the Philippines is estimated at one in every 500 live births. With an average of two million live births a year in the country, 4,000 new cleft cases are added annually.
• With the growth of our organisation, to extend our assistance to other children of the Luzon Island and to other islands of the Philippines

In order to achieve our objectives, we need help from anyone in the UK who can assist us to provide these destitute children and their families with a little ray of hope.

All our work is done by volunteers who give their time and effort without any payment and distribute the help provided by people in the UK using their own vehicles. Until now, the only cost of distribution for the Fund is the cost of petrol. We are planning to set up a stall in the market in Santa Rosa, Laguna, where our base is, to sell some of the items given to us in the UK and so cover the cost of petrol and running costs."

If you’re interested in finding out more, you should contact the Filipino Children’s Fund directly:118/120 Frinton Road
Holland on Sea, Essex, CO15 5UR
Tel/Fax: 01255 813051
Email: [email protected]

Please note that Phil-UK aren’t associated with the Filipino Children’s Fund in any way. Kim just contacted us through our website. Please do your own research before contributing to any organisation. I’ve asked Tess Lazaro from the Embassy to verify and am still waiting to hear from her.

Why we started Phil-UK

Filipinos began to emigrate from the Philippines around the early 70’s to fill a skills gap in the UK. Usually driven by the need to support family left behind, many of the first-generation often worked long and unsociable hours. Their labour was perhaps made bearable by plans to build enough wealth to return to their families.

Eventually, a second-generation of Filipinos began to appear – our generation. Some of us were born in the UK; others were brought over from the Philippines. However, as our parents focused on meeting economic needs, our social and cultural needs tended to be neglected.

The second-generation of Filipinos in the UK have no voice in Britain; our parents have been silent for too long. What is our contribution to British society? What do we know of our history and how do we pass on our heritage? Did our parents sacrifice too much when they left the Philippines? These are the questions we ask ourselves and why we created this website.

Phil-UK is where we explore our culture, identity and how we fit into British and Filipino society. It is also where a group of us tell people about our projects for change.

We believe that young Filipinos in the UK do not have a voice in society. This is causing us to lose our culture and our identity. It also means that we can’t play an active role in shaping our community.
Our aim is to enable Filipinos to be a positive and visible influence to Britain’s cultural diversity.

We will do this by promoting awareness and pride in our culture; by bringing together young Filipinos with projects for change; and by creating partnerships with people who share our views.