PRESS RELEASE NO. 116-2023

Honolulu, Hawaii, USA, 6 November 2023 – Representatives of the Philippine Consulate General in Honolulu attended to over 200 applicants during its third consular and assistance to nationals mission in Maui, held at the Lahaina Civic Center Gymnasium last November 3 and 4. Two consular and assistance to nationals missions were held in Kahului last August 15 and 16 and Lahaina last September 22 to 24, following the wildfires that struck Lahaina, Maui on August 8.

Consul Grace Bulos led the Consulate team and was assisted by Consular Assistants Hermogenes Cayabyab, Abigail Ramos, Brenda Auro and Salmineo De Castro.

The consular outreach team processed 65 passport applications and 10 notarials. Consul Bulos also administered the oath to 21 petitioners who reacquired their Philippine citizenship, a number of who also included their minor children as derivatives.

Furthermore, the team attended to 124 Filipino casualties of the wildfires, and disbursed financial assistance to those found eligible. Assistance has been extended to 329 beneficiaries in the amount of $98,700 thus far.
The Consulate again partnered with the Disaster Recovery Center at the Lāhainā Civic Center, led by State Director Francis Kau, in the conduct of the outreach.

While in Maui, the team also met with the mortuary officials, interpreters and representatives from volunteer organizations regarding assistance and support for those affected by the wildfires. (END)

 Consul Grace Bulos and Consular Assistant Brenda Auro encode the data and capture the biometrics of passport applicants. 

 Consul Bulos leads the petitioners who reacquired their Philippine citizenship in the singing of the Philippine national a cappella, their first patriotic act as Filipino dual citizens. 

 Consul Bulos and her team pose with Mr. Everett Balmores (second from right), Communication Specialist at the Maui Emergency Management Agency, who assisted the Consulate during its September and November missions at the Lahaina Civic Center. 

Consul Bulos met with Filipino and Ilocano interpreters (from left to right) Marita Mullen, Lena Lorenzo and Margarita Tirona of Language Services Hawaii and thanked them for the translation services provided to Filipinos affected by the disaster, including those who availed of the Consulate’s services during the outreach.  

 Consul Bulos and Consular Assistant/Assistant to Nationals Officer Cayabyab met with Ms. Gwen Takakura, Location Manager at the Ballard Family Mortuary in Maui regarding the repatriation of remains of Filipino fatalities in the wildfires.