(29 June 2015) As part of the activities to commemorate the 154th Birth Anniversary of Philippine national hero, Dr. Jose Rizal, Philippine Consul General to Honolulu, Hawaii Gina A. Jamoralin addressed over fifty (50) Filipino American high school and university students during the Rizalian Youth Leadership Institute at the University of Hawaii – Leeward Community College (LCC) on 27 June 2015.

The event, a collaboration between the LCC Philippine Studies Program and the Knights or Rizal Hawaii Chapter, was a whole day seminar which provided the students an opportunity to take part in engaging and dynamic teambuilding activities which taught them leadership skills in teamwork, communications, social responsibility, goal setting, resourcefulness, initiative and problem solving.

Consul General Jamoralin, the morning’s plenary speaker shared her reflections on the theme: “Rizalian Vision: The Youth as Hope of the Future” and encouraged the youth to value their education, like Rizal did, as “having a good, solid education is a rope that could take him to places, and could lead a nation to greatness”, she said.

She also apprised the youth of the projects of the Philippine Consulate this year geared towards youth empowerment such as the 1st FilAm Youth Dialogue in January 2015, the Ilocano Language Immersion Program called iLAING (Ilocano Language Acquisition and Immmersion for the New Generation from March to June 2015, and endorsing the youngest legislator in Hawaii to the 4th Filipino American Youth Leadership Program (FYLPRO) in Manila July 2015, a project of Philippine Ambassador to the US Jose L. Cuisia, Jr.

Consul General Jamoralin added that just as Dr. Jose Rizal is considered the “pride of the Malay race,” the FilAm youth in Hawaii is also the pride of the Philippines and the Filipino community in Hawaii.

The Rizalian Youth Council of Hawaii was formed on 28 January at the Waipahu High School by Dr. Raymund Liongson, Philippine Studies professor at UH-LCC and Area Commander of the Knights of Rizal (Western USA-Hawaii) where members stand proud of their history and heritage, inspired by a verse from Dr. Rizal’s poem, “To The Filipino Youth” – or “A la Juventud Filipina” – “Hold high  the brow serene, O youth, where now you stand.”  (END).