Filipino youths perform for fund
Young parishioners at Emmanual Parish will stage the cultural show, “Kaamulan” to benefit their church’s building fund.
DELRAY BEACH | The teenage performers have given up part of their weekends for nearly a year and sacrificed a great deal — all to benefit their church.
The young cast of “Kaamulan” (Tagalog for “The Gathering” or “Celebration”), a Filipino cultural show being staged at St. Vincent Ferrer Parish in Delray Beach, are parishioners at Emmanuel Parish in Delray Beach and part of a ministry called Youths for Christ. The Friends of Santo Nino, a nonprofit group in Palm Beach County dedicated to uniting Christian Filipinos and promoting Christian values, is producing the show.
“Kaamulan” features songs, dances, colorful costumes and rituals of the Philippines, and is scheduled to be performed in the school auditorium at St. Vincent Ferrer Saturday, Jan. 19, at 7 p.m, with all proceeds going to Emmanuel Parish’s building fund.
The teens are not getting financial rewards for their hard work, but they are getting a lot of attention for their dedication and talents.
“They have been practicing for months,” said Father Timothy Sockol, pastor of Emmanuel Parish. “They are making costumes and props. The show is going to be great, and we are excited. They are very dedicated to it and to the church in every respect.”
The nearly 20 performers are ages 13 to 19. Their parents, who are associated with the nonprofit group, other volunteers and Father Gaudioso Zamora, director of religious education at Emmanuel, coordinated the cultural show. Many of the parents and volunteers are associated with the Filipino community.
Father Sockol is pleased with the students’ work.
“We have started to raise funds, but have not formally kicked off a campaign,” said Father Sockol. A plan for parish expansion, including a new church building and landscaping, was conceived years ago but is just now getting off the ground.
Father Sockol is working with Larry Winker, a Boca Raton architect, who expects to have preliminary sketches complete for the estimated $5.5 million project by the January show.
“Kaamulan” is based on an annual gathering of native tribes of the Philippines. During the traditional meeting, participants celebrate creation with native dances and musical performances. They give thanks for bountiful harvests, and show honor and gratefulness to the Creator with songs and ritual.
Ruth Laylo, a native of the Philippines and a professional choreographer, is helping with the show and dance skits. She lives in New York, and her business takes her back and forth between there and Florida.
“She is volunteering and we are grateful,” said show volunteer Marivic Penserga of Emmanuel Parish. “She heard about our show through mutual friends and volunteered to help. We schedule rehearsals around her trips.”
Rehearsals are generally held after Sunday Mass in various locations around the diocese. In recent months, youths have met at Holy Spirit in Lantana from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.
“It is for a good cause and I like the idea of keeping the traditions (of the Philippines) alive,” said performer Andrea Espulgar, 16, a student at Dreyfus School of the Arts in West Palm Beach. He is a parishioner of Our Lady Queen of Peace in Delray Beach and a member of the local chapter of Youth for Christ, an international organization that promotes evangelism.
When asked his motivation for giving so much time to the show and spending weekends in rehearsals over the past months, Andrea had two answers.
“I am improving my skills,” he said about the show’s dance and performance aspects. “I like spending time with my friends, too.”
The performers’ parents are very supportive, chauffeuring their children back and forth from home to practices. Others are volunteering to bring food to rehearsals. Some are helping with costumes.
“I have two daughters in the show,” said Marichu Limlengco, a parishioner of Emmanuel. “I am concerned about them and their well-being. If they are here, I feel like they are safe. I trust these kids. They are together and I know where my children are at all times.”
Ella Castillo of Emmanuel Parish stays to watch her children Erick, 18, and Karissa, 14, during practices.
“They like it,” she said. “They are very dedicated. It is all volunteer and good community service for them.”
Volunteer Ree Joyce, also of Emmanuel, has watched the kids change as the show developed. He observed more than just the production coming together, he said.
“Our show has now come into shape and promise — built on the loving, sharing and growing rapport between children, parents, choreographers and organizers,” he said.
“Under the aegis of a most wonderful faith that we have all learned to cherish, we are finally growing into a mutual joy for Christian service. It is already a benefit to the participants simply from involvement. It is our loving intent to share the fruit of our labors with the community. A church is not just a building; it is a people united in the loving embrace of love and Jesus Christ.”
Father Zamora expects to stage the cultural show in other locations around the diocese. He is searching for venues.