At last, a book that puts on record the Filipino Australian Pioneers and Achievers in Australia!
In time for the commemoration of the 75th anniversary of Philippine-Australia relations, Benjie de Ubago has released her latest offering to the Filipino community – Filipino Australian Pioneers and Achievers in Australia.
The book is a valuable compilation of the pioneering spirits and achievers who had the audacity to dream and whose outstanding contributions have had lasting influences on the Filipino community and on Australia’s multicultural society. It is informative, insightful and inspiring.
Filipinos have contributed greatly to every aspect of Australian life. From the pearl divers who plunged into the depths of the Australian seas, to the droves of Filipino migrants who came in search of a better life – the “10-pound” migrants, the Spanish Filipinos, the nurses, the teachers, the medical experts, the professionals, the skilled workers, the students and the seniors who arrived for family reunions. Filipinos have thrived in their chosen fields of endeavour, be it legal, medical, literary, education, sports, entertainment, and most recently, in politics.
“Benjie de Ubago has for some decades now devoted much of her efforts towards this country’s recognition of all deserving Filipino organisations and individuals,” said Alfredo Roces who provides the Foreword for the book. Roces is an author and an artist and was honoured with the Philippine Presidential Award in 2014 for “Pamana ng Bayan.”
De Ubago is a pioneer herself having arrived in Australia in 1971 and got her foot in the door of Channel 9, Sydney in the same year. She later moved to Channel 7, Sydney with stints in the advertising world in between. She was part of the first official Filipino dance troupe that performed for the opening of the Opera House in 1973. Last year, she received the NSW Premier’s Multicultural Communications Award for Lifetime Achievement.
“I simply wanted to get the record straight as to who was first,” said Benjie. “Besides the successful Filipinos have assimilated and integrated into mainstream Australia and most Filipinos do not even know that they are staring at someone of Filipino descent,” she added.
The book captures the essence of Filipino-Australians and celebrates those who dared to be the “first”, the “only” and those who persevered to be the best on a national and international level.
“It is for the next generation of Fil-Aussies to help them understand their indelible past and inspire them to believe that even as migrants, greatness is within their reach,” she said.
To order a copy, contact de Ubago on ideas4sale@optusnet.com.au or on 0412 966 300.
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