FilAm Showtime' celebrates 11 years on the air by Joy Mapaye - Saturday, July 23, 2005

For more than a decade, "FilAm Showtime" has hit the airwaves. Tonight, there was a tribute to the show and its special anniversary.

On a corner of Sixth Avenue, a Filipino fiesta is taking place. Members of the community, old and young alike, are celebrating a very special show. Every Wednesday night at 8 o'clock, the "FilAm Showtime" hits the air. Fourteen-year-old Gerlyn Yambao is one of the show's anchors.

"I feel great about being part of the show because it's fun to be in, and if you mess up we'll all laugh and just go back to what we're doing," Yambao said.

The show first started on April 4, 1994. The mission of the show was to showcase the Filipino community. At the same time, it reaches out to other cultures.

Nez Danguilan and his wife, Juliette, started the show. "It's really a grace that I'm able, not only to contribute to my community, but to the community at large," said Danguilan (right).So Uncle Nez and Auntie Juliette, as they're often called, set out to do a show once a week. Using their own money for equipment and with the help of many volunteers, they did. Portia Ignacio-Singian was one of the show's first anchors and remembers the first night on air.

"I was feeling pretty nervous, but at the same time I thought this would be groundbreaking," Ignacio-Singian said. "We've never had anything like this in Anchorage, especially for the Filipino community."

So the show went on. The guests ranged from members of the community to state politicians and even national icons. Soon, the show started getting a following.

"We just feel humbled with that and honored that people really are appreciating what we are doing," Juliette Danguilan said.

So here it is, 11 years later, in a room that measure just 22-by-16 feet. The show continues, with the hope it will be around in the next 11 years to come.Portia Ignacio-Singian was one of the show's first anchors and remembers the first night on air.

"I was feeling pretty nervous, but at the same time I thought this would be groundbreaking," Ignacio-Singian said. "We've never had anything like this in Anchorage, especially for the Filipino community."So the show went on. The guests ranged from members of the community to state politicians and even national icons. Soon, the show started getting a following."We just feel humbled with that and honored that people really are appreciating what we are doing," Juliette Danguilan said.

So here it is, 11 years later, in a room that measure just 22-by-16 feet. The show continues, with the hope it will be around in the next 11 years to come.

The show has gone through its tough times. Juliette Danguilan has been battling cancer and Nez Danguilan was in Iraq last year. They were going to celebrate the 10th anniversary, but they waited until he came home.

The 11th Anniversary of the Fil-Am Showtime Television Show

Full Proclamation  The 11th Anniversary of the Fil-Am Showtime Television Show  Fil-Am Showtime, first aired in Alaska in 1994, is a community and family-oriented television show that was the brainchild of Ebenezer and Juliette Danguilan. It is the first and only independent, minority-owned, nonprofit television show in Alaska. The show airs twice weekly on GGI Cable Television on Channel 9, Wednesdays at 8 p.m. and Sundays at 9 p.m.

Fil-Am Showtime, short for Filipino-American, works to promote better understanding and communication between Filipinos and the communities in which they live in Alaska. Through educational programming, the show promotes a better understanding of the American way of life. The show also celebrates educational and cultural themes that explore the diversity in Alaska's people who all share a common love of the place in which we live and call our home.Fil-Am also educates non-Filipinos about the vibrant and unique cultures, people, traditions, and ways of life in the Phillipines.

Fil-Am Showtime is successful in encouraging the Filipino community to get involved in local, business, church, and school activities and helps promote good citizenship.

Nancy and I congratulate the producers, staff, and the entire Filipino community in Alaska on the 11th anniversary of Fil-Am Showtime. As you celebrate your anniversary, you can be proud that your quality family and community-centered programming helps make Alaska a better place to live. 

NOW, THEREFORE, I, Frank H. Murkowski, Governor of the State of Alaska, do hereby proclaim July 23, 2005, as:

The 11th Anniversary of the Fil-Am Showtime Television Show in Alaska, and congratulate the Fil-Am Showtime Television Show on 11 wonderful years and best wishes for many more.

Dated: July 22, 2005

 

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