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Matt Shiraki is the new White House Asian Pacific American Liaison. In this role, he will be responsible for communicating the President’s policies and priorities to the Asian Pacific American community and bringing the needs and concerns of the community to senior White House staff. In addition, Matt will represent the White House at community events and will organize briefings and outreach activities for Asian American and Pacific Islander constituency groups.

DC Avant-garde artist Julian Oteyza wrapped up his group exhibit at the Ayala Museum in Makati and at the Philippine Center, 556 Fifth Ave., New York, NY 10036 with the Society of Philippine-American Artists, (SPAA). The NY show lasted from September 10 - 21, 2007. Other artists participants are Francis Allan Bordeos; Egay Carreon; Mars Custodio; Lito David; Tessie Dichupa; Oscar Dizon; Joe Dureza; Trini Eckstein; Imela Cajipe Endaya; Manuel Gamboa; Mia Herbosa; Christine SC Jeanjaquet; Lenore R. S. Lim; Athena S. Magcase Lopez; Toots Magsino; Emi Mercado; Emilia Monroy; Charo Morando; Manuel Rodriguez Sr., and Pamela Rosales.

The officers of the Filipino American Institute of Accountants of Metro DC (formerly AFAI) recently attended the 21st Annual Convention of the National Council of Philippine American Canadian Accountants in Toronto. The three-day program included “A Welcome Night” (Boat Cruise),

Ms. Lani Hay has been selected as the first National Chair of the Coalition of Asian Pacific American Businesses & Organizations (CAPABO) to handle matters of great concern to APAs, from family reunification and healthcare benefits to providing job opportunities to veterans in federal and state contracting. CAPABO covers the whole country, e.g., North, South, East, West, Mid-Atlantic, Mid-West, Northwest and Southeast.

The Mayor’s Office on Asian and Pacific Islander Affairs (OAPIA) Sept. 20 announced its Asian/Pacific Islander (API) Bilingual Recruiting Initiative to help District agencies increase the hiring of bilingual employees.

The Philippine contingent at the 4th Annual Dance DC Festival at the Kennedy Center, Millennium stage, on Sept. 29 is an ensemble of Filam talents from Migrant Heritage Commission’s Filam Heritage Dance, Ultimate Eskrima International, Mabuhay, Inc., Filam Ministry of St. Michael, Ilocano Society of America's (ISA's) Miss Teen-Philippines U.S.A.. and the Philippine-American Community Partnership. Performance is free but seating capacity is limited.

The newly-opened Lincoln Theatre, DC’s National Theatre, will hold the Duke Ellington Jazz Festival on September 14-15, 2007. As D.C.’s own cultural crossroads, the Lincoln Theatre will once again present a rich, diverse array of critically acclaimed jazz legends from around the globe to honor Dizzy Gillespie’s innovative fusion of Latin, African and Caribbean sounds with jazz music. In the Footsteps of Dizzy (September 14, 8:00 PM) will feature an all-star performance that brings together Dizzy Gillespie prot_g_s, including Roy Hargrove and his Grammy Award-winning band, RH Factor, the Grammy-nominated Danilo P_rez Trio, Grammy winner David Sanchez, Steve Turre and Claudio Roditi to celebrate the genius of Dizzy and today’s jazz greats. Tickets are on sale now for $25-35.

Median incomes of Asian Americans in the Washington metro area Declined to $83,908, according to the Washington Post. It said census figures reveal significant differences among the region’s racial groups and highlight several pockets of stark inequality. Although the median household incomes of the Washington area’s minorities are substantially higher than those of minorities and even non-Hispanic whites nationally, they remain well below the median incomes of the area’s non-Hispanic whites. In the Washington area, the overall median household income is $78,978. Non-Hispanic whites in the region have a median household income of $94,290, but the figure drops to $83,908 for Asians, $58,945 for Hispanics and $55,547 for blacks.

DC Mayor Adrian Fenty is hosting the 4th annual “DiverseCITY Job Fair” on Friday, September 21, 2007 at National Building Museum. The target audiences include qualified bilingual and limited English proficient (LEP) individuals for public and private sector opportunities. This year’s job fair builds on the successes and model of the Office on Asian and Pacific Islander Affairs’ (OAPIA) Annual DiverseCity Job Fair. OAPIA is working with the Office on Latino Affairs, Office on African Affairs, Office of Human Rights, and Department of Human Resources in an effort to diversify workforces and provide opportunities to underserved, limited English proficient populations in the District.

The White House is looking for applicants with sound academic credentials for its annual internship program. It said it is looking for those who have sound academic credentials, demonstrated interest in public service, solid written and verbal communications and a history of community involvement e House internship “It is an incredible honor for me to be the leader of such a strong team, on behalf of the American people - a team of men and women who could be doing something else, but have decided, I want to serve the greatest land on the face of the Earth.

The Twenty Outstanding Filipinos Abroad (TOFA) awardees, including former Philippine Ambassador to the United States Albert del Rosario who flew in from Manila to join his legions of friends in the area, and flew back the following day, were presented with Certificates of Honor Plaque and the Circle of Leaders Medals of Honor during the gala night at the JW Marriott in Washington D.C. September 1.

How Imusicapella came to Washington D.C. is another story. The group was going to New York before proceeding to Las Vegas. While Washington was not part of their itinerary, the members wanted to make a detour to see the historic sights of the nation’s capital. Not knowing anyone in DC, they saw the advertisement of Atty. Miriam Riedmiller in a newspaper (probably the Manila Mail) and wrote to her. Miriam passed on the information to Maurese Owens and Pablito Alarcon who immediately acted to bring them here. Arrangements were made to house the 8 boys of Imusicapella at the residence of Evelyn and Oscar Bonoan (Evelyn is the Manila Mail’s Food columnist) in Fairfax, Virginia. Two girls were housed at the residence of Mercy and Pol Sebastian while the other 4 girls stayed at the house of Ben and Sol Manalaysay.

Jose Luis Gascon, a Filipino leader, has suggested ways in which the Filipino and international community can focus their efforts to bolster democracy in the Philippines which he said is in recession. Gascon, a Reagan-Fascell Democracy Fellow and executive director of Libertas (Lawyers League for Liberty), gave a lecture before the International Forum for Democratic Studies at the National Endowment for Democracy in Washington D.C. July 17, 2007. Libertas is a Manila-based network of civic-minded legal professionals committed to the promotion of freedom, equality, and the rule of law in the Philippines.

The State of Philippine Education and he Children Hour was the top of a fund-raising gathering at the Philippine embassy July 2. Resource person was Ms Gee Mayuga, a retired executive of the Ayala Group of companies who is now devoting her time serving as Executive Director of Children’s Hour. She is married to the former Flag Officer in Command of the Philippine Navy, Vice Admiral Mateo M. Mayuga.

Ambassador to the United States Willy C. Gaa welcomed the delegation of the 1^st Uniglobal Services Outsourcing (USO), Inc. IT Mission to the U.S. at a reception held at the Philippine Embassy June 26 attended by key members and representatives of business chambers and organizations in the Metro D.C. Area. “Trade missions such as this one and the continued confidence of our business partners in the Philippines and abroad will make possible President Arroyo’s prediction that 2007 will be the year when it all comes together,” said Ambassador Gaa before members of the Philippine-American Chamber of Commerce, Intelligent Transportation Society of America (ITSA), the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, the U.S. House Committee on Government Reform and Oversight, and staffers of U.S. Representatives John Mica (R-FL), Lee Terry (R-NE), Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-FL), and Senator John McCain (R-AZ).