#fasaexternal

POV: my dear Tito Jason throwing _ _ _ (you get it) at PCN 2014 

Hi! My name is Sofia <3, if you’re thinking, “hey that’s not sofia”, well you would be correct! This is my Tito (uncle) Jason. He is the reason I wanted to go to UMICH, the reason I’m in FASA, one of my favorite people and my role model. If you know me, you know that I get quite stressed out easily and if there’s someone that’s gonna hear me complain about something, it’s him. So here’s a look into our conversations because I think it really showcases my journey through FASA!

POV: Sofia is going through it (she has taken a bio172 quiz 21 times with harley… in the picture on the right) and doesn’t really think things are going to get better

POV: Sofia and Ate Irene after Tagalog class 

The transition to college was rough to say the least. I was so excited to go to college but I didn’t expect to feel so alone. I didn’t know how to gauge what organizations to be involved in, what questions to ask, or what people to talk to. I just wanted to surround myself with good people. Coming into UMICH, I knew about FASA through my Tito Jason, but I was honestly too scared to go to anything on my own so I never did. But, one day in Ate Irene’s Tagalog class she said that if I went to a FASA event, that I would get extra credit. So, being the academic weapon I am still waiting to be, I jumped at the chance of helping my grade and with some pushing from my future Ate Kris who was also in class with me, I begged the Filipino girl that lived down the hall from me to go to FAM/Lin with me. 

POV: Sofia with $wag and the girl down the hall (to my left) at FAM/Lin

POV: freshie girl from down the hall and Sofia confused because they’re being told they should try tinikling

Tito Jason told me that everyone in FASA would be good people and that I would find my people there, but I was unsure if that would be the case. Fun fact, I really thought there was gonna be Filipino food and told Taryn that surely there would be food at the event  (even though no one told me there was going to be food) so I was extremely hungry when I got there. Shoutout to my Ate Emily for giving me half of her No Thai tho. Anyways, I got sorted into the best fam, $wag (which my Tito Jason was in bye) and into KIKILAN <3!! 

Fast forward to PCN, because I became inactive for a while oops (the BIO sequence hit me like a truck what can I say)…Anyways, I went to PCN impulsively because Mikey told me that getting PCN tickets was a bloodbath. I remember I set an alarm and tried really hard to get tickets, and I honestly didn’t know what PCN was but again I told Taryn that we HAD to go together (we came as a package) and that our families should sit together. At PCN I got my first lin pic with my beautiful favs. Ate Kris was sadly not there so I photoshopped her in. 

POV: me and my Kikilan girl bosses at PCN 

Real quick imma do a shoutout to Ate Kris. Having you in my lin, in tagalog class and as my $wag fam head was so fun. I never would have been so comfortable and open to going to things if it weren’t for you. Whenever I decided to show up to things it was never as daunting because I knew at least you’d be there. Also, thank you for always inviting Kendra, Jenny and I to 815. It really felt like home there during my first year away from home and I will always remember the many nights we stayed up doing random things.

POV: Kendra and I hugging Ate Kris after our Senior Farewell speech (fishtail braid and bow by THE elias atkinson)

Back to PCN. My Tito Jason watched PCN on Facebook live and texted me asking me if I went and you’ll see how that went. Okay, so hear me out PCN was the first time I heard the FASA chant. I remember Taryn and I did not want to get up because we were like uhhhhh but let’s not talk about that. 

POV: Sofia didn’t do the FASA chant cuz she’s lame

After that night I had the best time and I was in awe of so many of the performances. I laughed, I cried, I had fun, but I also felt a little out of place. From that night I knew I wanted to be more active and put in more effort into getting to know everyone. 

My first steps into becoming active were to go to more events and become an intern. One of those two didn’t quite work out womp womp lol, can you guess which one??? Yah. I didn’t get to be an intern lol. But it’s fine!! Why do you ask? Oh, because I got really close to two people that also didn’t become interns, my lovely beautiful best friends Kendra and Taryn (AKA RAHFIRYN). 

POV: sofia n da gorls 

Anyways fast forward again, I decided to rush DEM since I didn’t become an intern. And I GOT INN woot woot. And megdalinda became my pinsan (cousin). Now fast forward to the moral of this whole story and it starts with Battle. 

POV: Sofia is RiRi from the Superbowl at Big Little

Now, minutes before leaving for battle I texted my Tito Jason that I wouldn’t do a dance like ever. But I was wrong. Somehow Taryn convinced me to sign up like 30 minutes before the deadline to sign up for GENAPA. 

POV: Sofia don’t wanna dance 

Post GENAPA, I realized that I loved every minute of going to practice and doing tinikling with everyone and performing. Every chance I get, I try to sign up to do it and I’m even doing it again this year with miss Taryn <3, and I will every year. 

POV: Pip and sofia humbly doing tinikling for PCN

Now if you remember earlier I also said I was unsure about finding my people in FASA. Well, I’ll say that I was wrong. Again lol. Because look at my little support system. 

POV: serving face post PCN 

Now fast forward to me becoming external chair. If you’re still here you would also remember that another thing I said I wouldn’t do was the FASA chant. Wrong again. Cuz I lead the chant with Therese at external PCN’s and I say it loud and proud (even the body roll guys) with Therese <3. 

POV: Sofia and Therese cold af but sitting pretty

Now I’m going to shout out my lovely co-chair Therese. Therese it’s been one of the best experiences to work with you, I don’t think I could have accomplished so much without you. You were always there for me, made me laugh hella, listened and lifted me up when I was stressed. But at the same time you made sure to handle things with grace, patience and professionalism. I loved that we pushed and supported each other to do better in FASA but to also do things outside of FASA too. We have met a lot of people and I have admired how genuine you are to everyone and how you take the time to appreciate every interaction. Most of all, I have appreciated that throughout this whole process, we became such good friends. And just know that I will continue to support you even after FASA. I am not gonna lie, you and I are going to have to hangout because man Therese I miss you already. (Let’s make taho to pretty isn’t pretty!)

Now here’s a mini run through of our year together: 

POV: Sofia and Therese’s first PCN together at FASOU PCN

POV: Sofia and Therese at Ricebowl (one of my favorite events we put on)

POV: Sofia and Therese’s last PCN together at PASS Halo-Halo

I’m so proud of the work that Therese and I did this year. We accomplished everything that we hoped for and I’m so glad that I had Therese by my side through it all. The one thing about the external position is that you get what you put into it, and Therese and I really poured our hearts into making sure that we worked with as many orgs and said yes to as many things as we could in order to open the doors for FASA to make connections. I would say that we truly did make FASA an org that was open to working with others and a presence inside and outside FASA. 

For my future external chairs, make meaningful connections, I promise it’s fun. Also, while I think it’s important to be realistic, find the balance between being ambitious and realistic. Don’t be afraid to ask your board for help and to show your excitement and passion for something that you are planning or want to plan. Your passion will rub off on other people. Also, while it is important to be independent, take the time to know when to depend on others. You don’t have to do everything alone. Especially in a co-chair position, it is important to communicate and work as a team. Grow together, learn from each other, and never forget to have fun. This is not a job, this is an opportunity. 

POV: Sofia fell

POV: Sofia is still goin (barely)

So, after reflecting on these photos (i think they really showcase my journey) and my previous messages to my Tito Jason I have realized that I shouldn’t be too caught up in thinking I have everything figured out, I clearly don’t know what I am doing all the time but that’s okay. Stay open minded, try new things, and meet new people, and keep pushing forward. Some of the most unexpected things can become some of the most important or fun things in your life. 

POV: me and $wommy meesh smilin after a good day

Contact Information

Therese Cerdan: (000) 612-7692 Yes, I am writing this testimonial like an external trip itinerary. No, I am not putting my actual phone number. Before I get into my reflections on being external, I’d like to thank some very important people! (and because contact info comes first in our itineraries)

Sofia Gestiada: (000) 259-9023 Hi Sofia. I truly truly could not have asked for a better co. You’ve genuinely made this experience being on board a fun one, and having to do work never felt super serious or daunting because of you. Whenever I began to overthink or worry too much about FASA things, you were able to help me take a step back and come up with good solutions. I am going to rave about you more in a later section, so I will keep this short for now.

Alyssa and Bryson Madame and Mister President! This club could not run without you. I appreciate how you both were always there to give us advice, especially on how to interact with other orgs. Alyssa– I always tell you that you would be an amazing external. I love yapping with you about the other externals and MAFA in general. Bryson– You are such a reliable person. If I ever asked something from you, you always came through (benches 😭🙏).

Ashley and Mikey You guys are the blueprint. Sofia and I both came into this position having not interned, so we for real did not know what was going on at first. Thank you for showing us the ropes and for your advice throughout the year!

Board!!! Nicole, Andrew, Lizzy, Philip, Zainab, Eli, Mizzy, Gabe, Kendra, Ash, Taryn, Kayla, Sofia, Alyssa, Bryson (+ interns :P) – I’ve had an amazing time with y’all. Thank you for putting up with us adding random events to the calendar.

Sophie and Angeli To the gals who convinced me to do board….spare change 🪙?

Meg and Kyle Had to shout out the OGs. My first FASA friends. Here is the day we first met KGR lol. I am also writing this on Megan’s bday (3/15) so everyone say happy late bday Meg.

Freshmen us at Fall mass meeting ‘21

Housing Addresses

Cebu, Philippines. My connection to Filipino culture stems directly from my parents. Both of them grew up, met, and got married in Cebu City, Philippines. They moved over to Michigan with a group of other Filipinos in their engineering company, whose kids I grew up with. Because of this, I was fortunately able to grow up with a close-knit Filipino community and attend many family parties. I knew that in college I would absolutely want to find a similar kind of community, which is why there was no question that I would join FASA.

Dearborn, Michigan. This is the city I was born in and went to elementary and high school in. Although I grew up going to Filipino parties and the fact that Dearborn is already one of the most diverse cities in Michigan, I attended a predominantly white, Catholic school for almost my entire life (I did live in Shanghai for 3 years but I don’t feel like writing a section on it. Ask me about it if you want lol). I had very conflicting views of my identity as a result. I was microaggressed as the smart Asian my whole life, but I took this as a compliment and was simultaneously proud to be the different kind of Asian (aka not East Asian, like most of the stereotypes). Regardless of these external factors, I have always been proud to be Filipino.

Ann Arbor, Michigan. My sister Audrey was in Fil-Soc at Wayne State and I had various family friends in FASOU and SAFA, so it was a no-brainer that I join FASA at UMich. But my freshman year, I was a commuter student and ended up going to maybe 3 FASA events. Since I lived at home, I spent a lot more time going to FilViet volleyball up in Waterford/ Troy, which is where I met so many of my external friends. I guess everything happens for a reason, because if I wasn’t so inactive my freshman year, I wouldn’t have met the externals and eventually run for external chair of FASA as a result. 

Me and the fam swimming with whale-sharks (butanding) in Cebu 2013

Packing List

An amazing co The most important part of your trip as external is having an amazing co-chair. Sofia Beatrice del Rosario Gestiada has been one of the people I admire most in my life. Not only did she support me professionally, but she became someone I could depend on just in life in general. Your co is there to balance you out and provide support when the job gets tough. Sofia never failed to make me laugh when times got stressful, which was often because we were truly in the trenches together this whole year (we don’t talk about October).

Be okay with saying no With that being said, if you do not want to be planning external event after event during your tenure, be okay with saying no to some things! This is definitely something that Ashley and Mikey told us, but alas we did not listen. Oftentimes, FASA would be invited to join other internal events after we had finalized our calendar for the semester. Because we so loved our fellow A/PIA orgs, we wanted to join events when they invited us. Regardless, I have no regrets about any of the external events we planned and joined because they were genuinely all so fun and I loved working with the other externals/ outreach chairs.

A vision You have to want to build FASA’s connections with other orgs in order to perform this position correctly. There’s no question about that. Growing up, I had always known FASA as the “clique-y” Filipino org. During my whole term, I tried to help board and general members realize that external connections, both in and outside of the UM community, are important. You love the Filipino community found within FASA– why not expand it further within MAFA (Midwest Association of Filipino Americans)! Whether this worked or not, I am very proud of FASA stepping out of its comfort zone to interact with other orgs, especially the PSAs (Pilipino Student Associations). 

Connections! (not required) As I’ve been saying, my existing connections within the other PSA’s were the main reason I wanted to be an external chair. Not only was this helpful in shaping my vision, but it also helped make communication with them pretty efficient throughout the year. In fact, it happened quite serendipitously that both the Fil-Soc and Kapa external chairs this year were people I grew up with (s/o John Paul and Spencer), among other family friends on various PSA boards. But having prior connections are by no means requirements to do a good job as external! It’s all about how you build and maintain relationships, and wanting to build them in the first place. In my position, I’ve been able to meet and get to know so many of the amazing externals and outreach chairs of both internal and external orgs.

Baby me, Bea (Purdue PFA), JP (Fil-Soc), Spencer (Kapa), and Anton (SAFA) balling out

Itinerary

Now let’s get into some of the cool events that Sofia and I got to put on as externals!

Rice Bowl This was Sofia and I’s first event. Rice Bowl is an annual field day/ sports competition with MSU’s PASS in April/ May. It felt like we were thrown into it, having hosted it in AA for the first year since covid. This was a huge learning curve for me especially in figuring out how to work with non-FASA boardies, but luckily we had a lot of past documents to rely on (RIP FASA archives 💔). It’s amazing that we are able to maintain connections with another org through an annual event, so I’d love to see more FASA programs like this (hint hint @ next externals). Anyways, I believe that we will win Rice Bowl next year guys! Pls!!

Internal collabs During the FASA welcome week extravaganza of 2023, Sofia and I hosted our first internal collab! It was a cultural game night on the Diag with TASA. This semester, we also got to plan a huge tailgate with VSA, MSU PASS, and MSU VSA in East Lansing and it was just a swell, fun and safe time. We further bonded with the other UMich APIDA orgs during the Halloween LIVE collab, Celebrasia, ice skating night with CSA, and VSA’s annual Sweet Soiree. This semester, we were able to pull off probably one of the most rewarding events for me, which was Tsismis en el Barrio with La Casa. Being able to reflect on the shared culture and identity between the Filipino and Latinx peoples was an experience I will never forget. I hope this event returns sometime in the coming years.

Battle of the Bamboo 2024 This deserves its own category y’all. I am so beyond proud of our performance chairs and all the performers for all the work they put in to win us 3rd place! It makes the 3 hours a day working on spreadsheets for 2 weeks straight almost worth it! 😀Kidding. Not really. The trip to Chicago was the most demanding task of my time as external. But honestly, it was so worth it to hear how much of a fun time our general members had in Chicago. And it was really fun to make cars and houses and plan out what performers and non-performers should do with their time away from Ann Arbor. 

Music committee slay

Afterset Info 😛

Being on board felt like a never-ending party. I have never felt so encompassed by a community to the point where Filipinos and Filipino culture are found in all aspects of my life. Everywhere I go on campus now, I am able to see a familiar face, which makes this huge campus feel a lot smaller. Becoming an active member in FASA through being on board has been one of my favorite experiences in college. It’s opened so many doors for me not only socially and culturally, but professionally as well. It’s allowed me to make connections and learn about opportunities that will benefit me in my future career endeavors. Like many other boardies, I have wondered what comes next after FASA, but now I realize that FASA truly set me up for a great future. Being on a board like this teaches you so many soft skills like communication, problem-solving, and logistics planning. Most importantly, my time on board and in FASA has made me decide to pursue Philippine studies in my future anthropological research. 

To finish off this itinerary of my trip as co-external chair, I would like to wish the best of luck to our future boardies and next year’s external chairs. I know you will do great things <3

Inserting a pic of my Lakapati lin girlies bc I love them so

Ingat,

Hi FASA,

As I’m writing this testimonial the day it is due (shoutout to miss media milly) I’ve reflected on my experience as a general member turned FASA intern turned FASA board member.

But first I’ll start with some context:

I was born in Dearborn, Michigan at the ripe age of zero, and after living in Detroit for the first two years of my life, my parents made the decision to move us to somewhere smaller… much smaller. For the most part, I lived and grew up in a teeny tiny town (literally a village 💀) in rural Michigan.

Those of you also from middle of nowhere towns in Michigan or honestly anywhere in the Midwest probably know what it's like. I was the only Asian student in my grade for pretty much all of K-12 and was the only Asian student in my entire graduating class. It’s interesting to hear how some schools had entire Asian/Asian-American organizations and even their own Filipino clubs. If my high school were to have had an Asian organization, it would’ve consisted of only three members (i.e. me, Alexa, and Tommy Yang).

Anyways, fast forward, I’ve been accepted into U of M and am living in Bursley Hall. 😭 I had heard about FASA but was pretty hesitant to join. I showed up to Fall Mass Meeting at Rackham (with Bryson 😎), went to the LinkedIn Photoshoot at the Law Quad, and quickly despawned from all FASA events in the Fall.

Photo taken Fall 2021 during LinkedIn Photoshoot by Michelle (aka “media meesh”)

I wasn’t an active member of FASA until the Winter semester of my freshman year. I had a lot of hesitations about joining, but I applied to the FASA intern program on a whim, thinking I wasn’t active, qualified, or even “Filipino enough” to be accepted. However to my surprise, a little less than two weeks later, I received an email that read:

Slay.

I basically forced myself into being active in the organization by becoming an intern. It was both a sense of obligation and eagerness to learn as much as I could about FASA, especially about how the organization operates behind the scenes. I went into the program knowing very little about FASA and had only attended a small number of events. I didn’t know any of the other interns besides Angeli and Andrew who were in FIlipino class with me, however I was excited to get to know all of the other interns and board members.

FASA INTERN GALS ✨

I grew close with the other interns, went to “Teen Beach Movie Night” (iykyk), helped plan and eventually had the intern capstone event, went to many FASA events and made many maaany more memories. I got to know my fam (Xfam = best fam), my sexy lineage (Darago <3), and so many people in the FASA community.

Darago Lineage: Jbapo, Ate Janielle, Ate Kennedy, Kuya Colin, Bry-Bry, Krystelle, Zainab, and adings Ash and Nicole + not pictured: Ate Carina

(also not pictured: the Darakunawa alliance)

EXTERNAL EVENTS

Filipino Americans Coming Together (FACT)

Filipino Americans did WHAT???

The Filipino Americans Coming Together (FACT) conference was the first external trip during my sophomore year. To be honest, I wasn’t really sure what FACT actually was at first. It had been a few years since they had an in-person conference, but this year they were in-person. I sent out my silly little Google forms, texted everyone and their mom to figure out logistics, and toiled on the master spreadsheet until cars, houses, itinerary, and all of the other details that go into planning external trips were figured out.

FACT itself was a little rocky because UIUC’s first in person conference in a while. I heard that many of the workshops went well, however, the quality/structure varied with each. We attended the FACT Variety Show (sorry Ashley Mehta), many of us pushed Joes, and went on our pilgrimage to Seafood City and Jollibee in Chicago. Looking back, it was a challenge trying to figure out how to manage such a large group of people. We had 55 members attend the conference, but Mikey and I managed to ensure no one perished or got abandoned in Chambana, so overall I’m happy with how the weekend went.

One thing that FACT taught me is that you cannot plan everything down to the T and expect it to go smoothly. The unknown of what could happen on an external trip always has made me a little anxious, but sometimes all we can do is plan, put in the effort, and then leave things to their own accord. This position has taught me that you can’t try to perfect everything. When [REDACTED] hits the fan, you must always be ready to pivot and adapt to what the new situation or challenge brings.

Battle of the Bamboo

FASA takes on Chicago

Battle of the Bamboo (BOTB) this year had about double or nearly triple the number of attendees from the year prior. For me, last year’s BOTB was one of my favorite FASA memories and also a big reason why I feel close with many of my friends in the organization today so I urged everyone to go (or else they’d get severe FOMO).

This year’s BOTB was particularly special because of performance chairs and FASA’s exhibition performance of Pagapir. From a planning perspective, we were more relaxed with overall planning for BOTB and focused a lot of our logistics around ensuring that specifically performers made it where they had to be well in advance. We had 55+ attendees with housing being spread out among several different locations. Many people got the chance to explore Chicago, try new restaurants, sing karaoke, etc.

External quick tip: An easy and relatively harmless way to ensure that Filipino time does not demolish your plans/external itinerary is by accommodating for a 30 minute (or more) buffer time and saying that people need to be places earlier than they actually have to be. We cannot get rid of Filipino time, however we can try our best to plan for it and ensure it does not deter us too much.

One big takeaway I had after Battle is that there is a sliding scale between trips being hands-off and trips being planned down to the minute. That being said, there are pros and cons to both sides. If the trip is way too structured, it can be 1.) too suffocating for attendees and 2.) very stressful for externals to maintain this structure. On the other hand, if there isn’t enough structure then people do not feel secure/reassured during the trip. Meaning that in both planning and execution, you need to aim for the external trip to fall somewhere in the middle of this range.

Additionally, things may seem good on paper but there can be flaws and problems that arise the day of when the plan is in execution. It is our responsibility as external chairs to make the trip fun and equitable for everyone, and it is also our responsibility to try to make things right when they do not go to plan. Battle weekend allowed a lot of necessary and valuable dialogue to be brought up/discussed, and I am looking forward to seeing how external trips progress and grow in future years.

Philippine Culture Night

I remember my first Philippine Culture Night (PCN) in vivid detail. From the “sinigang” to the Toledo coconut boys, the Tinikling set, speeches, poetry, speakers, and so on. However, I wasn’t on a committee or a part of a performance group but I knew I wanted to be more actively involved in the night in the future.

For this year’s PCN, I managed the new External Outreach committee with Mikey. It was a bit of a headache to figure out, but we made sure nearby external PSAs were able to reserve tickets and make it to our PCN.

In addition, I also signed up for a PCN dance at the last minute. I’m terribly uncoordinated (e.g. Tinik on the Diag) and dancing has never been my strong suit. That being said, I cannot recommend enough that people join one of the PCN dance groups if they have the time in their schedule for it. Dance practices, as long and tiring as they can feel, became something I really looked forward to during the week. I enjoyed getting to know the other dancers and bonding with them over jokes, shared exhaustion, and a great PCN performance at the end.

Like all things in life, what you put into FASA is what you get out of it. In order to get the most out of the organization, you need to step out of your comfort zone. Sign up for silly little dances and committees and make the most of all of the opportunities to get to know all of the amazing people that make up the FASA community.

To my Co:

Dear Mikey,

We met at Mass Meeting in the fall of freshman year, but my real first impression of you was at the [REDACTED] mixer during the beginning of winter semester when you accidentally butt-dialed 911 on my phone. I thought you were a complete goon, but little did I know that we would end up becoming co-chairs just a few months later.

With that being said, I cannot put into words how thankful I am to have you as a co-chair and friend (among other things). You’ve grown so much since I first met you, and I admire how driven, caring, and considerate have always been. You make me want to be a better person.

Sometimes planning external events/trips have made me want to explode into a million pieces, but you’ve always been there and have given stability to me through it all. From board retreat to organization collabs, external weekend, late night toiling in the Fish Bowl, FACT & Battle, and everything in between, there’s no one else I could’ve done it all with. Now that our tenure is coming to a close, I can truly look back and be proud of everything we’ve accomplished in the past year. Thank you for always supporting me unconditionally and for always being there for me. We did it!! :)

FASA Executive Board 2022-23

To FASA Executive Board:

I’m so lucky to have served my tenure on board alongside each and every one of you. I’m definitely biased, but this year’s board is such a special and talented group of people. Thank you for making Sunday board meetings something to look forward to, and thank you for all of your support, hard work, and dedication this past year.

To the seniors:

Senior farewell hasn’t happened so I don’t need to be too sappy yet. However, as you all go on to do immeasurably great and impressive things, remember that FASA is always here for you and proud of you.

To those considering external chair or FASA e-board in the future:

FASA board has historically followed a trend: People are a part of FASA, become interns, get elected onto e-board, and then burn out over the course of the year. Although this trend doesn’t apply to everyone, it is important that we each do our best to manage burnout. For the sake of the FASA board and the wellbeing of your fellow boardies, please try your best to alleviate burnout and help out each other as best as you can.

If you need help, feel free to reach out to your predecessors. We’re always here to help and we want to see FASA and the new board succeed. 

Learn to say no. Say no to events you don’t want to do. Say no to events you don’t want to go to. Additionally, know when to take a step back, especially if the FASA calendar is overpacked, realistically ask yourself what you would like to see/accomplish this semester.

I’ve heard this from past and present boardies a million times and I’m definitely sounding like a broken record, however this is one of my most important takeaways after being on board: Responsibilities in FASA cannot be black and white, either your problem or not your problem. Such a dichotomy could never exist because in a cohesive board, it is everyone’s job for events to run smoothly. If someone needs help in FASA, it is everyone’s job to step up (if they can) and assist their fellow boardies when they need it.

In closing:

As Winnie the Pooh (and Celeste at Sunday board one time) once said:

“How lucky I am to have something that makes saying goodbye so hard.”

It’s hard and bittersweet to say goodbye to FASA board, but I know it will be in good hands. Thank you to all of FASA and board for your support, love, and friendship this past year. I’m looking forward to seeing what the future board is scheming.

I am also excited to push Sound Bar next year at Battle return to general membership status (joke lang).

It’s been real FASA <3

2022-23 Co-External Chair

I am not Filipino.

I’m mixed Japanese and white (my dad’s name is Ted if you need a hint as to the degree of whiteness), with a slightly tan complexion. I have pronounced double eyelids, a somewhat tall nose, and decently thick lips. A lot of people throughout my life have told me that I’m racially ambiguous, and I’m prone to agree with them. I promise, I’m getting to the part where I talk about FASA.

I am Japanese. 

Since I was a kid, being Japanese was always my primary identity. The food I ate, the media I consumed, and even my small habits were all distinctly Japanese. But even though I always felt Japanese, I never really looked Japanese to the people whose validation I want the most: Japanese people. Every time I went back to Japan to visit family, the language barrier, culture, or food were no problem. The problem was that my identity as a Japanese person was always denied. I would get weird looks on public transportation, be spoken to in English at stores, and people were shocked when I spoke to them in Japanese. At every corner, I felt like no matter how hard fluent my Japanese was, how many Japanese books I read, how many references to Japanese variety TV I could muster up, I would never be enough.

I am enough. 

Weirdly enough, FASA was where I felt this. I joined FASA at the beginning of my freshman year by urging my roommate JC to take me to the mass meeting. My reasoning was that as a non-Filipino, I felt like going to the mass meeting alone would be a little odd but I was still nervous as hell. Every time I had to explain that I wasn’t Filipino despite what some people thought, I felt a twinge of fear that FASA would reject or isolate me. If my own people wouldn’t accept me, why would FASA? 

I am one of your 2022-2023 FASA Co-External chairs. 

As of writing this, I’ve completed a full year of service for FASA. How’d that happen? FASA is simultaneously a community that is proudly and unapologetically Filipino yet open to all, Filipino or not. As long as you love the culture and want to support FASA’s mission, the door is open. Once I realized that I was welcome and accepted in the community, I chose External as the best position for me to give back to the community that gave me a home on campus. 

I am a survivor (of being on FASA board).

External is a position with both a stressful set of external trip events you have to plan and high expectations to fill for proposing unique collabs and improving FASA’s relationship with dozens of other parties. There’s a high floor and an even higher ceiling to work under. There’s always another potential event, joint workshop, external PCN to go to that you won’t get around to. And that’s okay! There are infinitely many things to do, but only so much time. As External, you get what you need to get done and look towards things you want to do. The number of opportunities in turn becomes an asset, where you can do almost anything you want (within reason). During my tenure I reached out to and reconnected with Filipino student organizations across Michigan that FASA lost ties to and fostered friendships on campus too. When I saw so many FASA members performing in DVN, I’ll be honest, I felt like I really contributed to that. While I have so many regrets of failed collabs and missed external events, I know I gave so much to FASA through my position to FASA. Even with all this, though, I can never give back the same amount as FASA gave to me. This home and community I’ve found on campus really is priceless. 

You are the future of FASA.

To future members of Board and the two future external chairs - Good luck! It’s a hard job but it’s rewarding. You get to feel how much you’re contributing to the community and culture on campus, which is a great feeling that’s impossible to explain. FASA is the center, the beating heart of the community, and you will lead it to the future. For Externals specifically, you are the ones who will establish old ties and create new ones that make our organization part of a greater community. FASA and Filipino culture is something to be proud of and shared, and I trust that both of you will do excellent in this goal. 

You are my Co-External.

To Ashley - Having you as my Co-External chair for a year was amazing, and it still hasn’t even dawned on me that our tenure together is ending. There was laughter, frustration, and tears, but in the end there was us, and we survived. All those late nights on spreadsheets and itineraries was not for naught, and I believe we really made our mark. I’m looking forward to us together beyond the position that we got to know each other through. Thank you so much for being my Co-External!

You are my Board.

Our time is ending, but it was great. Ups and downs, highs and lows, it all let us get to know each other and create something great. FASA is better than it’s ever been, and it’s all thanks to you. Your support and productive criticism let me grow as a person, better than the one who went to a mass meeting just because he really enjoyed Filipino food he had at a grad party. Thank you all, and I wish you all the best in wherever life takes you!

Joining board has been one of the best last minute decisions I've ever made. (I submitted the application very, very late.) Due to lockdowns the previous year, I was very inactive in FASA. I think I went to Tinik on the Diag at the start of the school year and disappeared the following online semester. Naturally, I had some reservations before hitting "submit".

"I wasn't active enough." "I've never been in this type of leadership position before." "I hardly know anyone. I won't fit in."

I turned my application into a leap of faith, but it didn't have to be one.

From the very beginning my expectations were completely shattered. When I hear "board meeting" I usually imagine dry conversations with meaningless formalities. That could not be further from the truth with this board. Everyone is so supportive and caring about not just you as a board member, but you as a friend — as a human being. As cliché as it sounds, board is like a family, and I'm proud to have been a member of it.

As External Chair, I was able to both reconnect with FASA and develop new relationships with orgs all across the Midwest. Watching both internal and external events unfold has so fulfilling and always makes the effort put in to logistics worth it, especially now, where social interaction has never been restricted more.

I want to thank all of board for allowing me to have this opportunity and overall for being genuinely awesome people. This has been the best part about my sophomore year, and I now have a deeper appreciation for the work that happens behind the scenes. Seriously, you're all insane.

My time on board convinced me that I belong in FASA, and I'm very grateful for that.

tl;dr You know it's good when you look forward to a meeting.

Hullo FASA :)

It is I, your fellow bucket hat-wearing tiny person and External Chair, Christine. First and foremost, I would like to say thank you to everyone who I have interacted with in FASA- from a small “hello” to long 4am EST talks- I have learned from and felt welcome by every single one of you. I appreciate you all. Never have I ever felt so seen and heard as quickly as I did with FASA mass meetings, cultural workshops, dance practices, and one to three-hour board meetings. FASA truly and rapidly became a place I call home. Thank you for trusting and believing in me to be one of your 2020-21 External Chairs; it means the world.

It all started with a Battle in my home city Chicago

As some (lol actually almost everyone) already knows, I was lucky enough to begin my cultural awakening in high school as part of Lane Tech’s Filipino Club Kapamilya Habang Buhay (KHB). For the first time, I interacted with more than one other Filipino-American outside of my family, and I was enamored by the loudness and extraness of those I met. Through learning traditional Filipino dances, I gained the opportunity to be more connected with my culture early on and experience a staple midwestern Filipino-American event Battle of the Bamboo (BOTB). As I opened the show with a flick of the wrist and a few hops in between bamboo sticks, I felt pride for my Filipino heritage for the first time, and knew I wanted my college experience to be full of more dancing, more loudness, and more Filipino/Filipino/x-American culture. It was set in stone as I legit met FASA people during said Battle. They were eating lunch at the table next to where my club and I were feasting. Knowing that I would be attending UofM and that there was already an established Filipino org there, my friend sitting across from me called “them” over, intimidatingly tall, older college students- one being my future Kuya EJ and the other being one of my future FASA presidents, Matt, who is pictured above. Although that was a nerve-racking conversation for little ole high schooler Christine, it compelled me to seek out FASA at Festifall, and I will forever be grateful for the interaction. Battle will always hold a special place in my heart- as I returned to perform with my newfound FASA family, pictured below, and as it led me to an interest in External Chair.

My Battle homecoming with the former Freshie Fries

We an External Lineage huh

I would not be writing this specific testimonial today without the love and endless support of my external lineage Kuya AJ and Kuya Reggie and my lovely co-chair Lauren Escote. It seems so long ago my lineage sat me down at the top floor lounge in North Quad and told me all about the stressful and joyous wack times of External Chair right before COVID-19 kicked us out of campus. Eradicating my misbeliefs that I had to “know” people to perform the best job of External Chair and exciting me with the possibilities and connections that FASA members could strengthen and start with the position, I immediately knew that External Chair was a role I wanted to take on and challenge me. Reminiscing back to my time as FASA intern, I am grateful for the chance to experience not only how FASA board works but also the planning of FASA’s BOTB trip with Kuya Reggie. It gave me confidence while running that I knew I could handle at least some External Chair duties already. However, as we all know and despite all my expectations, a pandemic had other plans....

Being in a pandemic, almost every plan I had in mind before being elected was tossed away with a half court no-look shot bucketed >swish<. Here’s three things I’ve learned from it:

FASA’s very first collab with La Casa- the Latinx Org on campus!!

Don’t let certain barriers stop you from executing your vision, just run them over with a bulldozer (duh) or get a grappling hook, attach it to said barriers, and lock it onto a spaceship so they can fly into the void of outer space (yes I know this is random but it helps my following point). If you really want to see something happen during your time in your position, you have to find ways to ensure it can be developed. For instance, it was important to me to have FASA host a cultural shared history workshop with the Latinx org on campus. I wanted to grow FASA’s relationship with other orgs outside the AA&PI community and wanted to give members a chance to interact, meet new people, and learn from them, during a time where meeting new people was actually not advisable and just slightly dangerous in-person. With the help of a former external chair, my co, a few friends on La Casa board, and our wonderful guest faculty speakers, I’m happy to say that conversations and connections were still made even in a virtual setting.

Not only did I learn this tip from my external role, but I also observed this with other boardies. Shout-out FASA Social Chairs Jalene and Joson for an iconic, memorable, and enjoyable pandemic experience. As a more virtual member, I thank you for all the intentional work you invested into your events as it often was the highlight of my sometimes isolating sophomore year. Your ideas propelled FASA board into an excited and creative state-of-mind; I appreciate you both.

Asserting my dominance with >compassion<

Have compassion, give the benefit-of-the-doubt, and make your interactions with other orgs intentional. This job is often dependent on other people, so it’s basically a “must” to be flexible, adaptable, quick-on-your-feet at decision making, understanding, and firm in each interaction with other orgs, whether it be drafting an email to ask for materials for PCN or leading a collaborative meeting with four other orgs on a Zoom call. Don’t be afraid to be the first to reach out and take on an authoritative role during meetings. If you know what you need logistically, be sure to make that clear when asking for input. Also, understand that things happen and not everyone can meet the due date all the time, so always set deadlines much earlier than when you actually need them. You never know what is truly going on behind-the-scenes of someone’s life, so you must be patient and try to view it from their POV. Maybe they just don’t have the energy to respond when you would like, and that’s okay. Furthermore, when you don’t know how to respond to a message, ask other boardies! Sometimes you play the middle person and have to relay messages back and forth because you don’t have the info at the moment or you want others’ opinions on how to proceed. It is absolutely okay and encouraged to ask for help!!

FASA board is just one layer (or jacket) of responsibilities of many

Check-in on your fellow boardies and learn to recognize when they need help. You may not know it straight away, but sometimes other boardies can feel overwhelmed or stressed out juggling everything on top of being a FASA board member. Quick check-ins are especially needed when some people are better at hiding it than others. Thank you Kate Sullivan for always being a constant light, empathetic being, and socially-aware level headed person that I aspire to be. You have taught me the value of check-ins while Kuya AJ has taught me that, depending on the person, there are times you have to just say, “hey, I can do this task for you, don’t worry about it.” Since I know I am a board member first and chair second and the fact that a lot of my External Chair duties were heavily altered this school year, I had the opportunity to be social chair #1.5, meedja chair for a hot two seconds, and attend various meetings through other boardie positions that required zero expectation of me to be there LOL, and I would do it all again, especially, if it guaranteed that my fellow boardies felt supported and recognized for all that they did.

I am a little plant; watch me grow

Overall, as I became ingrained in FASA my freshmen year, attending almost every single event, participating in FASA dance, talking in a tiny dorm room until the sunrise with the former freshie fries (now sopht-serves), road-tripping to external events, and eventually working under board as a FASA intern and then External Chair, I was able to meet and spend time with a variety of people with a diverse set of backgrounds. Thus, when I became more of a virtual member towards the beginning of my sophomore year, I felt worried about feeling Fear of Missing Out (F.O.M.O.). However, this wasn't the case for most of my time on FASA board because I genuinely felt I grew somewhat closer to at least a few members.

My Co is a sweetiepie

Lauren Escote, oh how I am glad, lucky, and grateful to have had you as my co-chair. Your attention to detail, Google Calendar-based time management skills, and your cute doggos and amount of lovable squishmellows you own never cease to amaze me. The way you hold yourself in meetings and not stumble through your words like I sometimes do when taking point makes me proud to have you on my side. Thank you for deciding to take on the role of External Chair, in your third year of FASA board/intern, with me. I appreciate you and hope that the future FASA board can make you proud of your senior year.

Just a H.A.M. making my way downtown, waddling fast, faces past and I’m homebound

Since joining FASA and spending quality time with numerous beautiful, wonderfully kind, and brilliant people, I have been told- just by a few individuals- that I have 6 ft energy. I have learned that they meant I hold a certain presence in a room, which was honestly kind of surprising and flattering to me because I was always known simply as the nice, quiet, smart person before college. I feel like this would have never been possible without the safe, inclusive, and culturally cultivating environment FASA created for me. A rarity- I felt confident in myself and my abilities. I felt like I could grow into my full and authentic self by being with others that were basically 100% comfortable with belting out karaoke and being emotionally vulnerable in front of others. Janielle Calaunan, for example, is one of the people who encourage me to be my true self with her stylish fits and unapologetic love para sa kultura which are gorgeously translated during meetings as she isn’t afraid to speak her mind, even as a mere FASA intern. Another person who has demonstrated how much more fun it is when you open up is none other than Joshua Peralta, my Posse bud. He makes me so proud and honored to have been the one to introduce him to FASA, and I am ecstatic to see him grow within the org as Performance Chair. Josh, you have the ability to make everyone readily smile with your presence and friendly greetings; thank you for that and all the backflips.

TO THOSE THAT FELT LIKE THEY BARELY CONNECTED WITH FASA THIS SCHOOL YEAR: I see you, I hear you, and you are not forgotten. This year was especially tough for those that stuck with a completely virtual setting or for those that were a little more reserved with having in-person gatherings. I want you to know that each time I saw your face on Zoom or saw you liked a message or post, it brightened my day to know that you’re still around. You are always welcome in FASA no matter how much you don’t feel “Filipino enough,” and I hope that some messages in the Fun and Safe GroupMe at least brightened your day.

To AdBESTising committee: y’all already know - much love <3

To board + interns: You inspire me each and every day. Thank you for making Kaibigan Korners enjoyable and for joining mine. I loved seeing your faces. Truly a highlight of my day.

To those that were not mentioned directly: I am giving you a shout-out right now because you deserve one :)

Lastly, being a part of H.A.M., my lineage, the sopht-serves, and finally FASA board, I have learned so much and it is all thanks to the people I’ve met and the stories they’ve shared with me. I am happy to have been a part of fostering this community for others, and I can’t wait to see where FASA goes next year.

Good vibes always,

What’s up FASA? Wow, it’s hard to believe I’m almost done with being External Chair. It honestly feels like just a month since I promised to dedicate my time and energy into representing FASA as its External Chair, an E-board member, and a general member, and I promised to develop my own Filipino American identity along the way. Have I lived up to those promises?

An Opening Note from Mary Herran

Helloooo FASA! I bet you’re all excited to read this “itinerary” lol. It took me a while to brainstorm what I wanted to say for this testimonial but I finally decided that it was only fitting to format this as an itinerary. My final itinerary :(

Yes it’s sad and thinking about letting go of this position makes me cry, but I am sincerely very excited to hand this off to the next external, because this has been the best experience of my life. Not an exaggeration.

So here are my thoughts, tips and tricks about this amazing position. Come along, adings. We’re going on an external adventure!

What did I do as External?

Initially, I thought that external chair just entailed organizing logistics for trips like FACT, but this position does so much more than that. As external chair, I acted as the primary FASA representative and liaison with UAAO and MAFA. I basically was in charge of keeping FASA’s presence within the Midwest and the University, and creating new relationships with other organizations on campus. I did this with UAAO by attending bi-weekly programming meetings, going to other A/PIA events on campus when I can, and creating collaborative events and mixers with other A/PIA organizations in the University. With MAFA, I had monthly MAFA representative meetings via Google Hangouts, kept communication with other MAFA reps, and attended external events such as FACT and smaller events like PCNs and LRs.

As I said before, another responsibility of mine is to plan logistics for big MAFA trips such as FACT, Battle of the Bamboo, and MFAS, and small trips like the PCNs and LRs. For these trips, the most important logistics to plan are cars and housing. I always make sure that everyone is accounted for when it comes to rides and a place to sleep. Which brings me to another big point. When you plan these trips, you have to remember that you are responsible for everyone in FASA who attends. Make sure that everyone is accounted for and that they can be accountable for their actions, because we all represent UMich FASA and it’s important for us to keep a good impression wherever we go.

New Families and Friendships!

I say this all the time, but my absolute favorite part of being external chair was getting the opportunity to meet and network with so many people within the University of Michigan and the Midwest. In the summer after all of the elections are over, you become part of the new MAFA rep group. These people quickly become your family and I cannot express how exciting it is to be able to meet everyone in person and take your first ever external photo, and every event from that moment on you will always make an effort to take that photo. 

My first ever external pic at UToledo’s Summer Cedar Point trip!

External fam at FACT 2017!

Another family that I don’t want to neglect mentioning is my boardie family. Everyone on board this year has been so supportive of one another and I couldn’t pick another group of people to be able to work with. Other than my love for meeting new people, our board was a great driving force that kept me going throughout this year. I’m truly going to miss working with all of them when our term ends but I know that we’ll never lose that precious family bond.

Miscellaneous Tips and Tricks: An Item Checklist

Usually my itineraries include a packing checklist so here is a list of small pieces of advice about this position:

- You don’t have to go on every PCN trip that comes along. As external chair, you have the power to pick and choose which trips we go on. Exceptions are FACT, BOTB and MFAS (depending on location I guess lol) - Not every trip you plan is going to be perfect. Something completely unexpected might happen but that’s okay! Just be prepared to think and act quickly about it. - Communication can be hard sometimes. If you’re planning something and no one’s cooperating, don’t be afraid to be assertive! - Don’t be afraid to reach out to board, other externals, or even MAFA board if you’re struggling! - The workload for this position seems stressful, but it really isn’t. It is very inconsistent. So please don’t prioritize all of this work over your studies!! You have time to do it all in your free time. - Oh yeah, Rice Bowl is a thing. Since next year it’ll be hosted by us, be prepared with venues and plan thoroughly. Make sure to communicate with PASS and WIN THAT RICE BOWL!! - Remember to have fun! I know it can get stressful planning trips especially FACT but don’t forget to loosen up when you get there and have a good time!

Final Thoughts

Wow. I hope this wasn’t too long, but if it was, sorry lol. I didn’t think that this day would come, when I would write my testimonial for prospective external chairs to read before I hand off this position that I hold so close to heart. I hope this was at least a little helpful, but if it wasn’t, don’t be afraid to reach out to me anytime!

Lastly, I want to say good luck to my future externals. Cherish every moment of this board position!

Xoxo,

Mary <3