STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. — History will be made on Staten Island on Sunday, June 11, when the Filipino community celebrates under a unified banner for the first time as they commemorate the 125th anniversary of the country’s independence from Spanish rule.
The Philippine Independence Celebration of Staten Island (PICOSI), will kick off with a mass at noon at Sacred Heart R.C. Church in West Brighton celebrated by the Rev. Rhey Garcia, followed by musical performances, cultural dances and various vendors.
The Inaugural Philippine Independence Celebration of Staten Island will take place Sunday. (Courtesy of PICOSI)
Among the entertainers will be the Filipino Club of Susan Wagner High School, which will perform the folk dance known as “Tinikling.” It involves people clapping and sliding bamboo poles while one or more dancers rhythmically step over and in between them.
Members of Susan Wagner’s Filipino Club practice “Tinikling,” a traditional Philippine folk dance that involves rhythmically dancing over and in between bamboo poles as they are clapped together and against the floor, on Tuesday, June 6, 2023. (Staten Island Advance/Jason Paderon)
“It’s very exciting and special to be part of something like this,” said Heidi Andrade, senior captain of the Filipino Club of Susan Wagner. Despite not being of Filipino descent, Andrade joined the club after witnessing the dance firsthand during her freshman year. “At first I fell a lot, but after about six months I got the hang of it and it became really fun,’’ she said.
The event is expected to have more than 1,000 attendees from all over the the tri-state area.
The brainchild of Father Rhey, the event marks the coordination of 14 different Island-based organizations serving the 12,000 Filipinos in the community, according to PICOSI chairperson Ederlinda Miranda.
“When we first brought in the leaders, we told them you weren’t here to represent your organizations, you’re here to represent the people of Staten…
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