My dear readers you wished you were in Canberra in June to experience all the religious and patriotic activities we participated in to celebrate the 110th anniversary of the Philippine Independence. Firstly I would like to let you know what is the significance of this day. It was on 12 June 1898 when the Filipino flag was first unfurled at the residence of Emilio Aguinaldo in Kawit, Cavite. He declared the Philippine's freedom from Spanish colonization.

On Sunday 8 June, we gathered at St Matthew's Church in Page for a Holy Mass celebrated by Archbishop Mark Coleridge and organized by Filcare and the MACE. He said that real freedom is our freedom from our earthly life when we finally join our Creator. The First Secretary Alex Go delivered a message from the Philippine Ambassador His Excellency Ernesto H De Leon who was in Darwin. His message was for us Filipinos in Australia not to forget our less fortunate kababayans in back home and thank the Lord for all the blessings we are enjoying in Australia.The Mass was followed by a merienda which the Archbishop was sorry to miss because he had to go back to the Cathedral for another . He said that he will miss the 'pancit' and told us to 'sige na' and 'salamat'. He asked why we Filipinos liked our pictures taken when we asked him to join us for photos.

The three (3) Filipino Australian Women Achievers awards were presented to Socorro Cue, Liz Garrett and I on 2 November 2007. The Philippine Ambassador to Australia, His Excellency Ernesto H de Leon said that these awards 'give witness to the lives of outstanding Filipino women migrants in the Australian Capital Territory (ACT) and the Monaro region and that FAWAA has provided a valuable lens through which we can all view the unfolding life stories of Filipina migrants in Australian society, the sacrifices and struggles that come with their every triumph.'

The dinner held at the University House of the Australian National University was attended by around 100 guests including friends of the nominees, politicians, academics and 2001 FAWAA awardees some of whom formed the organising committee: Noonee Doronila, Len Xyrakis, Becky Coggan, and Lydia Pattugalan. Otchie Cariaso from the Philippine Embassy and Lettie Thompson were also in the committee.

The panel of judges composed of Coral Fleming, Harriet Elvin, Craig Cormick, Liz Lang and Peter Camilleri said that their advice is that future nominees should ensure that they list all their achievements and qualifications to enable the panel of judges to assess each nominee's qualifications against all of the selection criteria. They also thanked the referees for writing referee reports at high standard to support their respected nominee. These year's awardees will form the task force for the next FAWAA awards in 5 years.