06 | Community
Choir sings for charity
THE Good Shepherd Filipino Community church choir held its ?rst choral concert at the Blacktown Workers Club recently to kick off a CD production project to mark their 25th year while paying tribute to their late founder. The choir which sings regularly at the Good Shepherd Parish in Plumpton is setting its sights on launching a CD in 2014 following the wishes of its founder, Paul Mendoza or ‘Tito Paul’ as he is fondly remembered by choir members and many churchgoers. “Tito Paul and his wife Sandra Mendoza were the founders of the Good Shepherd Filipino Community Choir. We could not think of any other way to show him our appreciation but by paying tribute to him and the legacy he left behind,” said Marissa Velarde, choir event coordinator. The CD is envisioned to showcase the members’ talents and gift of music while raising funds to help poor children in the Philippines. Tito Paul was the main mover behind the choir and had inspired members to continue serving the church through the music ministry. The group started with around ?ve couples 24 years ago. It now has some 25 active members.
The Good Shepherd Filipino Community church choir
THE MESSAGE. BRINGING INTO FOCUS FILIPINO PRESENCE IN AUSTRALIA. www.kalatas.com.au | Ang Kalatas Australia | Vol. 3 No. 11 | August 2013
TREE PLANTING
Eleven-year-old Rachel Espinosa (at left) and her sister Julia, 12, of Canley Vale were among hundreds of Pinoys who took part in the annual National Tree Planting Day held around the state last month. The sisters joined groups and families in the tree-planting at the Lansvale Reserve in Lansvale, south-west of Sydney.
“One of Tito Paul’s dreams was for the Choir to record a CD, but for one reason or another it just never happened. The tribute which was one our fund raising events would pave the way for us to ful?l his dream of recording the CD,” she said. The Good Shepherd Filipino Community Choir had performed in the Opera House in the past and had sung in various community gatherings and occasions such as weddings have gone as far as Newcastle and Wollongong.
Other choir fundraising activities include Christmas carols and holding garage sales. The choir is now in the process of organising a scholarship program for a child in the Philippines on behalf of Paul Mendoza. They will also be sending goods such as clothes, books, school supplies and non-perishable items to some orphanages such as the Holy Cross and another organisation called the “Project Pearls”.
2013 Stawell Prize awarded to a Filipino-Australian GP
A YOUNG Filipino-Australian GP is making his mark in the Australian Health Care. Dr Lester Pepingco and his team is this year’s recipient of the Australian Medical Association Victoria Stawell Prize for the medical research in the evaluation of establishing an Acute Surgical Unit (ASU) as a novel model of care for patients with acute cholecystitis or gallbladder in?ammation. It was value added in the innovation of patient care using the same model for other kinds of surgery. This approach is also been adopted in hospitals in Asia. The AMA Victoria President stated that “the annual Stawell Prize is awarded for a piece of research “on a medical subject of clinical signi?cance... which is original, evidence-based and which is likely to advance knowledge, in?uence clinical practice and improve the health of Australians.” Lester grew up in Blacktown and moved to Castle Hill during his University years.