Filipino Street Fest returns June 18, 19

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This article was published 09/06/2022 (364 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The Manitoba Filipino Street Festival will return in full force this month and the festival committee is adding a series of festival features that everyone and families can enjoy.

The huge, two-day event will be June 18 and 19 at held at the Maples Community Centre Multiplex (434 Adsum Dr.) and its expansive fields.

“We are excited to be back at our unofficial festival home in the Maples, in the heart of Filipino community in Manitoba,” said Ley Navarro, chairman of the festival board.

The Filipino community loves to come together and celebrate life, culture and to have a good time. It’s certainly one of the reasons it is the largest street festival in Manitoba.

The Philippines is a fascinating and diverse country consisting of 7,461 Islands and 80 provinces with over 110 dialects. Tagalog and English are the common languages. However, English is the instructional language in the school system.

Over 85,000 Filipino call Manitoba home and we have residents from each of the 80 provinces of the Philippines.

“This year the community can’t wait to come out and meet friends and families and celebrate life the Filipino way,” Navarro added.

The festival showcases the unique ways different regions in the Philippines celebrate diversity, arts, rural lives and development.

Some of the exciting activities and features include over 100 cultural tents, featuring arts, costumes, produce and agriculture. There will be an ongoing, outdoor interactive chess match, using hug, three-foot pawns. Children can enjoy games, 12 bouncing castles and over 26 food trucks.

This year, in a gesture of inclusion, the festival board invited several non-Filipino communities to participate and perform in the celebrations.

Some of the highlights of the festival will take place on its centre stage, including the procession of the pageant contestants and queen representatives from participating organizations, the Winnipeg Sikaran Arnis Academy martial arts school and the Winnipeg Chinese Cultural Dance Group. The Winnipeg Bear Clan is partnering with the Filipino festival and will provide security during the two-day event.

A grand fireworks show will top-off the day at 10:30 pm on June 18.

The event will run from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. on June 18, and 10:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. on June 19. Contact Ley Navarro for information at 204-955-9562.