PHOTO ESSAY | Local Filipino Community Celebrates at The Palengke

by Ronnie Estoque

On Friday, Sept. 30, the reception hall of the Filipino Community of Seattle (FCS) filled up quickly with local community members eager to celebrate at "The Palengke," which translates to "marketplace." The event featured various performances, including dance from the FCS Kalahi Dance Company, drag by Atasha Manila, a karaoke contest, and line dancing to cap off the joyous occasion. Food and drinks were provided by FCS Specialty Cocktails, and food by Francis Franco, Grayseas Pies, and Beats & Eats. Retail vendors also sold their products during the event, which was filled with laughter, music, and plenty of smiles.

"An event like The Palengke at FCS is important to the local Filipino community, because firstly, it shows Filipino small businesses and non-Filipino businesses alike that we have a lot more resources in our community than we think," said Gracie Santos Guce, co-founder of The Palengke National and co-organizer for the event. "I draw inspiration from long-standing events, such as Pista sa Nayon and Pagdiriwang, but also newer events, such as the Foodie Fest at Stonehouse."

Guce helped organize The Palengke at Stonehouse in June with co-founder Jennifer Johnson, and was approached by FCS board member Francis Franco about the opportunity to host one at the FCS later in summer. They quickly began to organize to make the event a reality with the assistance of Bennyroyce Royon, who curated the art and entertainment component of the evening.

"We started planning this event 10 weeks ago, about the last week of July. We gave ourselves 10 weeks to plan and organize an event that usually takes four to six months to plan. We met twice a week for about 10 weeks to make this happen," Santos Guce said. "This event shows to the Filipino community, in an intergenerational way, that we can support our Filipino and non-Filipino small businesses at gatherings like this, making it fun, accessible, and beneficial not only to the Filipino Community Center, but the whole Filipino business community as a whole."

The following day, additional local food and retail vendors were invited for an indoor-outdoor market that also saw a strong crowd of attendees. Proceeds raised from the event will assist the FCS in expanding its programming capacity through the Small Business Resiliency Network.

Featured Image: The crowd focuses on the FCS Kalahi Dance Company performance. (Photo: Ronnie Estoque)