Brief History of the General MacArthur Town Fiesta Celebration in the USA

In 1966, the first General MacArthur town fiesta was celebrated in the residence of Mr. & Mrs. Valentin Cordero in Long Beach, California USA. Present in this first ever celebration were Mr. Felipe Cordero Sr., his daughter Flora Cordero Ty, Mr. & Mrs. Dominador N. Edles, Mr.& Mrs. Demetrio Bogtong, and a few friends. To their pioneering efforts, a salute and thanks to these people of General MacArthur is certainly and absolutely in order, especially to Mr. & Mrs. Valentin Cordero who hosted the hallmark occasion, that would later on turn out to be what it is today – a towering monument of love and affection to a native town and its Patron Saint – St. Joseph.

Then in 1967, the fiesta was held at the residence of Mr. & Mrs. Dominador N. Edles, with more MacArthur USA residents in attendance, like Mr. & Mrs. Herman Bautista (nee Grace Japzon), Mr. & Mrs. Tom Huton (nee Teresita Sumiguin), Mrs. Segundina Sumiguin Kent, Felicitas Edles Sison, with the above mentioned pioneering residents also attending.

Of course, this was followed by the fiesta in 1968, which was held in San Pedro at the Kent residence. It was during this celebration that, for the first time some honored guests were in attendance, namely: Mr. & Mrs. Santiago Busa, Mr. & Mrs. Nemesio Beato, Mr. & Mrs. Abelardo Dala, and Mr. & Mrs. Ramon Espina, who are from the neighboring town of Borongan, which is now the capital of Eastern Samar Philippines. By now, you probably have noticed that the people in attendance were growing, perhaps not by leaps and bounds, but growing just the same every passing year. The same thing may be said with the fiesta in 1969, with Mr. & Mrs. Demetrio Bogtong of San Diego hosting the fiesta as hermanos. And a sure sign of growth was seen in 1970, when the celebration went out-doors or into halls, because a family residence was becoming too small to accommodate the invited guests and their families and friends. With more than a hundred of guests, the fiesta was held at the El Dorado Park Hall in Long Beach, California, USA. It was here, for the first time, native folk dances, like the Tinikling, were performed by Felicitas Edles Sison (Platino) and Mr. Jaime Ty, and modern dances were exhibited by the Cordero sisters, Jane, Telly, Romy, and Gina, and another native folk dance, Lawiswis Cawayan, was performed by Virgie Bogtong, Pauline Bogtong, Rebecca Edles, and Jane Cordero. In addition, a chorus was performed with Lut Tizon on the piano. The 1970 fiesta sponsors were Mrs. Felicitas Edles Sison and Mr. Jaime Ty.

From then on, the fiesta celebration went from one hall to another and the programs of entertainment became bigger and bigger as far as the resources of the fiesta sponsors (hermanos and hermanas) could afford. The affair even became nationwide, with MacArthur USA residents from the San Francisco and Sacramento area of Northern California, San Diego-California, New Orleans- Louisiana, Cleveland-Ohio, Chicago-Illinois, Florida, Arizona, Wyoming, Washington, Boston- Massachusetts, Las Vegas- Nevada, New York, and etc., would come to attend the traditional nine consecutive days novena, and the two-day fiesta (the first day being held usually on the last Saturday of August with a Holy Mass and a dinner/dance that follows and the second day takes place on the following Sunday, where a fiesta meeting is held to discuss the plans for the next year’s fiesta). No other event is known to have brought the natives of MacArthur and their families, now residing in the USA, closer to each other and mold us into one big family. It is truly a "Family Reunion."

Then in 1976, the MacArthur USA residents, realizing the need for a formal organization to manage the celebration along with the families of the Hermanos, decided to hold a meeting which was held at the residence of Mr. & Mrs. Jaime Ty in Westminster, California, to organize the General MacArthur, Eastern Samar Residents Organization of USA, with the following first set of officers elected:

1976-1978 President – Raymund Bulford
Vice-President – Jesse Lanuevo
Treasurer – Jaime Ty
Secretary – Felicitas Edles Platino
Auditor – Serapion Baldo

Past presidents of GEMSRO USA 1976-present
1976-1978 – Raymund Bulford
1978-1980 – Engr. Carmelo del Fonzo
1980-1982 – Dr. Antonio Edles Sr.
1982-1984 – Engr. Nemesio Garcia
1984-1990 – Felicitas Edles Platino
1990-1992 – Mila del Fonzo Lorico
1992-1994 – Reggie Tamase
1994-Present – Felicitas Edles Platino

GEMSRO USA OFFICERS 2004 – 2008
Felicitas Edles Platino – President
Engr. Ernesto Jaramilla – Vice President
Dra. Simeona Gilber – Secretary
Honorata Cordero Jaramilla – Tresurer
Temerel Abucejo – Auditor
Felipe Cordero Jr. – Sgt. At arms
Anton Arganda – Sgt. At arms
Joseph Sajorda – Sgt. At arms