Kapamilya is a second family for Filipino Chapman students
Kapamilya executive board members attended a Friendship Games event on Oct. 14 at California State University, Fullerton. Top row (left to right): Jaden Trias, Morgan Mateo, Matt Son, Annikah Carpio, Tristan Roldan. Bottom row: Kayla Silva, Peyton Price, Jan Mejica, Julianne Gatchalian, Micaela Angeles. Photos courtesy of Micaela Angeles
When junior broadcast journalism and documentary major Czerena Bayle attended her first meeting of Kapamilya — Chapman’s Filipino-American student association — her freshman year, she felt very homesick that week, especially being away from her home all the way in Hawaii, where she lived in a tight-knit community.
But when she entered the room, she found that it was filled with Filipino students like her. All of the executive board members welcomed her. Bayle knew after that meeting that she had found a group that felt like a home away from home. Bayle is now Kapamilya’s president, leading the general and executive board meetings of the club.
“After that (first meeting), I knew I wanted to keep going to Kapamilya meetings, and I knew I wanted to be part of that community,” Bayle told The Panther.
Kapamilya promotes a sense of community among Chapman’s Filipino students and opportunities to get in touch with and celebrate their culture, as well as introduce Filipino culture to the rest of the Chapman community. The word, “kapamilya” comes from the Filipino language, Tagalog. “Pamilya” means family, while “kapamilya” more specifically refers to any people — blood relatives or not — who share a close bond.
The club hosted a special slate of activities throughout October in honor of Filipino American History Month, which recognizes the history of Filipino Americans and their contributions to society. Bayle says that after each club meeting, she wants the members to feel like they are a “kapamilya.”
“The main point of Kapamilya is to create a sense of community at the Chapman campus,” Bayle said. “What I hope a lot of my club members take away is that they will always have a safe space within Kapamilya, and they have a space where they can embrace the culture and learn, but they can also build their own little families.”
“The main point of Kapamilya is to create a sense of community at the Chapman campus. What I hope a lot of my club members take away is that they will always have a safe space within Kapamilya, and they have a space where they can embrace the culture and learn, but they can also build their own little families.”
“Kapamilya” hails from Tagalog, one of several languages spoken in the Philippines. The term is used to describe people who have a tight-knit bond, regardless of blood relation to each other.
The club meets on Wednesdays at the Argyros Forum in Room 119A from 9 p.m. to 10 p.m. During general club meetings, the cultural chair teaches a short lesson about an aspect of Filipino culture and/or history. Then, the club members engage in various activities that allow them to socialize and get to know each other better.
This year’s cultural chair, sophomore psychology major Micaela Angeles, typically creates lessons related to the activity the club is doing for that week. Two of the activities Angeles has curated are a lesson on Filipino music and Tagalog Jeopardy. She takes great pride in her leadership role in Kapamilya.
“My culture is a big part of why I am who I am.” Angeles told The Panther, “so it feels amazing to share that with others that may not know as much as I do, and it’s also really fun doing research on specific topics that others want to learn more about.”
“My culture is a big part of why I am who I am. So it feels amazing to share that with others that may not know as much as I do, and it’s also really fun doing research on specific topics that others want to learn more about.”
During the annual Friendship Games event, members can play games like ‘Up and Under.’ Aside from this event, club members can learn about Filipino culture and partake in some fun activities. This October, several activities revolved around the celebration of Filipino Heritage Month.
Kapamilya also participates in the Friendship Games every October in honor of Filipino American History Month. Filipino-American student clubs and organizations at schools on the West Coast come to California State University, Fullerton to get involved in friendly competitions.
Senior finance major Tristan Roldan serves as the club’s vice president and helps organize events with other Filipino-American groups at nearby schools. Kapamilya recently took a trip to Huntington Beach with Lubos P.A.S.O. (Philippines-American Student Organization) from California State University, Long Beach. Roldan’s favorite part of Kapamilya is its tight-knit community and knowing Filipino-American students like himself through the club.
“I feel like everybody that’s active has been able to get along with each other (and) get to know each other a lot,” Roldan said. “We’ve all gone through the same experiences as Filipino-American college students here at Chapman. Being in Kapamilya (has) helped a lot through college because I honestly don’t know what I would do in college without it because I feel I would have a different experience.”
“I feel like everybody that’s active has been able to get along with each other (and) get to know each other a lot. We’ve all gone through the same experiences as Filipino-American college students here at Chapman. Being in Kapamilya (has) helped a lot through college because I honestly don’t know what I would do in college without it because I feel I would have a different experience.”
While there are other clubs for Asian students at Chapman, Angeles believes that a club like Kapamilya is valuable because it highlights the culture of the Filipino-American community and gives a space for Filipino students to come together.
“We have a lot of other Asian cultural clubs, but I think it’s important to specifically have a Filipino club,” Angeles said. “Our club gives the space for those who want to learn more (about Filipino culture) and those who share the same culture to come together and learn more (about) and be proud of our own culture.”
