We hosted our 7th Annual Fly Pinays Leadership Summit this March, bringing together over a hundred of Pinays from the Bay Area, Las Vegas and Los Angeles area. We’re sharing key takeaways from the day including our workshop sessions – on topics like the art of project management, women’s health & wellness, learning therapeutic techniques to learn and love all parts of ourselves and discover our inner leader, and more!
Our last in-person Fly Pinays Summit happened in 2019 at Mission College in San José, California where we had 100 Pinay students and young professionals come together to learn about their culture & identity as Pinay women. In 2020, we transitioned our in-person Fly Pinays programming to a virtual format, hosting Puso-to-Puso (Heart-to-Heart) talks every quarter event to highlight Pinay creatives and spread awareness about mental health & toxic work-place hustle culture.
Our virtual events brought Pinays from all over the United States & world including the Philippines, Canada, and Florida. Although we missed our global Pinays, being in-person made it extra special to connect and chat with our attendees in-person.
Watch the recap of our 2023 Fly Pinays Summit below
Celebrating our theme of “Rooted, Rising & Resilient” with fly speakers!
We had a powerful line of speakers and performers that included:
- Keynote Speaker: Jessica Caloza, Chief of Staff for Attorney General Rob Bonta
- Panelists: Emily Ann Ramos, Mountain View City Councilmember, Leilani “Lei” Ramos, The Filipino Momcast, Jaria Jaug, Berryessa Schoolboard Trustee, Cecilia Lim, Kwento Comics Co-Founder, Anna Verzosa, Former Akbayan SJSU President
- Performers: Annamacan & Mia Rios
- DJ: DJ Jazzy
- Meditation Lead: Alyssa Saquiliayan
- Emcees: Ann Reginio & Carina Orozco
Additional Special Acknowledgements:
- Photographers/Production Crew: E. Aclan, Aljhecia Alolor & EJ
Rooting Ourselves in Knowledge
We offered 14 workshops to our attendees to learn about different topics such as:
- Ancestral Reclamation through Ethnoautobiography by Olivia Sawi & Joanna La Torre
- Bakla Baddies Reclaiming the Narrative by Celeste Francisco, Paula Mirando & Wednesday De Guzman of LEAD Filipino
- Be a Pinay Heroine: How To Unlock Your Superpower and Make A Difference with Kwento Comics by Meriden Angeles, Cecilia Lim, & Waverly Lim
- Decolonizing Parenting is a Revolutionary Act by Adrienne Hidalgo Esguerra
- Find Your Word: Words Have Energy, What’s Yours? by Elaine Dizon
- Know Self, Know Future: Building the life you want starts with knowing who you truly are by Maria Javier-Rosales
- Leading With Self: Therapeutic techniques for knowing–and loving–all parts of yourself and uncovering your inner leader by Katie Viernes & Melissa Villamejor
- Marking Territory: I AM PINAY by Emerald Rubio
- Pekiti Tirsia Kali and Self-Protection: I Deserve The Space I Inhabit by Olivia & Aaron Sawi
- Pursue Life Without Losing Your Identity to Comparison by Lynne Tugangui & Maryann Clark of The Filipino Momcast
- Remembering is a Political Act: How to Collect & Amplify Stories for Social Change by Alyssa Wigant & Noemi Teppang of Malaya South Bay
- The Art Of Project Management by Maricris Morrison
- Women’s Health & Wellness by Michelle Nelmida of LEAD Filipino
- 4 Mindsets WOC Need to Negotiate Anything by Claire Lumbang & Nadia De Ala
Want to learn more about our speakers & workshops?
Access Our Digital Program
Uplifting local organizations & Filipinx/a/o businesses
We invited several different community based organizations and businesses to share their art or services with our attendees:
- Clarize Yale Designs
- Kwento Comics
- Malaya South Bay
- Mie Makes
- Lola x Kenneth Collaboration
- Lola Weavers
- Maria Javier Coaching
- PAWIS
- Santa Clara County Voter of Registrar
- Yours Truly, Mary Anne
Thank you to all our sponsors who helped us put on our summit
Check out testimonials from our attendees!
“I felt renewed from being in community and found hope again for the future”
“Y’all did a wonderful job organizing and trying to compact a lot in one day. It’s the nature of our folks to be extra because of limited resources and time. It was a great center for connections, friendship, and aspirations. Thank you for everything!“
“Thank you so much for this opportunity to learn while making new friends. it was the biggest highlight so far living in the Bay Area for a month 💕 many moments I felt like crying during the summit cause I felt understood as a Pinay that I never knew others share those same struggles or emotions. Thank you 🙏”
We couldn’t have made this year’s summit happen without our Fly Pinays Committee!
From left to right starting with the top row: Paulette Imperial, Gray Gomez, LEAD Filipino Board Chair Meredith Curry Nunez, Sophia Williams, LEAD Filipino Board Vice Chair Dr. Jennifer Briscoe, LEAD Filipino Executive Director Dr. Angelica Cortez, Jamey Padojino, Emerald Rubio, Marnelli Canosa, Angela Pedrigal, Louise Ibuna, Mar Abat, Janice Saturnino, Camille Valerio, and Nicole Leoparte
Interested in getting involved?
