Day of Valor in San Francisco Esther Misa Chavez INQUIRER.net
April 15, 2009
San Francisco, April 9, 2009 - The Fall of Bataan was not lost nor forgotten 67 years after its surrender. Thousands of miles away in the city San Francisco, Mayor Gavin Newsom invited WWII veterans, their families, friends and the Filipino community to the beautiful historic city hall to honor and extol the brave men, Filipino and American soldiers who fought side by side and held fast Bataan and Corregidor until its inevitable fall. Their heroic efforts held back the rampaging onslaught of the Japanese Imperial Army on its way to conquering South East Asia via the Philippines. Allowing the Americans to reinforce its armed forces in Australia, regain back the Philippine islands and reverse the Japanese occupation. Thus changing altogether what might have been the rise of the Japanese empire in Asia in the middle of the 20th century.
Mayor Newsom, whose maternal grandfather fought in Bataan and survived the Death March but not the after effects of torture and imprisonment in Japan, presented a Certificate of Recognition to the veterans who was represented by Retired Sergeant Filemon Mordeno, President of the Filipino WWII Sons and Daughters, Inc. Each present WWII Veteran was also given a certificate of appreciation for their valor and contribution to freedom. The mayor also added that through out his years as mayor he has never seen a community and veterans more loyal to the American government as the Filipinos, who never lost faith that their fight for recognition will be granted.
Following the ceremonies at City Hall, attendees filed to the Veterans War Memorial building for a wreath laying ceremony before a WWII photo of the Capas Concentration Camp, and a one minute of silence in memory of those who passed on.
The entire ceremony San Francisco commemoration of the 67th anniversary of the Fall of Bataan on April 9 is featured on YouTube at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zOlvP1nfsA0
