Flores de Mayo or Flowers of May is an annual Filipino festival held in honor of the Virgin Mary. It is widely observed all over the world particularly in areas where large Filipino communities subsist. In Hawaii, the tradition of offering flowers to the Blessed Virgin Mary lives on as FilCom – a non-profit organization that provides cultural, social and educational services to Filipinos in the area – spearheads the Flores de Mayo Festival this year. The organization has partnered with several other Filipino organizations and companies led once again by GMA International – the international business unit of Filipino broadcast giant GMA Network – for this weeklong festival. The celebration begins with a Santacruzan, where in beautiful ladies will parade together with their escorts, on May 5 and culminates with a fiesta and parade on May 11 in Waikiki. Kapuso stars Aljur Abrenica and Kris Bernal are set to grace the event at the Kapiolani Park, where almost 10,000 spectators are expected to attend. They will also participate in a meet and greet on May 11 giving their Filipino supporters in the area the chance to see Aljur and Kris up close and personal.
“We are proud to partner again with FilCom in celebrating the Flores de Mayo festival with our Kapuso viewers in Hawaii,” said GMA Vice President and Head of International Operations Joseph T. Francia. “We aim to create a venue not just for celebrating one of the most anticipated Pinoy festivals, but also for building a stronger connection to one’s roots especially among second generation Filipinos.”
GMA’s international channels GMA Pinoy TV and GMA Life TV, and radio stations DZBB and DWLS are widely available in Hawaii through the following carriers: Oceanic Time Warner Cable
(808-643-2337, www.oceanic.com), Hawaiian Telecom (www.hawaiiantel.com,
DirecTV 1-800-378-5191, www.directv. com) and Dish Network (1-877-456-2609,
www. dishnetwork. com).
For more details on the festival and channel subscription info, visit the GMA International website (www.gmanetwork.com/international), Facebook page (www.facebook.com/GMAPinoyTV) or Twitter page (www.twitter.com/GMAPinoyTV)
