Ketchikan Kapamilya will hold its second two-week long Kapamilya Culture Camp for local youths from first through sixth grade starting Monday at Ketchikan High School.
Organizer Alma Manabat Parker, who is the Strengthening Cultural Unity Task Force coordinator at Ketchikan Wellness Coalition talked about the program with the Daily News in a phone interview on Thursday, describing its purpose, goals and activities.
This year’s camp will be a more extensive Filipino cultural enrichment class than the shorter workshops that Ketchikan Kapamilya holds each fall, Parker said.
According to information at tagalog.com, the definition of “kapamilya” is “family member.”
Kids in the Kapamilya Culture Camp perform for a crowd attending the showcase at Kayhi on June 19, 2024. Staff photo by Christopher Mullen
Each day of the Ketchikan Kapamilya Camp, students will be immersed in Filipino culture for four hours, with folk dancing, singing, language, arts and crafts, and stories, Parker said.
“We do more language class, like conversational language, we do music — the gongs, and learn a melody on the gongs.”
An added benefit for all of the students, she said, is that the older attendees will have the chance to serve as mentors and assistants for the younger kids.
For the older kids, “it adds to their resume when they do try to get a real job, next summer, possibly.”
A new component of the camp this year is that some of the classes are planned to be held at the Pioneer Home or at Rendezvous Senior Day Service’s Center to engage with the elders.
The camp will be held in both the Kayhi library and the Kayhi Commons, Parker said.
She noted that she has planned performances by the students at the “We Belong Block Party” hosted by Ketchikan Wellness Coalition and planned to be held downtown on July 12.
The Block Party will coincide with the culmination of the camp, which Parker said will be the perfect time for the camp attendees to show off what they’ve learned.
In 2024, Parker said that about 25 youths attended the camp.
This year, not only will snacks and beverages be supplied, but a full lunch for the kids will be as well.
“I know that food security has been a real fear for the summer when there’s really not a lot of options when school is out,” she said.
The food this year also will be a bit more diverse than last year, Parker added, with a wider range Filipino dishes and snacks offered.
Mika Zaguri, Lia Estroti, Andie Dimayuga, and Kaileen Rose Rosal demonstrate a game they learned during the Kapamilya Culture Camp showcase at Kayhi on June 19, 2024. Staff photo by Christopher Mullen
Parker said that last year’s camp offered scholarships for Filipino students, which encouraged a higher percentage of those kids to attend, although attendees of all ethnicities are welcome. The fee for the camp is very modest, so she noted that they expect robust attendance again.
“Some of the kids that I’ve noticed who are registering are Filipino-American kids who maybe were born in the United States, or they have one parent that’s Filipino and one parent that is Caucasian or another ethnic group,” Parker said. “So, just really self-identifying, and really finding those connections is a primary goal.”
She said that during language classes or lunchtime, for instance, a child might find a connection, thinking, “Oh, I hear my grandma say those kind of words, or eat those kind of foods, and just finding maybe that possible identity connection that sometimes when you’re in a school system, you don’t have those opportunities to really dedicate in a self-identity.”
It’s important too, she noted, to offer those opportunities in a camp program for the youngest children, as they can find connections with other kids who might have similar backgrounds and cultural experiences.
“They can develop relationships as well as connections,” Parker said. Referring to the Philippines, she said, “Our country is so diverse not in just the number of islands, but also the number of dialects and regions with our subcultures within this overarching Filipino culture, so it’s really important to know that, yes, we’re all from the Philippines, but we’re growing up in Alaska and we all still have these connections of having a sense of Filipino pride and cultural heritage and identity.”
Parker added that, “For those that are not Filipino that are attending, they can embrace and learn and maybe find comparisons to their own culture or find things that they like and want to incorporate maybe in their family home or household — and celebrate the differences. … It’s not necessarily like, ‘You’re so different,’ but we’re celebrating all the different things of how we do different things in our homes.”
She said, “I love the fact that just engaging in conversation and maybe boosting the confidence of people who maybe don’t like to talk about themselves or where they come from, and this small setting allows that space.”
The program is made possible with funding from the Ketchikan Community Foundation, Ketchikan Wellness Coalition and the Richard L. and Diane M. Block Foundation, Parker noted.
Parker emphasized that the Kapamilya Culture Camp is open to all youths from first grade through sixth grade, and that people can contact her at alma@ketchikanwellness.org with questions or to request financial help for the camp’s cost.
She also noted that students can participate in the camp even if they are only available for a portion of the two weeks. Students who plan to participate in the final dance performance would need to attend the entire program, however.
Parker recalled one non-Filipino camp student who attends many of the Ketchikan Kapamilya events and is now so enthused about Filipino culture that the student declared, “I feel I’m Filipino at heart!”
“The goal of (Kapamilya Camp) is to really know that we’re more similar than different,” Parker said.
