UPDATE SECTION


DECEMBER 2009
As 2009 winds down, it is time for a final update before we get into 2010. The Orosa extended family remains far flung with several now in the Arabian (some people call it Persian) Gulf states. But thanks to the internet, communications are instant and we can share news and photos. Technology sometimes enriches our lives.

Our clan continue to make their mark and here's just a couple of examples. Melissa "Mishi" Wilkinson of Sydney, Australia and her partners have started Coxswain Alliance, a consulting business. Check out their website at: http://www.coxswainalliance.com/index.html. Mishi is the daughter of Milette Orosa and the granddaughter of the late Jose Y. "Pepe" Orosa. On the other side of the globe, Mark Villarosa's career as a songwriter and musician is flourishing. His genre is "acoustic rock." Being a generation that grew up on Bill Haley and later Elvis, this chronicler must admit he had to look up the meaning of acoustic rock. His website is: http://www.markvillarosa.com/. Now why did I specifically target these two? It is to illustrate the far flung description because Mark is based in London, England. Mishi and Mark are second cousins once removed since Mark's father is Dan, son of the late Clemen Ylagan Villarosa who is the daughter of the late Simplicia Orosa Ylagan. Jose and Simplicia were siblings.

In Manila, Martin H. Orosa won 25,000 pesos (that's over $500 or a good monthly salary in the Philippines) for his "Fruity Makahiya Smoothie" in the Benefiber Beverage Contest. Note that Benefiber is a product marketed by Novartis, a Swiss drug company. We'll have to try Martin's smoothie sometime. Martin is the son of Mike C. Orosa, son of the late Augusto "Toto" Orosa. Martin are Mark above are third cousins.

Thank you for keeping in touch. May the coming year bring peace to our homeland. It has suffered much pain lately.

SEPTEMBER 2009
"The falling leaves drift by my window, the falling leaves of red and gold" goes the autumn song. They aren't red and gold yet here in southern Ohio but the yellows are starting. A great time of the year with some flowers still blooming, the weather requires neither heating or air conditioning and best for those in North America, the kids are back in school! I've mentioned Facebook at least twice but it bears repeating. There are now close to 300 Orosa descendants among my FB friends. An overwhelming majority of us are blood related with the rest by marriage. So please give Facebook a try.

The Orosas are coming, the Orosas are coming. To Cincinnati, that is. Chef Raoul Orosa of Dallas came to the Cincinnati area (suburb of West Chester) almost a year ago to start a restaurant called Rice Rocket. Recession or no, the business is doing well and now Raoul is opening a second and third restaurant, this time in downtown Cincinnati. One is Chicken Joy which opened this month. The other will be a sushi place opening this winter. While other businesses are consolidating, Raoul is expanding. As the Romans used to say "fortes fortuna adiuvat."

In the meantime, back in Dallas, Raoul's brother Eduardo aka Dindo, announced that their Dallas restaurant Aija was a Top Choice Award recipient. Top Choice is a Toronto based organization which conducts business surveys. Their website is: http://topchoiceawards.com/index.php?option=com_frontpage&Itemid=1.

Here is the press release: Top Choice Awards is pleased to announce that Aija is the 2009 Top Choice Award recipient in the category of American (New) Cuisine for Dallas, TX .The results were collected during the EnterVote.com 2008 International Restaurant, Nightlife, Hotel and Attraction Survey, which identified 2997 winners around the world. See the results online at: http://www.entervote.com/results/international/rnha-2008

GO DINDO and RAOUL!!

AUGUST 2009
FACEBOOK, FACEBOOK, FACEBOOK! I'm not a shill for FB but if you are interested in discovering what the younger generation of Orosas are saying, doing and thinking, you need to join FB and ask to be "friends" with them. Friends is the term FB uses for people who are connected. Friends could be your siblings or email acquaintances or spouse for that matter. A lot of the individual entries are mundane but FB allows us to keep track of our relatives. And sometimes it is more than we can handle due to the sheer volume. But it is extremely easy to peruse and delve more into each item as needed. Here's an example of what our pinsans, tiyos, tiyas and pamangkins are doing; a couple of Orosas are accomplished SCUBA divers and they show stunning pictures and videos of colorful reefs around the Philippines; there's the 91st birthday celebration of Lola Justita, wife of the late Vicente Banaag Orosa Jr. (a grandson of Agaton); 81st birthday of Dra. Elma Orosa Paraiso, youngest of Agaton's children; 88th birthday of Milagring Orosa Aliling, another of Agaton's grandchildren; family vacations in the Philippines and even the Greek island of Crete; professional quality pictures from resorts and urban scenes; oldies pictures showing when we were young and usually skinny; reunions; wedding videos (my favorite is one where the American groom makes "mano" towards his future father-in-law). There are countless more but this gives you an idea. I have constructed an Orosa Clan page within FB where members can post their stories and pictures. But so far I am doing most of the posting.

I have 250 Orosa friends, more than 200 direct blood relatives and the rest in-laws and even a scattering of Orosas from Spain, Argentina, Portugal, United States, etc. It would be absolutely impossible to contain all that are posted in one family website. It would be daunting to the webmaster. But with FB, it is up to the individual to post whatever they wish. Don't worry, with the exception of some four letter words, I have found nothing offensive. So, try FB, you might like it! You'll discover what our far flung Orosa clan is up to. Speaking of which, your chronicler has just returned from a three week "vacation" (aren't retired people always on vacation?) in Florida and here's the link to our pictures: http://picasaweb.google.com/Mario.Orosa/2009VacationWithAmandaCara#.

JUNE 2009
Great news about TJ Orosa, son of Bishop "Ka Dan" Orosa of the Iglesia ni Cristo. TJ has been selected by the Economic Research Institute of ASEAN and East Asia (ERIA) for their Next Leaders Program. This is a prestigious and prized honor and privilege for those selected. There are only 15 such students in the whole ASEAN region. ERIA’s goal in this scholarship is to prepare the next leaders for the ASEAN and East Asian region. In this regard, TJ shall undertake further studies as a graduate student in Japan’s National Graduate Institute for Policy Studies (GRIPS) in Tokyo, where he will start earning a graduate degree in economic regulation and public policy starting September 2009. After which, TJ shall serve in the ERIA to help in their main task of providing policy analyses and recommendations to regional policymakers. Prior to winning a spot on this program, TJ was working for Chief Justice Ricardo Puno. Let's all wish TJ luck and a safe journey to Tokyo.

Another piece of great news is the birth of Zachary Tigno Huber on May 25, 2009 in California. Zachary is the son of Mary Grace Tigno and Mike Huber. Mary Grace is the daughter of Alice Orosa and Roland Tigno. Alice is the daughter of the late Rafael and Fabiana Orosa. Zachary is the eleventh grandchild of Alice and Roland. Congratulations to all!

MAY 2009 Part II
This year our family has more than its share of sad events. Fifty nine year old Maynardo "Boy" Orosa Romey and his family perished in an automobile accident in Hacienda Heights, CA (LA area) May 9. His wife Lucilla and son Patrick were in the car with Maynardo and all were declared gone at the scene. Lucilla was 60 but their son was only 17. Especially tragic was the fact that Patrick was graduating from high school two weeks later. Maynardo's mother is the late Rita Orosa Romey who passed away only a couple of years ago at age 92. 

Clementina Ylagan "Clemen" Villarosa passed away May14 (Manila time) at the age of 89. Of our generation of Bauan Orosas descended from Simplicio, Clemen was the oldest. Clemen was not only a loving wife, mother, grandmother and great grandmother, she was an accomplished pianist as well. Well into her 80's, her deft hands still worked magic on the keyboard. She was preceded in death by her husband Guillermo "Emong" Villarosa and her son Leo. Her surviving children are Celia (Oscar Lambino), Cyd (Peter Cardasis), Chona and Dan (Lidia Moczydlowska). Like a lot of the Orosas, she experienced her own diaspora with Dan and his family in the U.K. and Cyd in the U.S. But Dan and his son Mark were able to visit last February. In January, Clemen's granddaughter Leeanne Lambino (daughter of Celia and Oscar) was married to Gonzalo "Niji" Nuguid in a grand memorable ceremony. There must have been a good reason these very happy events occurred when they did.

I had met several of his brothers (there are eight boys in the family) during a visit to California several years ago but prior to his sending me a note through Facebook, I've had no contact with Dr. Joel O. Paraiso. Joel is the son of Dr. Elma Orosa Paraiso, youngest daughter of Agaton Orosa. Both Joel and Tita Elma live in San Pablo City, Laguna. Incidentally Tita Elma just turned 80. Joel sent me a copy of the premier issue of Art in Site magazine. Joel was the featured artist with one of his pieces of the cover and pictures of his iron and copper works inside along with an extensive interview. Now "picture" this, how many artists do you know have a medical degree? Joel is a neurologist trained in the United States! I'm asking Joel to send digital pictures so we can feature his works in our website and in Facebook. Thank you Dr. Joel!! Check out Art In Site at http://www.artinsitemagazine.com/

We mentioned Philip O. Sarol's impending graduation previously. Well, here are some pictures: http://picasaweb.google.com/Mario.Orosa/PhilipSarolGraduation#  

MAY 2009 Part I
The action is all in Facebook! Since joining in January, I've got over 300 "friends" and of that number over 200 are Orosa descendants. We have a lot of active Orosas out there, posting pictures, videos, blogs and sometimes taking silly Facebook sponsored tests. If anyone really wants to know what the younger Orosas are up to, they need to join Facebook. We'll have genealogical information in the website but most of the personal (and more colorful) content is in FB. There are even links to bootlegged videos of the Pacquiao fight.

We are saddened by the passing of Eugene Canlas "Gene" Orosa, son of the late Jose Y. Orosa and Amparo Canlas. Gene passed away in Manila on April 25 at the age of 58.  He is survived by two sisters, Milette and Cecille, living in Sydney and New York respectively.

May is college graduation month in the United States. We are eagerly anticipating the graduation of Philip O. Sarol, son of Diana Orosa and Raymond Sarol. Grandparents are Naring and Melinda Orosa. Parents and grandparents are traveling from San Juan, Metro Manila to Milwaukee, WI for the occasion. Philip is getting his economics degree from Marquette University.

MARCH 2009
Here it is the middle of March already and I haven't got an update. Shame on me because it has been a very very busy year already. Let's go back to January which was a month of nuptials. Marie Claire R.S. Lim and Alexander Moore were married Jan. 12 at the Sanctuario de San Antonio. What is memorable about this couple is that although both are based in New York City, they choose to have their wedding in the Philippines and their U.S. friends and parents came all the way to Manila for this happy occasion. Marie Claire is the daughter of Lenore O. Raquel Santos who is in turn the daughter of the late Ella Orosa Raquel Santos. Leeanne V. Lambino and Gonzalo "Niji" Nuguid were married Jan. 17 also at the Sanctuario de San Antonio. Leeanne is the daughter of Celia Y. Villarosa whose mom is Clemen O. Villarosa. Clemen is our most senior citizen, 90 years young later this year. Our third couple is Jan Aliling and Ting Tanega. Sorry I don't have much details but I'll update when I receive more particulars.

The really surprising news is about Facebook. Vince Kelemen suggested this to me early January and before you know it, I jumped in with both feet. It was Vince's idea that we should utilize FB to get the Orosas together and how right he was. In less than three months, I've got nearly 200 Orosa relative FB friends and we've got an Orosa Clan Group. All of the newly married young people above are in FB and if you were friends with them you could enjoy their wedding pictures, tons of them! What is unique about FB is that the average age is much younger than my Orosa email list. I would like to combine my email list that I've used for our website announcements with my Orosa FB list. We would conservatively end up with at least 250 Orosas that we can communicate with via email. Watch for developments!

Joey Aliling, and his wife, Becky, have twin sons, Bamboo and Twig, born on 01/29/09 at Kaiser Permanente Hospital in Hayward, California.
Their names are:Jose-Liam Wuthrich Aliling, and Jose-Tate Wuthrich Aliling.
Joey's dad is Jose Julian O. Aliling aka Joe. The twins great grandmother is that indomitable lady Milagring Orosa Aliling, 88 years young and still working! Congratulations to all.

We do have some sad news to report. Jose S. "Joe" Orosa passed away last January 27. Full details of his obituary are in the Facebook Orosa page and in the 2009 Pictorial page. Jose "Pepe" Eleazar, husband of the late Fely O. Ylagan passed away Feb. 4 at the age of 82. Pepe was buried in Calaoag, Quezon which is the hometown of Fely's parents, Vicente Ylagan and Felisa Orosa.

DECEMBER 2008
Val and your chronicler made their annual trip to the Philippines this month for a very happy occasion, the 50th wedding anniversary of Mario's sister Charito and husband Jose Hilario aka Pepe. Their second son Jimmy posted a presentation on YouTube which you can view at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OyyGvO3mDe0. An album of pictures from the reception, plus Val and Mario's forays into the countryside is also available at http://picasaweb.google.com/Mario.Orosa/PhilippinesDec2008#. Our nephew Edwin O. Velez, who was the five year old ring bearer during the 1958 wedding, came with wife Merci all the way from Brisbane, Australia to help celebrate. Accompanying Edwin & Merci was their good friend and neighbor Lynn, on her first visit to the Philippines. Our 87 years young sister Angelina or Tita also came from Brisbane. Milette Orosa Uy and her son Mark came from Down Under too, from Sydney. The other long distance traveler was Pepe's sister Aida Hilario Monato, flying in from Florida. 

For Val & Mario's side trips we ventured north, to Ilocos Norte and Ilocos Sur, and south to Bohol. The pictures should speak for themselves. Our suggestion to anyone traveling to the Philippines, whether Balikbayan or tourist, is to get away from Manila and visit the provinces. They are not congested or polluted and God's bounty is evident wherever you go. There are unspoiled beaches, lush mountain greenery, azure seas teeming with coral and exotic fish, small barrios where the pace of life is not as frenetic as Manila where there is a seeming rush to go nowhere. In Laoag, Ilocos Norte the horse drawn calesa is still a popular form of transportation. In Bohol, some of the small rice fields still use the carabao, that ancient beast of burden. There are churches which date back to the 17th century. Our heritage is a lot more evident in the provinces than it is around Manila. After all a mall is a mall. As for fast food, I'll take the Ilocano favorite, pinakbet with bagnet.

Diana Orosa Sarol treated us to a lunch at Sonya's Garden in Tagaytay and this turned out to be a jewel of a place. Set in almost two hectares of manicured garden, nearly everything served in the restaurant is home grown, natural and organic. The salads are garnished with rose petals. Yes, they are edible. Don't miss Sonya's on your next trip, it is well worth the drive to Tagaytay. We then proceeded to Bauan, Batangas the ancestral home of our branch of Orosas. Mario's daughter Nadine was visiting from Dubai. U.S. born Nadine had never been to Bauan and neither had Australian born Mark.  They visited the resting place of their great grandmother Juliana Ylagan Orosa aka Lola Kanang. The ancestral home, now owned by the heirs of Rafael "Tio Paito" Orosa, has not been occupied for years and is for sale. It was originally bought by grandfather Simplicio and his wife Juliana back in 1898. If anyone is interested in property only a block from Batangas Bay, get in touch with me - mario.orosa@gmail.com - and we'll get you in contact with the right person.

We have a budding reporter and newscaster in Michelle H. Orosa, daughter of Mike and the late Mayette Hizon. Her lolo is none other than the late Augusto aka Toto. Check out her reports, one on a holiday Job Fair and the other on Credit Cards. Congratulations Michelle and keep it up. First reported back in August, Michelle's brother Martin Orosa continues to write regularly for Cook Magazine. Check out his articles in Cook Magazine.

We have received many emails from Orosas everywhere - Spain, Mexico, from Cuban Americans, but for the first time we heard from a Portuguese. Since the Spanish Orosas come from the Galicia region, there is a good chance the Portuguese and Spanish Orosas have a common heritage. Welcome to the world wide Orosa family.

That is all for now, here is wishing all our website visitors the Happiest and Healthiest of the New Year. Please visit our website regularly. Check out our 2008 Pictorial.

AUGUST 2008
OK, September is less than a day away but it is still the last day of August. In the U.S., tomorrow is Labor Day, traditionally the end of summer. So, here's what happened this summer, events that have occurred since our last update that merits special mention.

*Martin H. Orosa, son of Mike and grandson of the late Augusto aka Toto Orosa, is a budding chef. He wrote a couple of articles which were published in Cook Magazine. His subject is that perennial favorite of people in a hurry, college students and budget watchers - noodles! Check it out at Martin Orosa. Another son of Augusto is Mel C. Orosa, a protean individual, writer and musician among others. Dr. Peter Q. Teodoro of Discover Bay, CA wrote an article complimenting Mel's achievements. Read it at Attitude Has a Role to Play in Music.

*The next item is actually a year old but I didn't receive copies of the news until earlier this summer. The Philippine team at the World Championship of Performing Arts (WCOPA) garnered top honors at the competition a year ago. The National Director for WCOPA's Team Philippines is none other than Carlo A. Orosa, son of Annie and the late Rafael N. Orosa Jr. Carlo's grandfather is Rafael Y. Orosa.
See all of Carlo's links.

*A great honor was bestowed on Jose Martin "Tito" Aliling by the University of the Philippines Alumni Association. He was named most distinguished alumnus for Responsible Corporate Governance. There is a picture of him and his proud mother Milagring O. Aliling at: http://picasaweb.google.com/Mario.Orosa/2008Pictorial. Tito obtained his BSCE in 1969 and is principal of Jose Aliling Associates.

JUNE 2008
We were saddened to hear about the passing of Anneliese "Annie" Zink Orosa in May. She was the wife of Sixto "Coy" Orosa III and mother of Sixto IV, Annedithe and Anneleah. Annie was Spanish born but had been living in California to be near her children and grandchildren. She had fourteen grandchildren who will surely miss their abuela.

Elsa Kho Orosa, wife of Fermin "Mitoy" Orosa, was featured in the Ayala website. Elsa is a Cebuana and together with Mitoy owns the "Cebu Cart" at the Ayala mall which sells exclusively Cebu made products. Check it out at: http://www.atayala.com/philippine_lifestyle.php#Philippine_Living#1799

Received a gripping World War II story from Eugene "Gene" Jurado. He is the grandson of Olympia Orosa Martinez, one of the younger sisters of Agaton Orosa of Taal. The story is mostly about Gene's father Maj. Enrique Jurado, a graduate of the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis. Gene's mother is Leonarda "Danday" Martinez Jurado, 95 years young and retired in Ottawa, Canada. Most of us have no memories of WWII or the occupation and subsequent generations probably only have a vague knowledge from what little history is taught in schools. The story is a must read. Check it out at: Wartime Patrol, 1941-43. Sadly, Enrique Jurado did not survive the war.

She is the family historian of the Basilio/Agaton side, composer of the Luwa, a traditional ode to the Virgin Mother recited during the Taal town fiesta, and an expert Tagalista. Very few can equal her in writing or speaking real Tagalog, the language of our forefathers. She is still working with no thought of retirement. She is none other than Milagring Orosa Aliling, who celebrated her 88th birthday this month. Check out the pictures at: http://picasaweb.google.com/Mario.Orosa/MilagringOAlilingS88thBirthday

MAY 2008
Blame it on advancing age and slow brain cell deterioration. Our website was out for a couple of weeks when the orosa.org domain expired without my knowledge. Domain names are inexpensive and I usually pay several years in advance. Well, when it was paid the last time, my email had a different address. So the notice for renewal never got my attention. Fortunately our provider - nameregistrars.net - has a grace period. Otherwise someone could have hijacked it and asked for "ransom". Anyway domain has been prepaid for the next five years and all is well. The only issue is when anyone puts orosa on a search engine, orosa.org doesn't show up on top like it has in the past. Have patience.

APRIL 2008
I just can't believe there hasn't been an update in four months. Mea culpa. Much has already happened so we'll just touch some highlights. For a few pictures, go to  2008 Early Pictures on the site map. Spend some time on the Site Map as it has been streamlined. It had ballooned to nearly 200 links with quite a handful that weren't Orosa related like genealogical and Philippine picture sites. These have been removed along with some redundancies. For individuals such as yours truly and several others with multiple links, there is now only one link (per person) to a different page that includes all the links. We have also added a few additional links. Thanks to cousins Alice O. Tigno (Elk Grove, CA) and Temmy Ylagan (Vancouver, Canada) for sending information, which have been added.

Congratulations to Morris C. Orosa, middle son of the late Augusto "Toto" Orosa. Morris was sent by the Philippine government for a two week training in San Diego, CA. He then received a promotion on his return. While in San Diego he was able to meet up with Navy veteran Dan P. Orosa who showed him some of San Diego's sites. In this writer's opinion, San Diego is one of the most attractive in the USA and Morris got an appreciation of that. Speaking of San Diego, it has one of the original missions built by the Franciscan Friars (OFM). But did you know that the Franciscans were the builders of the original Quiapo Church more than 100 years earlier?

Kudos to to the Evaristo "Evar" Orosa family - daughter Christine "Tin Tin" Recto, son Fermin "Mitoy" Orosa, and Evar's 100 year old mother-in-law Paz Henson. Their company Henson Clothing was honored on the 50th anniversary of Shoe Mart for being an SM supplier for three generations. No mean feat, SM has two of the world's largest malls in terms of square meters. Congratulations. Additionally they bagged the account for McDonald's uniforms. So every time you order a Big Mac, look at the staff uniforms, they were made by our aforementioned cousins. Oh, we're not done yet. They also make the cabin attendant uniforms Air Philippines. Way to go!! Check out Mitoy's historical account: Generations of Learning.

We had sad news earlier on Feb. 13 when Leo Ylagan Villarosa passed away unexpectedly at the age of 58. His mom is 88 years young Clemen Ylagan Villarosa. It is not too late to say prayers for Leo and Clemen. Leo didn't have any children.  

DECEMBER 2007
The Dec. 1 Orosa reunion at the Quezon City Sports Club in Quezon City is history. We had 160 attendees, a record for an Orosa reunion! Check out pictures & some highlights at the following links: http://picasaweb.google.com/Mario.Orosa/OrosaReunion 
http://orosa.org/Reunion%20Opening%20Prayer%2012.01.07.htm
http://pattikins.multiply.com/photos/album/145/The_Grand_Orosa_Reunion
http://vgestee.multiply.com/photos/album/32/The_Orosa_Reunion._December_1_2007
We were all pleased to have representatives from the Agaton, Olympia and Isabel side, these three being the children of Basilio (Taal branch). On the Simplicio side (Bauan branch), we had representatives from Simplicia, Vicente, Sixto, Felisa, Nicolas and Rafael. We had the family of Ka Dan Orosa representing the Camarines Sur Orosas. Some remarked that we had relatives they never knew existed. That's what family reunions are for!

There is a long, long list of people I need to thank, without whose efforts and support we couldn't have pulled the reunion off. Let's start with my sister Charito O. Hilario and her family - husband Pepe, sons Jimmy & Frankie and daughters-in-law Cecile and Nancy. Charito did a lot of the communicating with the Simplicio, via phone and text. Her family manned the registration desk for attendees and collecting donations. Next is Mitoy H. Orosa, who did a similar function for the Agaton, Olympia and Isabel side. Charito and Mitoy must've made dozens of texts and calls. I'd like to thank my sister-in-law Lourdes Orosa (Mrs. Augusto aka Toto)her son Morris and daughter-in-law Grace for making all the arrangements with the Quezon City Sports Club with Lou guaranteeing the expense with a 50% deposit. At every turn there was always support and encouragement from Ray Orosa, Elaine del Rosario Lim and Evelyn del Rosario Garcia. Ray even made sure we had a backup venue when we encountered difficulty getting a reservation for the number we had. (Mitoy signed up another backup also, so we were covered!) There is the indomitable Milagring Orosa Aliling, the Tagalog poet laureate of the Orosa clan. She delivered the opening welcome speech. Taking after her mother Milagring, Mimi A. Lapus composed the invocation and prayer which was read by Lynn Sunico. Let's not forget the impromptu singers, great sports who entertained our reunion. There's Estee Aceron, great granddaughter of Isabel and Vice-Governor of Mindoro, stage actor and singer Carlo A. Orosa, Morris Orosa and Tito Orosa. We had an M.C. scheduled but when that didn't happen, Diana Orosa Sarol stepped into the breach.   

TAAL TOWN FIESTA:
I was privileged to be a guest of Milagring O. Aliling at her guest house on the shores on Lake Taal in barrio San Nicolas. Later on we were guests of Atty. & Professor "Girlie" Noche in the town proper. There is a tradition among our ancestors in Batangas called "luwa". A poem is written in Tagalog, in classical form, and recited by a young person. Milagring composed a luwa in commemoration of Our Lady of Caysasay and it was proclaimed by Ms. Ningning Orlina, a student at the University of the Philippines. Ningning performed in front of the guests at Atty. Noche's party. The luwa will be published in our website, as soon as I can complete the translation. I thought I knew Tagalog but Milagring's words are deep.

NOVEMBER 2007
Conratulations to Fr. Agustin "Jojo" Orosa, who I mentioned in the August 2007 update below. Fr. Jojo was named Volunteer of the Month by the NACC or National Association of Catholic Chaplains. Check out the link http://www.nacc.org/volunteers/vom_novdec2007_ao.asp for more details.

OCTOBER 2007
At the suggestion of a few cousins, we have decided to organize an Orosa reunion. It has been a while since the last one, over five years. It will be at the same venue as before, the Quezon City Sports Club on E. Rodriguez Ave. in Quezon City. The date is Saturday Dec. 1st. starting at 11:00 a.m. Charito O. Hilario has been spearheading the phone communications. Of course most of the attendees will be Metro Manila based Orosa descendants. But we hope there will be a few overseas Orosas attending, those on vacation or visiting for the holidays. With out clan scattered far and wide throughout the planet, a world wide reunion is still a dream at this point. We hope to have lots of pictures.

One of surviving children of Agaton Orosa celebrated his birthday at the end of Oct. That is none other than Evaristo "Evar" Orosa, 86 years young. I asked him once what was his secret. He said "Absolut!" As in Absolut vodka, made in Sweden. Of course he was kidding me, or maybe he wasn't. Come to think of it, the Swedes have one of the longest life expectancy. Happy Birthday, Evar!!!

AUGUST 2007
I regret that this announcement is quite late but I only recently found out about it. Agustin "Tata Gustin" Orosa or Cabusao, Camarines Sur passed away last December. Tata Gustin was in his 90's. One of Tata Gustin's sons is Fr. Agustin Orosa Jr. or Fr. Jojo. Fr. Jojo is a priest with the Order of St. Camillus, who serve hospitals and other institutions as chaplains. He is presently working in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. I had the pleasure and privilege of corresponding with Tata Gustin a few years ago. He always replied back to my letters as soon as he received them, writing in beautiful long hand, a fading art. In one of his letters, he asked me to address him as Tata or grandfather. Our Camarines brethren use Tata instead of Lolo to address grandfathers. Tata Gustin is uncle to Ka Dan Orosa, and great uncle to Atty. T.J. Orosa.

Another sad announcement is the passing of Josefina "Jopie" Macatangay of Sydney, Australia after a long bout with cancer. Jopie is our relative on the Agoncillo side. Our contact was only through email but Jopie kindly provided me with updates on the Macatangay and Agoncillo branches. Please remember Tata Gustin and Jopie in your prayers.

JULY 2007
We are saddened by he passing of Ella Orosa Raquel-Santos, whom I mentioned a couple of paragraphs below after her elder sister Rita passed away back in May. Tita Ely, as we called her, was 91. Both Rita and Tita Ely are the daughters of Emeteria "Teyang" Sison, the second wife of Agaton Orosa. Tita Ely was a lawyer, one of the first women lawyers in the Philippines. She hurdled the bar exams back in the 1930's. Between Rita and Tita Ely, there were eight children (four each), fifteen grandchildren and I am positive quite a few great grandchildren. We are again thankful that our lives were blessed by these two indomitable Orosa women.

JUNE 2007
Can't believe summer is upon us although we've had summer like weather this spring. We several events to report, mostly happy but one sad. Let's start in order; On May 19, Eliana Meili Drier, daughter of Cecille Orosa, became a Bat Mitzvah at Temple Beth-El in Monroe, NY. Eliana had to study Hebrew to read the Torah in the original. To my knowledge, this is a first for an Orosa descendant. Check out her pictures and narrative at Eliana's Bat Mitzvah. Be sure to read the presentation to Eliana written by Glorya Covel Smith.

On May 21, Rita Orosa Romey passed away at the age of 92. She was the eldest surviving daughter of Agaton Orosa and his second wife Emeteria Sison. Rita's sister Ella (Tita Ely) O. Raquel-Santos survives, along with half siblings Evaristo (Evar) Orosa and Elma O. Paraiso. The Orosas are certainly blessed with long and fruitful lives. Let us thank the Lord!

There's have been numerous emails from Orosa relatives, mostly from the Basilio & Agaton side, detailing additions and corrections. Thanks to all of you who have taken the trouble to write. Thanks Patricia Valdez, Cynthia S. Ibañez, Christinne Orosa, Jay-Jay Sunico, Grace Zamora, Dan P. Orosa and Jennifer V. Lapa (Agoncillo side). A couple of months ago, I heard from a student at the University of Washington in Seattle. He had come across the names of Maria Y. and Jose Y. Orosa while doing research on Filipinos who had graduated from UW. There was a dearth of information and I was quite happy to provide him with data on whom we called Tia Mary and Tio Pepe. The Pensionado Story about Filipino teenagers who were sent to American starting in 1903 has gotten quite a few responses.

There was a very nice article about Aija restaurant in Dallas written by Joanne Rae M. Ramirez of the Philippine Star on June 26. With Ms. Ramirez permission, we are reprinting the article. Go to the following link: Aija Restaurant review. There is also an article in the July issue of Filipinas magazine entitled "Mainstreaming in Dallas." Go to the Filipinas magazine website at: www.filipinasmag.com. Note that you have to register to access magazine contents. It is this writer's opinion that Filipinas magazine is the best among scores of publications targeted to Filipino Americans.

APRIL 2007
Good news abounds but where do we start? How about chronologically? Congratulations are in order of course. Three months ago, we reported that Theoben Jordan "TJ" Orosa took the bar exams last September. Well, many months later, the results are finally out. We can start calling him Attorney TJ Orosa. Well done, TJ. TJ continues to work for Supreme Court Chief Justice Reynato S. Puno. Additionally, TJ is also looking into a teaching position at the Department of Political Science in the University of the Philippines. We look forward to hearing more about TJ in the future.

On February 17, Jocelyn Orosa Naylor and Maryś Kołodziej solemnized their union at St. Peter's Episcopal Church in Peebles, Scotland, south of Edinburgh. It was a double celebration, the other event being the christening of their son Carlo. Jocelyn's brother Ross O. Naylor performed double duty, being the wedding Best Man and Godfather to Carlo. Jocelyn, Ross and sister Melanie are the great grandchildren of physicians Sixto Y. and Severina L. Orosa. (Dr. Sixto wrote the classic "Sulu Archipelago and Its People" over 80 years ago.) Their mom is Diding Orosa Reardon. Check out pictures of the happy occasion at: http://triptych-design.co.uk/maryswedding/Welcome.html. You will love their wedding attire.

On March 6, Philippine Star columnist Rosalinda L. Orosa won the first place award for the first Premio de Periodismo Quijano de Manila organized by Instituto Cervantes and co-sponsored by the Spanish Embassy and Instituto Cervantes. Jose (Pepe) Rodriguez the director of Instituto Cervantes presented the award in its library followed by a sumptuous Spanish lunch at Casino Espanol. Her entry entitled "Treatise for Spanish" won P75,000. Another award added to Rosalinda's already long list. By the way, Rosalinda is Jocelyn's great aunt. Señor Pepe Rodriquez wrote "Cronicas", an affectionate account of his years in the Philippines.

Next month, May 19 to be exact, Eliana Meili Drier will become Bat Mitzvah (בת מצוה) at Temple Beth-El in Monroe, NY. Eliana's mom is Cecille, pictured below. We hope to report later with lots of pictures.

Hope this rash of great news continues. Thank you for your constant updates which I am always happy to report.

MARCH 2007
Last month, Fermin "Mitoy" Orosa and his father Atty. Evaristo or "Evar" visited with Ka Dan Orosa, a Bishop of the Iglesia ni Kristo. Ka Dan is from the Camarines Orosas. Prior to World War II, there was contact between the Camarines and Bauan Orosas but unfortunately this was interrupted by the war and resumed. For decades and decades there was no contact. But lately we have been in touch and we hope to keep doing so without any further interruption. Ka Dan is the proud father of TJ Orosa, who was mentioned a couple of paragraphs below in the January update. In Mitoy's own words, "it was an inspiring meeting." Their picture is below.

During a trip to New York the middle of Feb., your chronicler had the pleasure of meeting David Jones, husband of Cecille Orosa (daughter of Jose Y. & Amparo). David and Cecille were married last July and live north of New York City. I was in Manhattan to see daughter Nadine off. She has joined the Dubai Industrial Group as Senior VP and is based in Dubai, UAE along with thousands of expatriates. She tells me there is even a Jollibee in Dubai to cater to the Filipinos there. Congratulations and good luck, Nadine, you make father proud.


Mitoy, Ka Dan & Evar


David & Cecille Jones


David, Cecille, Mario & Nadine Orosa


Nadine & Mario Orosa

FEBRUARY 2007
A Winner! "After considering more than eighty entries the judges reached a unanimous decision for first place. Snow in the desert by Caro Fletcher has won first prize of a trip to the Larapinta Trail in the Northern Territory courtesy of World Expeditions and Northern Territory Tourism." Caro Fletcher is none other than Carissa Uy Fletcher, daughter of Milette Orosa and Ernest Uy of Sydney. Congratulations to "Caro." We'll have to get an advance copy of her article for the enjoyment of our family and visitors. That unanimous decision is impressive! Here's the link: http://adventurepublishing.com.au/writwinner.html The article will be available in the launch issue of the Adventure Journal that goes on sale in April. But we don't all have access to an Australian bookstore or newstand!

JANUARY 2007
The year is young yet and we already have several Orosa news items. Theoben Jordan "TJ" Orosa graduated from Ateneo Law School in 2006. Although still waiting for the results of the bar exam (which we're sure he will pass with flying colors), he has been appointed to the legal staff of the new Chief Justice Reynato Puno starting Feb. 1st. This is a prestigious appointment, there are no others chosen from his class. To refresh your memory, TJ is from the Camarines Orosas, son of Ka Dan Orosa, Bishop with Iglesia Ni Kristo.

After several years without visiting, Conrado "Dado" Ilagan and his wife Elena visited Manila. They have been residing in Vancouver, BC (Canada). Dado just turned 80, joining our elite group of seniors. There was a "mini-reunion" among several cousins. Check out the 2006 Holiday Pictures for a couple of pictures.

DECEMBER 2006
From Cincinnati, Ohio, here's wishing you all a very Merry Christmas and prosperous 2007. Its been a great year, with the most communications and updates from you. Thank you! Let's first start off with some notable accomplishments. Mark Orosa Uy of Sydney, Australia is the son of Ernest & Milette Uy. Milette is the daughter of Jose Y. & Amparo Orosa. 65,000 Year 12 students from New South Wales, Australia took the Higher School Certificate (HSC) exam for 2006. With a final grade of 99.3%, Mark is in the 99th percentile and made it to the Premier's top all-around HSC Honour Roll. He also received a congratulatory call from the Philippine Consul General Maria T. Lazaro although Mark is Australian born and bred. Congratulations Mark. He will be off to International Relations/Law School.

We now have a Spanish page. It is only one page but with the number of Spanish and Latin American Orosas checking our website, it will continue to grow. Check it out at Pagina Espańol.

Our Pensionado Story caught the attention of a professor of Asian Studies at George Washington University. Dr. S. McHale was kind enough to provide more information on additional sources and research material. This largely unheralded and sometimes misunderstood program lasting only a few years in the early 1900's, supplied scores of future Philippine leaders. 

NOVEMBER 2006 part 2
We are not usually into calling attention to obituaries of non-family members but I believe this person, a friend to several Orosas, merits attention. Last week Maximo or "Max" Soliven passed away at the age of 77. Max was a titan of Philippine journalism and even though he wrote in Manila and I live in Cincinnati, Ohio, I read his columns regularly thanks to the internet. Our cousin Rosalinda wrote a glowing tribute. Go to this link; Rosalinda on Max Soliven

NOVEMBER 2006 part 1
Before we get started, please wish a very Happy and Healthy Birthday to two sisters, Helen Orosa del Rosario and Rosalinda L. "Baby" Orosa who are celebrating their birthdays on Nov. 25 and Nov. 30 respectively. Helen will be 87 and Rosalinda turning 80. These two cousins are both authors and for those of us who contemplate retiring at 65 or so (I retired at 61), just think of Rosalinda. She writes a twice weekly column for the Philippine Star, Sundry Strokes on Wednesdays and Table Talk on Saturdays. Log on to www.philstar.com to check out her columns. Our website contains some of her past columns. But to check her current columns, you need to peruse the Philippine Star website quickly since they do not archive beyond a few days. Wish we could store all of her writings but our server space is limited. Thank you Helen and Rosalinda. They have treated me with kindness and generosity, providing me with copies of their books.

Here is another interesting story resulting from people who have visited our website. In the biography that I wrote of my father Vicente Y. Orosa, I mentioned that his promotion papers were signed by an American named Hammond Buck. This was shortly before Vicente left for Cincinnati, Ohio as a pensionado in 1906. A grand nephew of Mr. Buck was researching his life and it turns out that Mr. Buck's life and the Orosas were intertwined. Mr. Buck came to the Philippines as a soldier before becoming a teacher. He married a Filipina named Dolores Angeles, whose sister Antonia married Paulino Orosa, son of Basilio Orosa and a cousin to our grandfather Simplicio. Mr. Buck prospered and had estates in Cavite. Parts of the original estate were later sold to some of Basilio's descendants. One of Paulino's sons, Ramon Angeles Orosa, married Mr. Buck's third wife after he was killed during the Japanese occupation. Life make's interesting twists. Thanks to Mr. Ben Finch (Buck's nephew) and Mitoy Orosa for the information. 

NOVEMBER/OCTOBER 2006
First of all, a belated Happy Birthday to my favorite uncle - Evaristo "Evar" Orosa, son of the legendary Agaton B. Orosa. (Evar  is a second cousin of my father Vicente.) I apologize for the delay, Evar turned a young 85 on. Oct. 26.  To my knowledge he is the elder statesman among the Orosa men folks. Evar told me once that his secret was Absolut - as in vodka. However he is not really an imbiber and takes everything in moderation. Many more years of great health to you, Tito Evar!

One of the pleasures of being the webmaster and chronicler is the constant updates and communications I receive. My first cousin Alice Orosa Tigno, who lives near Sacramento, CA, sent an update recently. Please check out her family pictures, which includes a couple of older photographs, one of her parent's 50th anniversary in 1975 and one of our Uncle Jose "Pepe" Orosa and his wife Salud taken in Phoenix, Arizona in 1935. Wonder how many more of these old photographs will keep turning up. I love them! Included in the update is the achievement of Alice & Roland's granddaughter Danielle Tigno Martin for her academic excellence. Congratulations, Danielle. Check out: Alice O. Tigno Update.

There has been another Hispanic Orosa query. This time it is from an American in Florida whose great grandmother was an Orosa from Orense, Spain. The great grandma married and migrated to Cuba, with her descendants later immigrating to the United States after the Cuban revolution in 1959. One of these days, there will be a section devoted to our Hispanic brethren. The inquiry has been forwarded to the other Orosas in Spain and Mexico.

SEPTEMBER 2006
This has been a very busy summer for our website, we've gotten the most number of emails from individuals who've had an opportunity to visit. An inquiry came all the way from Indonesia asking for a former classmate married to an Orosa. I passed along the request. As a matter of policy I do not reveal email addresses, phone numbers, residential address, etc. without the permission of the individual. Received an updated family list and photos from one of the great grandchildren of Agaton via his daughter Rita. Thank you, Grace. A Mexican Orosa from Mexico City wrote to ask about assistance in his search for Orosa origins. I referred him to the other Spanish Orosas. But you never know whether we are related to Mexican Orosas, after all there was the galleon trade between Manila and Acapulco that lasted for over two centuries!

Congratulations are in order for two recently wed Orosa descendants. First is Cecille Orosa, who married David Jones in July. Cecille's father is Jose Y. "Tio Pepe" Orosa. Kara Atilano was married to Alpan Keskin, a gentleman of Turkish heritage. The nuptial was reported in the following article: Kara Atilano Wedding News Kara's mother is Elizabeth del Rosario Atilano, daughter of Helen Orosa del Rosario. Both couples live in the New York area.

The Frank Sinatra tune Love & Marriage stated love and marriage, go together like a horse and carriage, you can't have one without the other. Thus our family, spread throughout the universe, has joined in matrimony with partners of varying heritage. Here's the list - American, Australian, British, Canadian, Chinese, Japanese, Polish, Scottish, Spanish, Turkish. Of course the American heritage is a list by itself, from African to German to Polish. E pluribus unum. 

AUGUST 2006
Permit me to relate a personal story with regards to this month's update. One hundred years ago this month, my then sixteen year old father Vicente Ylagan Orosa left his hometown of Bauan, Batangas to travel to Cincinnati, Ohio (ironically my present domicile) to study. He would remain in the United States for five years, finishing at the University of Illinois in 1911. He was part of the fourth batch of pensionados or government scholars. The pensionado program was started by Governor (later U.S. President) William Howard Taft in 1903 and the first 100 boys left that year. The alumni of the "pensionado" program returned to the Philippines to become leaders in every field. I would argue that it is the most successful scholarship program in Philippine history. Do these names mean anything to you - Jose Abad Santos, Camilo Osias, Alfonso Ponce Enrile, Tomas Mapua, Conrado Benitez, Francisco Delgado, Antonio de las Alas, Francisco Benitez, Honoria Acosta, Jorge Bocobo, Vicente Lim? They were all pensionados. Unfortunately there isn't much information available on this program but I managed to track down the original sponsor who suggested it to Gov. Taft and get access to his archives. On our website's index page, scroll to pensionado program for my account of their story. The link is to a .pdf file and if you have any problem, send me an email.

Since uploading our website five and a half years ago, it has been my most rewarding hobby. Just this past month I heard from a Mexican Orosa and several other Orosas. They are Sylvia "Diva" Orosa, Eloisa "Chic" del Rosario Francisco and Elaine del Rosario Lim. The latter two are daughters of Helen Orosa del Rosario while Diva is a great granddaughter of Agaton Orosa. I've been contacted by Orosas from Spain, United States (Spain to Cuba to the U.S.), Mexico and Bolivia. One of these days I'll have to add a Spanish page. Una pagina Espanol. Orosas del mundo une! 

JULY 2006
Two birthdays are going to occur in the next few days. First is that of Elma Orosa Paraiso, who will be 78 on the 19th. Tita Elma is the youngest daughter of the fabled Agaton Orosa of Taal. Agaton has over 200 direct descendants, the most numerous of any Orosa, Taal, Bauan or anywhere else. Tita Elma resides in San Pablo City and was hale and hearty when I last saw her in February. Most of her children are in California. Then on the 23rd, Apolinario "Naring" Orosa is turning 80. Naring resides in San Juan. Naring's pride is oldest grandson Philip O. Sarol, a sophomore at Marquette University in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Happy birthday to you both!

To add to her long list of prestigious awards, Rosalinda L. Orosa received the Isabela Catolica Cross from the Spanish Ambassador last month. The Isabela Catolica Cross is the highest award that can be bestowed by the King of Spain (Juan Carlos) to any non-Spanish citizen. Incidentally, the Spanish Ambassador, Ignacio Sagaz, is married to a Filipina. Rosalinda writes a twice weekly column for the Philippine Star, "Sundry Strokes" on Wednesdays and "Table Talk" on Saturdays. Check out her latest column, written about the July 4th celebration at the American Embassy. Follow this link: http://www.philstar.com/philstar/NEWS200607152606.htm. Felicitaciones Rosalinda!

Let us welcome Roselle H. Orosa, daughter of the late Ramon Orosa and granddaughter of Ricardo "Carding" Orosa of Sydney. After years of not being in contact, she is now with her aunt & uncle, Laura (Nannette) O. Mendez and husband Luis (Luigi). They are in the New York city area. Thank you Nannette and Luigi!

Back in 1923, Dr. Sixto Y. Orosa, father of Rosalinda, wrote a book titled "Sulu Archipelago and Its Peoples". An Italian gentleman, married to a Batanguena, contacted me earlier about Dr. Sixto's work. Unfortunately, even after contacting Evelyn del Rosario Garcia (granddaughter of Sixto), we couldn't be of much help to the Signore in his research. He is researching the flags of the Sultanate of Sulu. It is interesting that an Italian found the work of our esteemed uncle, then our website and established contact. Small world, isn't it?

JUNE 2006
A few days from today, on June 29, Milagros Orosa Aliling will be celebrating her 86th birthday. As mentioned in the previous update (March), she is still indispensable to her long time employer. She is the family historian of the Basilio and Agaton Orosa side, with an impeccable command of Tagalog. To illustrate, a few years ago we discovered a letter written in 1907 by my grandfather Simplicio A. Orosa to my father Vicente who was then studying at the University of Illinois in Champaign-Urbana, IL. We couldn't translate a lot of the Tagalog words but Milagring came through. She is the epitome of Batangas hospitality and on every trip we've made to visit the Philippines, Milagring undertakes a big feast for us. It was during one of these feasts that we were introduced to adobong Taal, a variant of the ever popular adobo. (For the uninitiated, adobong Taal is made is yellow ginger and vinegar, with NO soy sauce.) There is also tulingan, or tuna, and maliputo, a rare fish found only in Lake Taal. And to make sure I am reminded of my Batangas heritage, I get a package of tsokolate, or chocolate balls to take back to the U.S. When properly prepared, Batangas chocolate puts any Nestle hot chocolate to shame. Or even Starbucks.

I couldn't do justice in describing Milagring's full and exciting life. But Milagring's children prepared a DVD of for her 85th birthday and gave me a copy. It is truly touching. Unfortunately, this is something that is too large to put in our website, our memory storage is limited. So, if you would like to view Milagring's DVD, send me an email at morosa@cinci.rr.com and I'll make a copy for you. After every visit I always tell Milagring she is my favorite third cousin. I mean it! MALIGAYANG KAARAWAN SA IYO, MILAGRING. Check out the link of her pictures in the index page, Milagros Orosa Aliling, Celebrating Memories. Click on the "View Slideshow."

I have a first cousin who is in her 87th year. Helen Orosa del Rosario is getting frail of body but strong of faith. She is the biographer of Maria Y. Orosa. Her daughter Evelyn sent this prayer composed by Helen.

LORD, I thank Thee for the love that brought me to thy fold,
the HAND that held me when I loss Its gentle hold; 
I thank Thee for temptations past to show the weakest side
of my feeble heart of clay;
I thank Thee for the gentle fight that victory aided me
to conquer self and sin;
I thank Thee for the broken lies that let me know that
trust in any human soul must never be sought by me;
I thank Thee, too, for the sorrow seeds that two bright
buds give birth;
But oh my GOD, I'd like to thank Thee most for
bringing me the peace I've never known before.
___------____-----___
 
Lay Your wounded hand and bless me and bless each one at home.
Now give me Your crook and let me go around in Your fold,
doing my work in Your way.
Do not let the human in me spoil anything You want me to do.
Push me back when I'll do wrong. Push me forward when I'm
afraid to do right.
Be with me in my dealings with each soul and Grant that each
may love and serve You better for having passed me by;
I do not want to be presumptuous but I want to love You
better than anyone on earth.
When my day is ended and my task complete,
Give me a place at Your feet to rest for all eternity.

Thank you, Helen and God Bless You!

We've had several more contacts as a result of people browsing the Internet and finding our website. First is Josefina "Jopie" Agoncillo Macatangay, who resides in Sydney, Australia. My generation's great grandfather is Guillermo Orosa, who married Hilaria Agoncillo. That makes Jopie a third cousin. Jopie gave us an update on the Agoncillo's so we have added to our Agoncillo roster. Perhaps this will lead to getting information beyond Vicente Agoncillo, the father of Hilaria. Welcome, Jopie!

Another contact is a Hispanic American who is married to an Orosa. But this Orosa came from Spain by way of Cuba. Not likely related but they wanted to get in touch with previous Orosa correspondents from Spain whom I have quoted in the past. Go back to the November 2003 and March 2005 updates. Muchas gracias, amigos nuevos.

MARCH 2006
Can't believe our last update was in August, seven long months ago. Of course my excuse has been being called back to work by Procter & Gamble and spending the next several months in a town called Uppingham in the English Midlands. But enough, here's what's been happening. February was spent in the Philippines, visiting our relations and continuing to see beautiful Philippines.

Let's first start out with a TRIBUTE to our seniors. They are our link to the past, an anchor of our values and traditions, preserver of memories and guardians of family history. They may have slowed a step or two but we should be so lucky when (or if) we reach their venerable ages. Two of them, Milagring O. Aliling and Rosalinda L. Orosa, are still working full time! Their employers, the Tuazon investment group and Philippine Star respectively, can't do without their services! May their numbers increase and their health remain robust.
                                                      Born         Residence:
Ely Orosa Raquel-Santos                 1915         Metro Manila
Clemen Ylagan Villarosa                  1919         Metro Manila
Helen Orosa del Rosario                   1919        Metro Manila
Milagring Orosa Aliling                      1920        Metro Manila
Angelina "Tita" Orosa Velez              1921        Brisbane, Australia
Evaristo "Evar" S. Orosa                   1922        Metro Manila
Criselda "Cilding" Ylagan Angara       1922        Antipolo, Rizal
Jose "Pepe" Eleazar                        1924        Calauag, Quezon
Apolinario "Naring" N. Orosa             1926        Metro Manila
Rosalinda L. "Baby Girl" Orosa         1926        Metro Manila
Conrado "Dado" O. Ilagan                 1927        Vancouver, BC
Virginia "Viring" Orosa Grey              1927        Metro Manila
Elma Orosa Paraiso                         1928        San Pablo City, Laguna
Ricardo "Carding" Q. Orosa              1930        Sydney, Australia

Sorry but I arbitrarily used 1930 as the cutoff year. If I missed anyone, please advise. There are two from the Camarines Orosas, Tata Gustin Orosa and Nana Conching Orosa Mariano, both in their 80's, but I hadn't heard from them in a while. 

In the meantime the younger generation continues to expand. We welcome recent additions: Kirsten S. Hilario, born in Chicago, IL Feb. 26 and Alexie Safiya Ilaga, born Feb. 15 in Quezon City. Kirsten is a great great granddaughter while Alexie is a great great great granddaughter of the Bauan Orosa forebear Guillermo Orosa. Both are from the Vicente Y. Orosa branch.

In another milestone, Ria Francisco, granddaughter of Helen O. del Rosario and great granddaughter of Drs. Sixto Y. and Severina Orosa, was married to Mr. Paolo Prieto in a wedding that received a lot of coverage. Check out some pictures and article on the update 2006 page. A belated congratulations to the happy couple.

We had the opportunity to catch up with a few cousins. Mitoy & Elsa Orosa hosted a dinner at their newly built house in Tierra Pura subdivision in Quezon City. Then Milagring O. Aliling had a lunch at her son Tito & Evelyn's weekend home in Tagaytay. From there we had merienda at the Aliling Bahay Pahingahan in Barrio San Nicolas on the shore of Lake Taal. We've got a bunch of pictures you can peruse at the update page.

Of course during the visit to Lake Taal, we took a side trip to Lemery, to check up on some other Orosas. Thanks to information first passed on by Dan Orosa of San Diego, we were able to obtain a list of Orosas from Dr. Datingaling of Lemery. Unfortunately, all we had was a street, with no numbers. So Evar and I literally walked one street of Lemery and started asking strangers. Fortunately, after a couple of inquiries, we were directed to a family of Orosas. We were able to mine a few names but unfortunately their recollection only went back three generations, to the 1920's. So we can't be sure of any connection. More DNA tests anyone? Prior to leaving I requested one of them, Mrs. Cornelia Orosa, to compile a list of all relations she is aware of. Apparently Lemery is chock full of Orosas. She graciously responded shortly after I arrived back in Ohio and her list of can be seen at Lemery Orosas. It is not very long and we'll try to check if her grandfather had any siblings.

Finally, here is my paean to the land of our forebears. Why it is a joy to be a Pinoy, or at least a Balikbayan:
Forget about the landslides, typhoons, floods and politics. Only the typhoons are natural, the rest are caused by man's neglect, abuse or folly. As endowed by nature, the Philippines is a beautiful country, second to none for a country of its size. Every trip I make reinforces it. The archipelago has a longer coastline than even the United States. Beaches stretch the length and breadth of the 7,100 islands. If you so desire you could walk hundreds of kilometers nonstop along sandy beaches. Take your pick of beaches along the China Sea, Pacific Ocean, Philippine Sea, Sulu Sea, Mindanao Sea, Celebes Sea, countless bays, passages and straights. Corals abound, the most extensive and diverse in the world, more than the Great Barrier Reef of Australia. In the words of the Shedd Aquarium of Chicago, it has the most prolific coral reefs in the world with 600 forms of coral and 2,000 kinds of fish. When Shedd built a permanent exhibit on reefs, it choose to mimic the reefs of Apo Island near Dumaguete, down to importing 17 tons of sand. Then there's the mountains of the Sierra Madre running north south along eastern Luzon and the saw toothed Cordilleras along its spine. The Cordillera's rough terrain didn't faze the Ifugaos and the Bontocs - they carved out the Rice Terraces from the steep mountains during the time the Chinese were building the Great Wall. Figured out a way to irrigate too. If you haven't seen the rice terraces of Banaue, Bontoc, Hapao, Bangaan and Batad, you have missed seeing an engineering marvel of ancient man, before the advent of machinery. Don't ever call the locals lazy. They built it all by hand. UNESCO has declared the rice terraces a World Heritage Site. Do you like volcanoes? The Philippines has 200 of them, with about 20 on the active list. Everyone claims to have the most perfect cone shaped volcano but Mayon has been judged so by no less than the Encyclopaedia Britannica. Some erupt with fury and rain devastation, like Pinatubo in 1991 or Taal in 1965. But in one of mother nature's ironies, the volcanic soil becomes fertile after a number of years of lying fallow. Ten years after Pinatubo, the sugarcane fields of Pampanga are as lush as ever. Even the town of Porac, once buried in lahar, has been resurrected. Once all you could see was the roof and steeple of the town's church sticking out of the lahar. Like the legendary Phoenix, Porac has been dug out of the ashes. In the rice paddies of Bulacan and Nueva Ecija, the fields are in various stages of greenery. There's the dense lime green of the seedlings waiting to be transplanted and the dark green of the newly rooted seedlings in the muck. Scores of egrets fly from field to field. Other fields, newly harvested, have a stubble of yellow straw. If I haven't convinced you of the Philippines great natural and sometimes man made beauty, get yourself the December 2005 issue of Philippine Airlines' Mabuhay magazine. There are tons of gorgeous pictures.

What goes good with a McDonald burger or KFC? Fries? Mashed potatoes? Rolls? No! Only rice would do. The American fast food exports have been Filipinized. They even serve longaniza burgers. A value meal costs about $1.20. If you would rather have Filipino food, the merienda buffet at local chain Kamayaan costs less than $2.00. All the dinuguan and bibingka you can stuff yourselves with, including at least three kinds of pancit. But the most successful and extensive fast food is Chinese Filipino owned Jollibee. Their burgers taste better and they have expanded to California. They have the cleanest CR (that's what Pinoys call their bathroom or comfort room), cleaner than any fast food outlet in the US. Their value meals are barely over a $1.00.

If you are a massage fanatic like me you can indulge in an hour of reflexology, shiatsu, Swedish or Xiamen foot massage for $8.00 before tip. Outside of Manila it could cost as little as $5. Pedicure or manicure is $1.50. Even in a top Edsa or Makati hotel spa, a 2 1/2 hour massage and facial costs $40. 

Looking for a place to retire or maybe just spend a few weeks or couple of months vegetating during the dark days of a mid-western winter? An air-conditioned cottage along the beaches of Zambales costs all of $30 a nite, with reduced weekly or monthly rates. You can watch the sunset behind the south China Sea while sitting on the beach drinking a cold San Miguel. For dinner, you can have seafood that was caught only hours or even minutes before.

Still not convinced? A senior citizen card qualifies you to 20% off on medicine and restaurants. Sorry, not good for bars or liquor. In Makati, movies are free for seniors. With the discount, your McD or Jollibee value meals comes down to less than 90 cents US.

No doubt you have seen folk dance performances since they are de rigueur at tourist hotels. You may already have even seen the famed Bayanihan or the Filipinescas of the late Leonor Orosa Goquingco, revived last year. But you have to see the Bauan, Batangas High School group Sining Kumintang perform to complete your experience. These are 16 year old kids from Bauan and every single year they travel to some part of the world to compete against other nations. Their list of trophies and awards is impressive. Their last major performance was at the World Expo 2005 in Aichi, Japan and they brought the normally staid Japanese audience to their feet. They bring energy and enthusiasm that only teenagers can. They should make every Batangueno proud.

Like classical music? Check out Carlos Alberto Ibay. A classical pianist blind since birth, he has wowed audiences world wide. Enter his name on a search engine to find out more. Thanks to columnist Rosalinda Orosa for devoting a column and bringing him to our attention.

Its great to be a Balikbayan. To appreciate being Filipino. So many islands, beaches and mountains, so little time. We'll be back next year!

AUGUST 2005
On October 23rd, Cleo Tigno Howell, daughter of Alice Orosa & Roland Tigno and granddaughter of Rafael & Fabiana will be participating in the Nike Women's Half Marathon run to raise money for the Team in Training Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. This organization is dedicated to finding a cure for leukemia, lymphoma, Hodgkin's disease, myeloma and other blood-related cancers and improving the quality of life for patients and their families. Leukemia is the number one killing disease of children, yet it affects 10 times as many adults. To contribute, please go to her website at  http://www.active.com/donate/tntsvmb/CTHowell
On a personal note, Marc H. Orosa, grandson of Augusto "Toto" Orosa and Lou, passed away from acute lymphoblastic leukemia at the age of 20. Please support Cleo on her mission.

Philip Ylagan Angara, son of Cilding Ylagan Angara and grandson of Simplicia Orosa & Doroteo Ylagan, has founded Rebirth Trading. The company exports / distributes Virgin Coconut Oil, Coconut Dietary Fiber and essential oils. For more information, please contact Philip at philipangara@yahoo.com or rebirth_trade@yahoo.com

The youngest generation of Orosa descendants continue with their achievements:
Philip O. Sarol, daughter of Diana Orosa Sarol and grandson of Apolinario "Naring" Orosa, has been accepted and is going to attend Marquette University in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. What is unique about this? Well, Philip attended Xavier School in Quezon City. Think your school is tough? At Xavier, Philip had to take Latin and Mandarin. Xavier is a Jesuit school founded by Jesuits who were formerly missionaries in China. Xavier is attended mostly by Chinese Filipinos, that's where the Mandarin came from. Marquette is a Jesuit university which happens to have a good basketball team.

Michelle H. Orosa, daughter of Mike Orosa and grandson of Augusto "Toto" Orosa, won a journalism scholarship awarded by the German government through their embassy in Manila. Next month Michelle goes off to Berlin for several months. When I asked if they all had to sprechen Deutsch, the answer was that the awardees came from all over so the classes are in English. All stipends are included. Nice. Michelle graduated with honors from Ateneo University.

Kurstin (Sashi) Mendez, daughter of Laura (Nannette) and Luis Mendez, granddaughter of Ricardo Q. Orosa & Adelaida Caparas, great granddaughter of Nicolas & Laura - graduated cum laude from St. John's University last June 05, she has been recruited by CNN as a marketing executive for TNT. Let's wish Philip, Michelle & Sashi, who are third cousins, the best of luck.

Please check out the tributes to our late National Artist,  Leonor Orosa Goquingco, at Leonor Orosa Goquingco Tribute & Obituary

JULY 2005
Last month, we (Val & Mario Orosa) spent several days (June 10, 11 & 12), with some of our west coast cousins. For pictures and particulars, please refer to San Francisco Get Together. It wasn't quite the Orosa reunion we had first envisioned but we have some experienced organizers in the group and next time we will allow for more lead time (9-12 months) and spreading out of responsibilities. I know of several Filipino American families that have successfully organized family reunions - the Escobars (my maternal side), del Fierros (maternal side cousins) and the Paraisos (our cousins through Elma, daughter of Agaton). Each averaged well over 100 people from all over the US with some coming from the Philippines. 

MAY/JUNE 2005
First let us welcome Sofia Marie Therese Lapus Orosa, born May 9, 2005 to Christine & Sixto IV "Eugen" Orosa. Sofia is the youngest of the 8th generation of Orosas. The Sixto (Sr., Jr. III & IV) family have a virtual monopoly on the 8th generation.

Another DNA test result has been received, from a sample taken from the Basilio side. He and I match in 11 out of 12 DNA "markers" which means that we are related but the most common ancestry goes back further than we imagined. The information that has been passed on is that Guillermo (my great grandfather, father of Simplicio of the Bauan Orosas) and Basilio (father of Agaton of the Taal Orosas) were siblings. This DNA test indicates that they probably weren't siblings. Otherwise the DNA would have matched in 12 out of 12. But we are still descended from a common ancestor, just that Guillermo and Basilio were probably cousins, even distant cousins. I am contemplating expanding the DNA analysis to 25 markers (for additional fees of course) to determine the point of common ancestry. Stay tuned.

Received an email from a Lemery Orosa who had visited our website. We first learned of the Lemery Orosas from Dan Orosa of San Diego, during our visit to Manilla and Taal in Dec. 2003. We tried to make contact but were unsuccessful. So the email is a pleasant surprise. Could this be another related branch? More DNA tests!

We are still having an Orosa reunion the second weekend of June in Alameda, CA. Doesn't look like we're going to have an overwhelming attendance but we'd like to set the stage for bigger and better gatherings. We will be reporting back with pictures by the end of June.  

APRIL 2005
It is not quite April as this is being written but we are close enough. It seems we are ahead of the curve among families in using DNA for genealogical research. Independent of the Orosa family genealogy, anyone can participate in these genealogical studies. One organization is the nonprofit Sorenson Molecular Genealogy Foundation, www.smgf.org. You can join this project by visiting their website and filling out a form. However they do not release individual results. The Foundation is interested in ethnic and geographical origins and personal results are kept confidential. Another, newly formed organization, is the Genographic project of the National Geographic magazine and IBM. Their website is: www.nationalgeographic.com/genographic. Their objective is migratory patterns of the human race, a rather ambitious undertaking. Interestingly, the DNA analysis for this project is going to be conducted by Family Tree DNA, who performed the Orosa DNA analysis. Visit the Sorenson and NG/IBM websites, you might be persuaded to join and contribute to the database. This will not impact the Orosa surname project at Family Tree DNA.

Speaking of DNA results, it seems that the Batangas Orosas are NOT related to the Camarines Orosas. Our DNA's were far apart. To give you an idea, Family Tree tests twelve "markers" and my DNA only shared a few with my Camarines counterpart. On the other hand I shared up to 11 of the 12 markers with people from Indonesia. To prove a common recent ancestor, all the 12 must match. Not the results we expected but one can't argue with science. There is another DNA sample being tested and we'll report on that in a couple of months. (That's how long the backlog is Family Tree DNA.)

Tempus fugit. The date of our projected reunion (June 11-12, 2005) is less than seven weeks away. Time is of the essence. It is imperative that those planning or thinking of attending communicate with me. Do not hesitate to email morosa@fuse.net. Hope to hear from you soon!

MARCH 2005
This is getting to be a great year. We received a communication from an American Orosa who is of Spanish heritage by way of Cuba. He very kindly provided us with a crest that his family found during a trip to Spain. This is the Orosa family crest. Check it out on our home page. OK, so Filipinos are not usually into crests but this is part of our heritage and where our name comes from. For the uninitiated, the surname Orosa comes from the northwest Spanish province of Galicia (whose inhabitants are called Gallegos) and there is a Spanish town named Orosa. Muchas Gracias!

Our west coast cousin Joe Orosa Aliling is active in Filipino American affairs in the San Francisco area, being Chairman of the Filipino Freedom Fighters Day (3FDay) celebration on June 11, 2005 aboard the aircraft carrier USS Hornet. Joe has suggested a family reunion to coincide with this celebration. I heartily endorse the idea and have sent a communication to the Orosas whom I know to be residing in the US and Canada. Including spouses and children, there are at least 100, a conservative figure. Let's get the attendance up there. Several have expressed interest and there's already a small contingent living in the Bay area to start with.

Back in January I mentioned the idea of using DNA to determine or verify our kinship with the Orosas from Camarines Sur and two other branches one from Batangas (Santiago)  and Laguna (Gregorio). The results of my DNA are in and we're expecting the DNA from a Camarines descendant shortly. Unfortunately, we have not been able to contact anyone from the Santiago and Gregorio branches. We're trying to track one from the Gregorio branch who is in San Pablo City. As for the Santiago branch, it seems that they've run out of male Orosa descendants, the only remaining heirs being descended from female Orosas. However the test requires male heirs so we may be out of luck here. My DNA results indicate that we (or at least I am) are descended from people that originally came from Indonesia. There is even some genes from India. This latter indication is not surprising since Indians came to Bali centuries ago to introduce Hinduism. Remember that when I say that we're descended from Indonesian migrants we're talking hundreds of years, before the advent of the Spaniards.   

Last but not least, Joe Aliling has again compose an essay for this Easter. Please check it out at Joe Aliling Easter Thoughts. Thank you and you all have a very Happy Easter or Passover.

FEBRUARY 2005
First some good news. Cecille Orosa Drier, daughter of the late Jose Y. Orosa, got promoted to Manager – Marketing Communications of Orange and Rockland Utilities in New York. Congratulations, Cecille! If I am not mistaken, Cecille holds the distinction of being the youngest member of my generation of Orosas, the fifth generation from our earliest known documented forebears. We are into the 8th generation.

Using a new genealogical software from Roots Magic, all the names of the descendants of Basilio, Guillermo & Santiago Orosa are now in one database. In building this database, I've included the names from my mother's side of the family (Escobars) and the Agoncillos. Total number of names in this database exceeds 1,700. At any rate the software makes it easy to create family lists, pedigree charts and descendant lists. Two descendant lists are now listed in the index page - the descendants of Vicente Agoncillo (my generation's great great grandfather) and descendants of the parents of Basilio, Guillermo and Santiago. All the surnames are also indexed. Both lists are over 30 pages long. Check it out.

JANUARY 2005
Happy New Year again, this time the Year of the Rooster which begins in less than two weeks (Feb. 8, 2005). This gives me a taste for tikoy! We are off to an auspicious beginning after a quiet 2004. We've received numerous updates, pictures and information from Orosa descendants in the Philippines as well as the United States. Whether simply pictures, births or other information, they have all been uploaded to the proper links and pages, or new pages created if appropriate. If there is one item you need to peruse in the website to remain current, it is the index page.  Scroll down and check for new links. The list is getting longer and longer, well over 100 links, closing in on 150 although there are a few built in redundancies. 

Here is something exciting that is happening this year. I've started an Orosa Surname project with Family Tree DNA. Their website is www.familytreedna.com Enter the word Orosa in the search box and you'll see what our current project status is. To complete this project all we need is a DNA sample from five male descendants (sorry ladies) of the following branches - Guillermo/Simplicio of Bauan; Basilio/Agaton of Taal, Antonio/Victorio of Camarines Sur, Santiago of Taal and Gregorio of Laguna. There are Orosas from Lemery but unfortunately we have been unable to establish contact. If we could get someone from Spain to provide a DNA sample, it might provide a clue about our origins. Anyone named Orosa can have their DNA tested by filling out the questionnaire in the Family Tree DNA website. The cost is $99 for a sample. We already have two samples either received or in process. The test will provide information on how far back our common ancestor is. Our documentation only dates back to the mid-1800's but the DNA may tell us that we've had a common male ancestor since the 1600's. It would be nice to know. Hopefully we will have the laboratory tests returned by April since they are running a backlog.

There are quite a number of Orosas who are entrepreneurs, owning or running various enterprises. To highlight this, I've added a section in the Index Page which is under "Commercial Sites." This lists all the websites of Orosa related businesses that I am aware of. Good luck to all of you! May all your ventures be outstanding successes.   

DECEMBER 2004
For the latest update, please follow the link to 2004 Year in Review.

MAY 2004
Although it has been several months since my last formal update, there has been numerous additions to our web site during the intervening time. These are all listed in the links but let me enumerate them, in no particular order. Milette Orosa Uy of Sydney sent some pictures taken over the years of relatives visiting Down Under. You will find them at From Sydney with Love. Dan Orosa of San Diego sent pictures of the historic Marella home in Taal which can be viewed at Marella House. Mrs. Bea Zobel Jr. of the fabled Ayala clan (think Makati and Ayala Land) visited this house and wrote glowing about her visit in Bea Zobel's Visit to Taal. This is a must read for anyone wishing to understand our Batangas heritage. In addition to the Marella house photographs, Dan Orosa has pictures of his & Lydia's Dec. 2003 visit with relatives on the Agaton side, at Dan & Lydia Visit. (Sorry but the captions on some of the pictures are not complete.) There is a tribute to Leonor Orosa Goquingco, our National Artist for the Dance, at UP Tribute to Leonor. This was brought to my attention by my nephew Mike C. Orosa. Leonor is the senior Orosa on the Bauan side, 87 years young. She still writes a column for the Manila Bulletin. 

Orosas keep materializing and Dan Orosa informed me of Orosas in Lemery who are patients of a doctor nephew on Lydia's side. We are trying to research this new information through the help of Dr. Esteban "Steve" Loyola of Taal whom we met in December.

There are now over a hundred links that can be accessed through our website, mostly internal. That is, they consist of pages with pictures or narratives which we all have contributed to. Storage isn't a problem since we can always purchase more capacity but It might be getting too unwieldy. Please let me know one way or another.

I am not sure if anyone is using Netscape as a browser but I find that the music doesn't sound with this particular browser. Perhaps some IT expert can tell us why. By browsing with Microsoft Internet Explorer, the music can be heard. Minor detail. Another browser you might try is Netcaptor.

Last but not least, I had the pleasure of meeting someone from the Getty Museum of Los Angeles and our conversation turned to the Taal Cathedral. This gentleman, Dr. W. Ginnell,  specializes in restoration and has worked around the globe. The Getty Museum sometimes assists important heritage sites. The reason I mention this is that there's currently some controversy about the preservation of the Taal Cathedral. I'm taking the liberty of checking with the Getty Museum about their program. You never know.

That's all for now and hope you are all enjoying spring (America & Europe) or summer (Philippines) or fall (Australia). 


DECEMBER  2003
Brace yourself, this is a longer than usual update. Four weeks in Manila from mid-November to mid-December allowed me to mine more information and memories about the Orosa family. With the generous sharing of their time and resources, cousin Mitoy Orosa and his father Evar took me to visit Alfonso, Cavite and Taal, Batangas. There are a number of Orosas from the Basilio side who settled in Alfonso. Evar pointed out several Orosa "compounds" in Alfonso. We even went into the beautiful property of Ramon Leyran, husband of a great granddaughter of Basilio. Taal is still home to a few heirs of Santiago, the third brother of Basilio and Guillermo, with whom Mitoy arranged a get together. 

Unfortunately, some of the information provided by Santiago's "grandchildren" murkies up the water. Basilio and Guillermo would've been born in the period around 1840 since Guillermo's son Simplicio (grandfather to my generation) was born in 1865. Basilio's son Agaton was born in 1872. But two cousins in Taal (age 72 and 63 respectively) claim that Santiago was their grandfather which would place Santiago's birth around the same time as Agaton. Unless the father of the three brothers married a second time and had Santiago at a much later date, the age gap between Guillermo/Basilio and Santiago is simply too wide. Previous information had indicated a generation between Santiago and parents of the two cousins who provided the information. This would make Santiago their great grandfather, not grandfather. Unfortunately, the issue is unresolved. Nevertheless, the Santiago Orosa roster has been updated, with several pictures.  

Although there may be an unaccounted for generation gap, there is not doubt that the Santiago side are our cousins. Amparo Orosa Luistro  and Esteban Orosa Loyola produced yellowed postcards and pictures from the period around 1920, written by our uncle Jose Y. Orosa and our aunts Felisa Y. and Maria Y. Orosa. They are addressed to Felix Orosa (father of Amparo) and Martina Orosa (mother of Esteban). Both were referred to as Tio and Tia by Jose, Felisa and Maria. We are indebted to Amparo Orosa Luistro and Esteban Orosa Loyola for their information, sharing pictures, memories and the delicious merienda served in the restaurant operated by Esteban's daughters in Taal.

Cousin Naring Orosa also generously provided his time, and with daughter Diana gave me the opportunity to visit Bauan High School and see the school's Sining Kumintang and Parulan Festival. BHS was founded by Dr. Cenon Cordero and Rafael Y. Orosa, Naring's father. The Sining Kumintang is a folk dance troupe who have made nine trips abroad in the last nine years. They have garnered honors everywhere, the latest from a festival in Budapest, Hungary this past summer. The Parulan Festival is contest among the students to produce the most attractive parol. Ho hum, another parol? Not quite. The parols are unique in that the materials are both indigenous and creative. How about fish scales and crab shells. Or palay (unhusked rice) and stalk, or corn grits, or hardwood acorns or the skin of garlic or even different shapes of pasta. Each one of the pieces, like the fish scale or palay, is meticulously glued to a frame. The Cultural Center of the Philippines is exhibiting their work this year, as they have for the past several years. Check out the pictures at Bauan High School

We passed by the Orosa ancestral home in Bauan, which was purchased by Simplicio and Juliana back in the early 1900's. This is where the prematurely widowed Juliana raised her eight overachieving children. Unfortunately, the house continues its slide into disrepair perhaps indicative of the fact that of the 300 plus living heirs of Simplicio, none live in Bauan or elsewhere in Batangas for that matter. 

Returning to Cavite and Batangas is sometimes like a trip into the past. When was the last time you were in a palengke? That means market for you non-Tagalogs. Palengkes were before Unimart and Shoemart with their neatly stocked shelves, air conditioning and frozen everything. Check out the Palengke pictures, with their open air meat counters and fish so fresh they are still jumping.

Visits were made to several cousins and they are pictured in the Family Visits page. The Orosa longevity gene is carrying on. On the Bauan side, our most senior cousins are Leonor Orosa Goquingco (86), Clemen Ylagan Villarosa (84), Helen Orosa del Rosario (84), Angelina Orosa Velez (82), Cilding Ylagan Angara (81). Leonor continues to write her Arts and Minds column for the Manila Bulletin. And no, she doesn't use a word processor or a PC, she writes in long hand. Not far behind are Rosalinda L. Orosa (79), Naring Orosa (77) and Viring O. Grey (76). On the Basilio side, there is Ely Orosa Raquel-Santos who turned 88 in November, Milagring Orosa Aliling (83) and Evar Orosa (82). I'm sure I missed a few.

One information proudly shared by his family (Tita Milagring for one) is that one of the more eminent chefs of Dallas, Texas is Raoul Orosa, chef and owner of Aija. His website is www.aijafusion.com. Raoul's credentials are impressive. Since his restaurant is in Texas, wonder if the other famous Texan who occupies the White House has ever stopped by and patronized the establishment.   

Did you by any chance follow the 22nd South East Asian Games recently held in Hanoi, Vietnam? Why would that interest any of the Orosas? Well, for one thing our very own singing artist and thespian Carlo A. Orosa was chosen to sing the Game's theme song of "For the World Tomorrow" during the closing ceremonies held Dec. 13. Originally written in Vietnamese, Carlo will sing the English version. More details are provided in "Carlo Orosa Performs in 22nd SEA Games."

Other Milestones:
Jose "Pepe" Eleazar, husband of the late Fely Orosa Ylagan, celebrated his 80th birthday last summer. 
Nicole Eleazar Zefran, granddaughter of Pepe, made the Bishop Ireton High basketball team in Alexandria, Virginia.
Philip O. Sarol, the 16 year old son of Diana Orosa & Raymond Sarol, was accepted into the Mensa Society. The Mensa society consists of the highest IQ's among the population, something like the top 0.1%. Way to go, Philip! Try taking the test sometime and see how difficult it is.
Ramon Jose "RJ" Leyran, a great great grandson of Basilio B. Orosa, passed away at age 35 in Manila last October. A tribute to RJ is at Ramon Jose Leyran.

Lots of old pictures were brought out by my sisters Charito and Tita. I have accused the former of deliberately rationing the pictures to me, a little at a time during each of my visits. Along with pictures from Taal, they are posted in a new Oldies, More & More page. Some wound up in the Weddings page. 

Here are some other additional or expanded web pages that are the fruit of this trip:
Ang Mabuti, Ang Masama at Ang Pangit or The Good, the Bad and the Ugly (Impressions of a Balikbayan)
Reunions 
Vicente Y. Orosa Family     


NOVEMBER 2003:
I have exchanged some correspondence with Sr. Jesus Ma. Orosa Castro, a Spanish Orosa. He is the latest of Spanish Orosas who have gotten in touch after seeing our website. Sr. Orosa had done research on the origin of our surname and here are his comments: 

El apellido Orosa, por lo que he investigado, puede tener sus orígenes en un pueblo de la provincia de A Coruña, llamado Orosa o también como una transformación de la denominación de la Ría de Arosa, también en Galicia. Otra posibilidad es la que reside en la provincia de Huesca, concretamente Jaca que tiene como una de sus patronas a Santa Orosia y nuevamente por transformación u omisión categórica de la letra que falta, cabe la posibilidad.
 
En cuanto a mi caso, provenimos a corto plazo de la Provincia de Lugo, Villalba concretamente, parroquia de Goiriz. Mi Abuelo era un carpintero de la zona. Mi padre y sus hermanos, mis tíos, emigraron al País Vasco, para ser más exactos a Vizcaya, tambien en el cantábrico, al municipio llamado Baracaldo. Ese ha sido mi lugar de nacimiento. De todas formas, dada mi ocupación de Profesor, actualmente estoy destinado en Cantabria, Municipio Torrelavega, donde supongo seguiré estando muchos años. Un Primo mío, José Mª Orosa, se ha trasladado a Toledo hace años y allí desarrolla su trabajo y vida, de forma que tanto el como yo, así como nuestros hijos, estamos un tanto dispersos por la geografía española.
 
Curiosa historia ¿verdad?
 
RECIBAN UN AFECTUOSO SALUDO DE LOS QUE COMPARTEN TAN HONORABLE APELLIDO.
 
Jesús Mª Orosa

OCTOBER 2003:
Unless you've been hibernating, you of course know that President George W. Bush, aka Dubya, made a brief visit to Manila on Oct. 18. He wore a Barong and kissed babies, or at least some babies belonging to President GMA's family. Rosalinda L. Orosa wrote about Pres. Bush's visit, titling her piece what else but "Dubya." Check it out at Dubya.

In my view the best result of having our family website is the renewal and /or establishment of connections. Two examples are provided, both comments being unsolicited. The first is a quotation from an Orosa - "Your website is great and I don't know how I would have found --- without it!" The second is from someone who was looking for an Orosa. "A million thanks. -------- has written me back. More power to the Orosa clan!" Obviously names are being withheld for privacy sake. There are lots more. Thanks for your valued input!! I have over 140 Orosa email addresses but as a matter of policy they will not be shared with anyone asking until you have approved.

The following names are either new to our roster or have provided updates these past months - Carissa (Criss) Orosa and daughter Mia, Rafael Antonio Mangubat, Samuel Armand Mangubat, Jasmine Orosa Wong, Denver Quintos Brazier, Julian Quintos Sime, Mia Quintos Sime, Adrianna Quintos Valdez, Leonarda Orosa Martinez, Enrique Martinez Jurado, Christine Jurado, Philippe Jurado, Cynthia Jurado, Ashley Jurado Martindale, Samantha Jurado Martindale, Tony Jurado, Elisa Orosa Martinez, Luisito Orosa Dolor, Joseph Andres Orosa, Ryan Carmona, Carlo Xavier Kolodziej and Eduardo Orosa. Did I miss anybody? For the sake of brevity, spouses names have been omitted but check the roster. Thank you and keep the updates coming! 

Milestones: 
1. On the 25th of October there was a birthday celebration in the town of Innerleithen, near Edinburgh in Scotland. Maria Christina "Diding" Orosa, who lives in Edinburgh (and London) and her younger sister Maria Socorro "Yoying" Orosa will be co-celebrating. Diding is turning 60! Yoying lives in Vancouver, British Columbia so is traveling a long way for the occasion. They will be joined by brother Ramon who is coming from Manila! This family takes their birthdays seriously. So let's have a toast and a heartfelt Happy Birthday to our two cousins.
2. We are saddened by the news from the Philippines about the untimely death of RJ Leyran, son of Marina Salazar and Ramon Leyran. Marina is a granddaughter of Agaton Orosa. We convey our sincere condolences to the Leyran family. 

The number of links in our website continues to grow. There are now 76 links. Some links also continue to expand in contents. For example, I've been able to capture almost all the weekly columns of Rosalinda L. Orosa in the Philippines Star. (The columns have to be stored in our website server because for some unfortunate reason, the Star's archive system doesn't work.) You can read her columns for the past two months by going to the Articles then Sundry Strokes links.

I have added a couple of links for general interest in events or things Filipino. There are close to 150 Orosa descendants abroad, mostly in North America. Those of us in this community straddle two cultures. There is a Filipina writer named Jessica Hagedorn who has written books that about this kind of experience which some of us might find interesting.  Ms. Hagedorn has Spanish, American, Filipino and Chinese heritage. The other link is to PBS or Public Broadcasting System, the education TV channel in the US. PBS presented a segment on Mindanao that aired last summer. These are not family related but we cannot forget where we came from.  


SEPTEMBER 2003:
Like all of our other Orosa cousins, the family of Nicolas Y. Orosa is separated by oceans. There is a branch in Australia consisting of Ricardo Q. Orosa (aka Carding)  and most of his children. Earlier this month Carding and wife Nida traveled to New York City to visit one of his children. A few of the children of Nicolas Q. Orosa Jr. (Nick remains in Manila) happen to be in the New York area. So, a Nicolas reunion was on. Pictures of this happy event are in the following link; N.Y. Orosa family in New York


AUGUST 2003: If you'll notice, the home page has a new look. A couple of paragraphs have been rewritten and recognition given to other Orosas. The list of links have been removed and can be accessed through the navigation bar just below the title. There are now a total of 65 links, having added several in the last couple of weeks. See if you can find them! The flags have been converted to thumbnails. The purpose of all this is to reduce the size of the home page and make it less cumbersome. An American friend complained about having too much in the home page. Let me know if you agree or don't agree. Last but not least I received a list of the children and grandchildren of Maria San Juan Orosa of Camarines. Our Camarines brethren list is now about 120, a significant increase from our humble beginning list of about 30. Thanks to Randy Carino of Naga, Maria's grandson.


There has not been an update on this page for a while (I've been sending emails instead to the 110+ or so Orosas on my list) so here is a summary of what has been happening the past several months. First there is the matter of domain names. We of course have www.orosa.org; a cousin on the Sixto side, Jose P. "Joey" Orosa owns www.orosa.com. I had the opportunity to purchase www.orosa.net but wasn't quick enough, so one of those outfits that trade on domain names bought it and is willing to sell back at a 1,000% markup. No thanks. I do have www.familyaorosa.com from before. As an additional measure I purchased www.orosa.us. New extensions have been approved for use such as .info but we shouldn't need any more, just protect the ones we have.

From our home page, there are no less than 59 separate links. There is a wealth of information out there, peruse and enjoy. You don't have to finish in one sitting, take your time!


Future Olympian? Here is a note about a couple of  great grandchildren of Rafael Y. "Paito" Orosa. They are the children of Cleo Tigno and Daniel Howell. Cleo is the daughter of Alice Orosa (Paito's daughter) and Roland Tigno of San Jose, CA. 

Anthony Howell, age 17 and Joshua Howell, age 8 just won first place in their respective age category at the Amateur Athletic Union National (AAU) Karate Championship during the 4th of July week in Winston-Salem, North Carolina.  While this is the fourth National title for Anthony, it is the first time for Joshua.  In order to compete in the Nationals they both had to qualify at previous tournaments in Sacramento, California and Grants Pass, Oregon.  This year was out of the ordinary, there were two successive tournaments  in Grants Pass, Oregon.  The Regional Qualifier and the Shito Ryu World Championship.  Not only did Anthony and Joshua acquire first place at the Regional Qualifiers, but through all the hours of training and hard work, Anthony also captured first place at the Shito Ryu World Championship Tournament.  The Shito Ryu World Championship Tournament happens every two years and it is commonly held in Japan.  

Anthony has been involved in karate since he was 5.  This is the first year for Joshua.  Anthony has aspirations of competing in the Olympics. 

P.S. The AAU has not posted the results yet but Anthony is listed is listed in the following website after winning a different tournament. He was known in school as the Willow Glen (CA) Karate Kid.  http://www.ozawa-tournament.com/2003finals/sunjrkumite.htm


Early in the year, we established contact with Consolacion "Nana Conching" Orosa Mariano of Camarines Sur. She is the lady who was in communication with our aunt Maria Y. Orosa up until the outbreak of WW II in December of 1941. Nana Conching was a teenager and Tia Mary was with the Bureau of Food Science in Manila. Although they came from different provinces and had no known common ancestors, they considered themselves relatives. We are including our Camarines Sur brethren in our Orosa family website and one of these days we shall unravel the mystery of whether we are related or not. I do have specific plans to address this. Like the Batangas Orosa, the Camarines Orosas have traveled far and wide and have family members in New Zealand, from whom I have received pictures and information.

Speaking of the Camarines Orosas, our aspiring lawyer to be TJ Orosa has started to write the biography of their patriarch Victorio Orosa, the father of Nana Conching and TJ's great grandfather. 


Maria Y. Orosa:
After attempting to transcribe letters that Maria sent from Seattle, WA to her mother Juliana Y. "Lola Kanang" Orosa between 1918 and 1920, I gave up and simply scanned them. They are all in Tagalog and some words are archaic, no longer utilized. The letters are very instructive in at least two respects. One is the tone of respect Maria used. I have a few letters from Jose Y. Orosa to Lola Kanang and the language is similar. The other very revealing information is that Maria and her mother had a business going. Lola Kanang was sending various Batangas made merchandise like fine embroidery with Maria selling them in Seattle. She sent hundreds of dollars regularly back to Bauan! The biggest single remittance was $850. That is big bucks back in 1918.

Another rather amusing piece is that Maria advised in one of her letters for a sick relative to consume six raw eggs a day! The relative was not identified (it was not Lola Kanang), only referring to her as Tia. 1919 medicine! 


January 2003: 
Happy New Year. Its really not too late because the Chinese Lunar New Year is coming up. Of course you all still eat tikoy, right?

During the Martin L. King Holiday weekend in the US, we had the pleasure of having a mini-mini get together between Milette Orosa Uy, Cecille Orosa Drier, myself and a part of our families in Manhattan (New York City.) Our pictures are in the following page: New York Gathering 


November 2002: 
I am happy to publish a short piece by cousin Apolinario "Naring" Orosa. I asked Naring to write about his father Rafael and this is his first result which I entitled Memories by A. Orosa.


October 2002: 
We have several pictures to share and I've placed them in a single page: New Photos for October Thanks to Maria Christina "Diding" Orosa of Edinburgh and London for the pictures of Sixto Y. Orosa and his family. They are great oldies! 

There is a picture of the cover of Bride's magazine. We should be proud of the work of Janis Velez Folez who created the cover. Janis does her work in San Diego. 

There is also the wedding picture of Melissa Orosa "Mishi" Uy from Sydney. 

I have been corresponding with 82 year old Agustin "Tata Gustin" Orosa Sr. of Libmanan, Camarines Sur. He informed me that his sister Consolacion was in contact with Maria Y. Orosa and Jose Y. Orosa before the outbreak of WWII. Their correspondence intimated that the Batangas and Camarines Orosas are related.  Consolacion is living in Canaman, CS and I am  attempting to get in touch with her so jog her memory or see if there were any letters saved. This would be an exciting connection if we can establish it. You'll be the first to know!

I thought we would have a little fun and publish a letter written by Simplicio Agoncillo Orosa to his son Vicente (my father.) The letter was written in 1907 when Vicente was seventeen years old and completing his prep school in Cincinnati Ohio. See how well you do with the archaic Tagalog. Have fun! The link is: Simplicio to Vicente 


September 2002: My elder brother, Augusto "Toto"  Orosa, passed away Tuesday at the age of 83 years and eight months. I have composed a tribute to him at: Augusto Escobar Orosa 
Another tribute is from our cousin Rosalinda L. "Baby" Orosa. She is a writer for the Philippine Star.  Rosalinda L.Orosa's Tribute 


August 2002: There is a couple of exciting news. First is your chronicler's getting together with Fr. Agustin "Jojo" Orosa Jr. He belongs to the Camarines Sur branch and he gave me more information on his side of the family. Although we have not established a connection yet between the Camarines and the Batangas branches, it is getting more and more interesting. Fr. Jojo is with the Order of St. Camillus and is presently posted at St. Luke's hospital in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. We will also stop referring to Cabusao but instead use Camarines Sur. The reason is that the Orosas there live in several different towns - Cabusao, Libmanan and Naga. Fr. Jojo mentioned that the Camarines Orosas were adventurous, which sounds familiar. They have several that migrated to New Zealand, a place not yet inhabited by any Batangas Orosas. One of his uncles raised his family in Zamboanga.   

The other exciting event is a communication I received from Eldridge Marvin Aceron from the Basilio branch. He is a great great grandson of Basilio. The Acerons have their own web site. Visit them at http://aceron.blogspot.com/  


July 2002: Thanks to the yeoman efforts of Fermin "Mitoy" Orosa (officially my third cousin,) we now have a more complete roster of the Basilio and Santiago sides. Of the three brothers (Guillermo, Basilio and Santiago,) the heirs of Basilio are the most numerous, numbering at least 400. There is an undercount in the later generations that possibly could bring the total to around 450 or more, outnumbering the Guillermo side by as much as 100. The Santiago side is the smallest group among the three brothers but there may be a lot more we haven't accounted for yet. Thus there are approximately 800 Orosas that can trace themselves to these three brothers from Taal. This does not include the Orosas of Cabusao, Camarines Sur. We are more numerous than we originally thought. For the Basilio side roster (text only,) go to BASILIO OROSA For the Santiago side, go to Santiago Orosa To obtain an overview of the Orosa family lists (there are five,) follow the following link OROSA CLAN OVERVIEW Please send me a private email to correct errors or to make additions. Thank you! 

Now that we are actively researching the Orosa origins, we are turning up more and more Orosas. Would you believe that a security guard at Club Filipino in Green Hills said he went to school with some Orosas in Batangas. Then there is a Gregorio Orosa from Taal, information provided by Elma Orosa Paraiso. WHEW! 


May 2002: We have received a number of communications from individuals who have perused our web site. This is really gratifying. One result  is that we can call attention to a couple more links by Orosa descendants that would be of interest. The first is that of Lenore Lim. Her full name is Lenore Raquel-Santos Lim and her mother is Ella (we call her Tita Ely) Orosa Raquel-Santos, a daughter of Agaton Orosa and one of the pioneering women lawyers in the Philippines. Lenore is a New York artist and we invite you to visit  www.lenorelim.com

There is a one page photographic site authored by an Arnold Orosa, although we are not aware if he is a relation. Nevertheless  the site has got some beautiful and artistic pictures taken in and around Manila. ArnoldOrosa

I have compiled the roster for the Simplicio line in text only, without the pictures. This makes it easier to navigate and check for accuracy. Go to Orosa clan roster, text only Please send a private message to morosa@fuse.net for additions and corrections.

"Trivia" question of the month:
Who was the valedictorian of the Negros Occidental High School Class of 1932?
Who was the valedictorian of the Negros Occidental High School Class of 1933? (This person is still with us.) 


April 2002: TJ Orosa of the Camarines Sur branch has been diligently checking the (LDS) Latter Day Saints files for clues on the origins of the Camarines Orosas. He has gone back six generations to an Antonio Orosa. His great great grandfather Placido's father's name was Antonio but no additional information exists re Antonio. Placido was born in Cabusao in 1872, which makes him a contemporary of Agaton and Simplicio, who were from Taal. Taal to Cabusao or vice versa is a very long distance 130 years ago. Antonio would have been a contemporary of Basilio and Guillermo (and Santiago.) Here is TJ's other interesting discovery. There is an Antonio Orosa from Oaxaca (that's in Mexico) during the same period. Could the Mexican have been the forebear of the Cabusao Orosas? Stay tuned. Thanks TJ!


March 2002:  Thanks to persistent research, Fermin "Mitoy" Orosa has discovered that indeed there is a third brother to Guillermo and Basilio, named Santiago. We will be including the Santiago branch from hereon. As word spreads of our quest, there have been a number of reports of more Orosa branches. There is a Gregorio Orosa clan that has been reported by Elma Orosa Paraiso, the youngest daughter of Agaton. But a connection hasn't been established. An interesting one is with an Orosa community that hails from Cabusao, Camarines Sur, first reported by Ramon S. Orosa. Interesting because the Orosa groups at first didn't stray far from the original home base of Taal. The various branches all first migrated to within less than 30 kilometers or so, like Alfonso, Cavite; San Pablo, Laguna; and of course to Bauan. The furthest they went was across the straight to Mindoro. Cabusao is hundreds of kilometers away, fronting the Pacific. This has opened up a new vista requiring further research