PRESS RELEASE AASC –077 – 2017 PHILCONGEN LOS ANGELES SUPPORTS RENEWAL OF BACOLOD-LONG BEACH SISTER CITY RELATIONSHIP Photo shows Cultural Officer Wilma Bautista together with the City of Long Beach Officials and Sister City Officials of Long Beach and Bacolod. Also in the picture are the officers of Long Beach-Bacolod Association Los Angeles, 14 July 2017 – The Philippine Consulate General in Los Angeles participated in the relaunching of the Bacolod-Long Beach Sister City Relationship held on 07 July 2017 at One World Trade Center in Long Beach, California. The Philippine Sister City Delegation, headed by Bacolod City Administrator John Orola was composed of Councilor Em Legaspi-Ang, Chairperson of Bacolod Tourism Committee and Councilor Caesar Distrito of Finance Committee; while Long Beach delegation was led by Mr. Tyler Curley, Legislative Deputy of Mayor Robert Garcia and Ms. Mary E. Barton, past President of Sister Cities of Long Beach, Inc. The Consulate General was represented by Cultural Officer Wilmina G. Bautista and Director of the Philippine Trade and Investment Center Jose S. Dinsay. In April 2017, the Bacolod City Council passed a resolution approving the reactivation of the sister city relations with Long Beach. Long Beach Mayor Robert Garcia received Bacolod’s initiative to revive the said partnership with great appreciation. During the ceremony, officials discussed economic development plans, investment, trade and cultural exchanges, which will benefit the residents of both cities. Potentials for collaboration abound in this reinvigorated relationship. Bacolod is the Philippines’ sugar capital and Long Beach as the Pacific gateway to America. There is a large Filipino-American community in Long Beach and the Greater Los Angeles area who are from the Visayas region, particularly a sizeable number from Bacolod and the rest of the Negros Island Region. The city was recently named as national hall of fame awardee for the cleanest and greenest highly urbanized city in the Philippines. Long Beach hosts the biggest seaport on the U.S. West Coast, while one of the busiest aviation hubs in central Philippines is the Bacolod-Silay International Airport located within the Metro Bacolod area. Both cities are recognized as educational centers in their respective regions. The California State University at Long Beach is eager to have student exchange programs with the University of Negros Occidental-Recoletos and the University of St. La Salle- Bacolod. Originally established in 1994, the Bacolod-Long Beach sisterhood remained dormant for almost two decades. Upon the initiative of Mr. Jose Gamboa, a Filipino-American based in Northern California and Mr. Joey Montalvo, who heads a Negros-based advocacy group, the sister-city partnership was revived through the Long Beach- Bacolod Association, Inc. (LBBAI).END. Mr. Tyler Curley, Legislative Deputy, Office of Mayor Robert Garcia Ms. Mary E. Barton, Past President, Sister Cities of Long Beach, Inc. talked about the history, programs and mission of Sister Cities of Long Beach Head of the Bacolod Delegation, City Administrator John Orola (Left) and Councilor Em L. Ang (Right), Chairperson of Bacolod Tourism Committee in their presentations of City’s plans and affirmation of Bacolod City to the sister city programs. .