Vol. 36. No.43 A Publication of UMA, Inc Oct – Dec 2013 Editor: Daniel Gomes, 2021 Ptarmigan Drive #1,Walnut Creek, Ca 94595 E-Mail:[email protected] Maria Fatima Gomes HAPPY NEW YEAR! The very best of wishes to you and your family for much happiness, good health, and God’s Blessings for 2014. On November 11th we had our 2013 Annual General Meeting; it was a productive and an enjoyable gathering much like the good old days when the chapters took turns to host. There was good food (Dim Sum) and a nice long lunch for socializing. The meeting started with the confirmation of Pauline de Assis as our new UMA Secretary to replace Denise Pereira Webster who had to resign for personal reasons. Special thanks go to Denise for her great service to UMA and to Pauline for stepping up to help us out. UMA NEWS BULLETIN – Winter Issue 2013 Page 1 of 32 President’s Message At the first half of the meeting we gave a detailed report on UMA to bring all attendees up to date on the very successful year we had, including our financial details, information on our activities, and all other committee work. In the second half of the meeting we set up our list of Events for 2014 with chairpersons for the events, and we worked on and approved our Fiscal Year Budget for October 1st, 2013 to September 30th, 2014. We still need one or two people to step up to chair the UMA Family Picnic or we will not be able to have this event. Last year we had the UMA Family Picnic in August. Please contact me at 925-482-0711 or email me at [email protected] if you can help. PROPOSED EVENTS FOR 2014 Dinner Dance – Saturday, February 15th, 2014 Game Day – Saturday, March 1st, 2014 All Day Social UMA Mid-Year Board Meeting MCC Dia de Sao Joao Celebration Thanksgiving Mass Family Picnic Golf Tournament Noite Dinner Dance MCC Our Lady of Fatima Celebration Lawn Bowling Tournament UMA Annual General Meeting UMA still needs your help to continue to increase our roster of younger members. If your children do not live in California, they can still be a member and enjoy being connected to their heritage for just $10 as a Subscription Member. If they live in California, bring them, their cousins, and friends to UMA functions to participate and have fun. From positive experiences come the understanding and appreciation for the importance of staying connected with siblings, relatives, and friends with similar values and cultural background. It is vital that we encourage them to join UMA and step up to create and participate in events that they enjoy. A cultural organization is a means of passing on history, culture, heritage, and sense of belonging, but the organization can only get this done through its active members. Introduce the younger members of your family to our UMA Website, www.uma-casademacau.com, and UMA Facebook, www.facebook.com/UMA.UMA, to see color photos of our past events and use our links to visit related sites to read about the History of Macau and Portugal or see the UNESCO Heritage Sites of Macau. Better still, have them become Subscription Members. Our Subscription Members access their UMA Bulletin from our UMA Website, www.uma- casademacau.com/index.php/login, instead of getting the hard copies in the mail. This saves us the cost of printing and mailing, so the "Subscription Member" has an annual due of only $10. This is a perfect opportunity for our members to have their children and grandchildren, age 18 and over, join UMA as they are very comfortable using the internet. Our UMA Application Form is on page 5 of this bulletin. You can also download and print the application from our UMA Website using the following link: http://www.uma-casademacau.com/files/6013/5423/3054/Membership_Application_2013.pdf UMA NEWS BULLETIN – Winter Issue 2013 Page 2 of 32 UMA NEWS BULLETIN – Winter Issue 2013 Page 3 of 32 UMA NEWS BULLETIN – Winter Issue 2013 Page 4 of 32 UMA, Inc. União Macaense Americana Application for Membership Date: _____________________________________ Name: Name of Spouse: Address: City: State: Zip: Email: Tel: Home: Bus/Cell I select the following membership category: Regular $20.00/year Senior (age 65+) $15.00/year Non US Resident $25.00/year Subscription (no hard copy Bulletin - view online) $10.00/year Young Adult (ages 18 to 25) $10.00/year Payment enclosed Payment already made to: ______________________________________ Please do not remit payment by wire transfer as the bank charges a transfer fee of $12.00 (or more). Signature: ______________________________________________Name of recommending UMA member Please make check payable to: UMA, Inc. Send application & payment to: Francis Carion, Treasurer 1112 Rockledge Lane Apt 7 Walnut Creek CA 94595-2823 For Club Use Only Date Dues Received:________________ Date of Directors’ Approval:__________ Welcome Letter:____ UMA NEWS BULLETIN – Winter Issue 2013 Page 5 of 32 Maria Fatima Gomes The OPENING CEREMONY of the Encontro was at a banquet held on December 1st at the Grand Ballroom of the Grand Hyatt, presided by His Excellency Dr. Fernando Chui Sai On, Chief Executive of Macau SAR, pictured third from left in the photo on the right. On Monday, December 2nd, the day started at 11 AM with the Ceremony at the Monument of the Macanese Communities of the Diaspora. Pictured are our members with the UMA wreath. UMA NEWS BULLETIN – Winter Issue 2013 Page 6 of 32 2013 MACAU ENCONTRO At 3 PM on December 2nd there was the “Presentation of the role of Macau in the economic and trade relations between China and the Portuguese speaking countries” by Rita Botelho dos Santos followed by the Debate on the “Macanese Identity” at the Auditorium of the Permanent Secretariat of the “FIT Center”. On Tuesday, December 3rd, there was the Meeting of the Macanese Communities Council followed by the Standing Committee; and a superb Macaense lunch held at APOMAC. At 6 PM there was the Reception at the Residence of the Consul General of Portugal in Macau, Dr. Vitor Sereno, for the Presidents and Directors of the Casas. Dr. Vitor Sereno is pictured with our UMA Directors: Flavia Greubel, Maria Gomes, Marie Guterres, and Joanne Segovia in the photo below. UMA NEWS BULLETIN – Winter Issue 2013 Page 7 of 32 2013 MACAU ENCONTRO On Wednesday, December 4th, there was the Cultural Session organized by the International Institute of Macau with the presentation of new editions and interventions on “The Cultural Role of the “CASAS DE MACAU”. Pictured below are speakers Jorge Forjaz, Jorge Rangel, Stuart Braga, and Jim Silva. At 5 PM there was the Solemn Session commemorative of the 142nd Anniversary of the APIM and the 80 years of the Kindergarten “D. José da Costa Nunes” followed by “Chá Gordo” organized by the “Confraria da Gastronomia Macaense”. Flavia Greubel and Virginia Xavier were our UMA recipients of the Gastronomia awards. On Thursday, December 5th, there was the Photo Session at the Ruins of St. Paul. Pictured below are Joanne Segovia in the left photo and Allison Brekke in the right photo holding our UMA Flag. UMA NEWS BULLETIN – Winter Issue 2013 Page 8 of 32 2013 MACAU ENCONTRO At 6 PM there was the Mass and Te Deum at the Cathedral. The two young priests Fr. Brian Nunes and Fr. William Hubbard are members of UMA; they were co-celebrants with the Bishop of Macau. After the Mass there was a Gathering for the younger folks. Pictured are our members: Chelsea and Emily Wood in the left photo, and Joseph Rosario and Allison Brekke standing leftmost in the front row on the right photo. On Friday, December 6th, there was the “Cozinhaçam maquista pa jôvi-jôvi” with the collaboration of the “Instituto de Formaçao Turistica” followed by a beautifully presented delicious lunch of Macanese food. UMA NEWS BULLETIN – Winter Issue 2013 Page 9 of 32 2013 MACAU ENCONTRO On Saturday, December 7th, there was the Dinner Party, hosted by the Macau Government Tourist Office which was the closing event of the Encontro “MACAU 2013”, held at the Grand Ballroom of the Grand Hyatt Hotel. Below are photos of Dr. Jose Luis de Sales Marques, President of the Conselho das Comunidades Macaenses receiving our UMA gift and presenting his gift to us. On Sunday, December 8th, some of us went on to Hong Kong and enjoyed the lovely “Chá Gordo” at Club Lusitano in Hong Kong. Pictured second row from right: Dr. Rufino Ramos of IIM, Mrs. Jose Luis de Sales Marques; Luiz Souza, President of Club Lusitano; and Dr. Jose Luis de Sales Marques, President of CCM. On Monday, December 9th, we had a lovely friendly day of Lawn Bowling at the Club de Recreio, thanks to Dr. Albert Rodrigues and Peter Souza who planned the day for us. The UMA Lawn Bowlers started with lunch then had a game against the Lawn Bowlers of Recreio. After the first game we had a delightful “Tea” followed by a second game. We ended the day with a lovely dinner for about 40 with the members of Club de Recreio. Pictured to the right are the UMA bowlers. UMA NEWS BULLETIN – Winter Issue 2013 Page 10 of 32 IT'S ALL 'BOUT BOWLIN' October 26, 2013 Pauline de Assis It's been a while since the UMA Bulletin has had news about our true blue bowling enthusiasts, don't you know - yeah?! Yes indeed, while there's been plenty of news on parties, anniversaries, weddings and cultural articles, it's been silent on one of the most interesting and much enjoyed sport among our members; that, of course, is lawn bowling.