Asian Journal- The Filipino-American Community Newspaper

Kayamanan ng Lahi celebrates 20 years of dance and music. 

In 1981, Joel Jacinto, a San Francisco native born to Filipino immigrant parents, arrived at UCLA and immediately became involved in Filipino organizations in campus. Having a natural love for Philippine dance and music, he joined Sayaw Ng Silangan, the cultural proponent of Samahang Pilipino. Joel and his girlfriend, Avecita Ramos, immersed themselves in various aspects of the student organization, where they served as dance coordinators. 

It’s always been Ave’s dream of sharing Filipino culture through dance and performing arts. “At UCLA, we were involved in Samahang Pilipino,” said Ave. “We were the dance coordinators during our whole time there. We always did PCN (Philippine Cultural Night). When we graduated, we wanted to continue to share our culture and tradition in dance and music.”

In 1990, Joel and Avecita realized two of their greatest dreams- they got married and later that year, co-founded Kayamanan Ng Lahi Philippine Folk Arts. Together with another couple, Boy Angos and Barbara Ele, who were alumni of the Bayanihan Dance Company and who shared their passion, they envisioned Kayamanan ng Lahi to become a folk arts organization dedicated to the preservation, presentation and promotion of the richness and diversity of Philippine culture through dance and music.

Explaining why they organized Kayamanan ng Lahi, Ave explained to Asian Journal, “There’s this basic need of knowing where you come from. You want to learn about it and search for it.”

Joel explained further, “Kayamanan Ng Lahi  means “treasures of our people.” Basically our mission is really to do the three  P’s. We all do it: preserve, promote, and present traditional Philippine culture through dance and music. And we try to do this by providing leadership in the field on Philippine dance, by providing educational programs that are relevant and appropriate, and by creating artistic presentations that are representative. We’re talking about using culture to bring people together to share, specially to Filipino-Americans, who may or may not have grown up in the tradition. So what we are doing is trying to pass it on.”

On November 20, Kayamanan ng Lahi will be celebrating 20 years of passing on Filipino culture thru dance and music, with an exciting show aptly entitled ‘Salin Lahi’ – Pass it On. The special anniversary performance highlights and punctuates Kayamanan’s inspirations and shared experiences, including the group’s own choreographic contributions that reflect the Filipino-American aesthetic through which a legacy of history, traditions and cultural heritage are conveyed and transformed.