Overcome with nationalistic pride over Filipino presence in this city, Nevada District Court Judge Cheryl Nora Moss said she is proud to be a Filipino-American.
"In my eight years serving as a Judge, I am proud to see our Filipino-American community grow larger and become more prominent in the Asian American community here," she said.
Judge Moss made the statement during the first-ever Fiesta Filipino gala night held at Treasure Island Hotel in Las Vegas last Saturday, June 20th.
That night, the judge accepted, on behalf of her mother, a posthumous award as one of the outstanding Filipino American community leaders of Nevada.
Ten other Filipino residents of Las Vegas were given recognition for their various professional, cultural and leadership contributions to this city.
The gala night was the conclusion of the Fiesta Filipino celebration to commemorate the 111th Philippine Independence. The two-part event was organized by the National Federation of Filipino American Associations, Nevada Chapter (NaFFAA NV).
"Thank you to NaFFAA for their hard work and successful efforts to make this year memorable. It makes me feel proud to be Filipino American," Judge Moss said.
Close to 5,000 Filipinos along with their friends and family flocked to the Sammy Davis Festival Plaza in Las Vegas for the first part of the festivities. Aside from local Las Vegas residents, the whole day event was also attended by visitors from neighbor cities in California , Arizona and Utah .
There are more than 100,000 Filipinos living in Las Vegas , making these residents one of the largest cultural groups in the city. But this is the first time that Filipinos grouped together to celebrate the Philippine Independence day with a grand festivity.
NaFFAA NV had said it aims to hold the Fiesta Filipino event in Las Vegas annually every month of June. This is expected to unite Filipinos to make them "more visible" in the community, it added.
Last month, Filipinos were honored by Las Vegas mayor Oscar Goodman during the Asian American Heritage month celebration. NaFFAA NV was also recognized by for empowering the Filipino-American community in Las Vegas.
Judge Moss, in her statement, noted that the first annual Fiesta Filipino celebration was a good tool in bringing all Filipinos in Las Vegas together.
"Our cultural heritage and distinctiveness as Filipino-Americans makes us a strong, close-knit group because we value our family and our friendships," she said
Since 2001, Judge Moss has been serving at Eighth Judicial District Court of Clark County , Nevada which has jurisdiction over the city of Las Vegas . Prior to this post, she was elected in 2000 in the Family Division of the District Court. She is an alumna of George Washington University and the Columbus School of Law in Washington, DC.
While born and schooled in the US, Judge Moss’ parents are both Filipinos. They were both Philippine-educated physicians who were also known in Las Vegas for their professional contributions.
In fact, her mother, Dr. Rena Nora, was one of the national pioneers in the field of problem gambling. She held the post of Chief of Psychiatry in the VA Health Care System both in New Jersey and Las Vegas, Nevada. Before her death last year, Dr. Nora was clinical professor in the Department of Psychiatry of the University of Nevada - School of Medicine . She was also the Director of the outpatient program for pathological gambling at the VA Southern Nevada Healthcare System in Las Vegas.
( Published on June 25 in Asian Journal Las Vegas p. A1 )
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