i wanted to do this cultural energizer with all of you to share the love and stories i have for and of my grandfather.

if you'd like, please write down an ancestor of your choosing (doesn't even have to be a person, can be an item or a place) and if comfortable, share anything that reminds you of them in this padlet.

<3 peer mentor hal

"my grandfather was a storyteller. i say was because of his wavering capacity inhibited by the unfortunate combination of a brain tumor the doctors identified as meningioma and blindness in one eye. he was a storyteller - a good one, too. he introduced me to philippine history and allowed me to ask as many questions as i wanted. i felt selfish to want the version of him that i grew up with. regardless, my selfishness has led me to simultaneously preserve and invent memories [due to his influence]."

i linked this beatles song, because i often heard this song in the car whenever he drove my family around. miss you dearly.

- dion

This year it will be her 4 years anniversary. She made some of the best food, like her sloppy joes and her dulce enchiladas. She would cook it for me and my cousin when I went to their house

I miss very much and I hope she is very proud of not just me but my family.

There aren’t enough words in the English language to describe the woman she is and the impact she has made on my life. My grandma is one of the most strong-willed and determined individuals I know, and for that reason she is one of my biggest role models. As a South Korean immigrant, moving here with my dad when he was just two, I am convinced that my grandma can quite literally do anything she puts her mind to. After her husband, my grandpa, passed when my father was only eight, she basically single handily raised my dad. Moving to the states not knowing a word of English, she had to adapt quickly and was willing to do whatever she could to make a life for herself and her son here. For these reasons, and so so many more, my halmoni is the ancestor I chose to honor today and will forever honor her legacy.

-Kailie Y.

She reminds me of the Philippines because I’ve only been once! And that vacation was the first and last time I ever saw her. She lives eternally in my family’s heart. :)

Beyond his incredible service, my lolo was a man of wisdom, laughter, and love. His stories were legendary, his advice invaluable, and his presence larger than life. He was the biggest Manny Pacquiao fan I ever knew. He cared for me as a child, and when the time came, I took care of him until I no longer could.

He was the first person who came to mind with this cultural energizer. Though he passed in 2018, it still feels like just yesterday he was here.