by Angela Faye Cordova
she/her/hers
It’s interesting to think about the fact that something I had no intention to join in the first place would become so near and dear to my heart. Some background: When I was a first year, I resigned myself to focusing on my academics, believing I had already had my share of extracurriculars in high school. I grew up in San Bernardino, a predominantly Hispanic- and African-American community. I never really found it that important to be Filipino. It was my ethnicity, but not my culture. As a result, I never thought I would be in a Pilipino Cultural Night, let alone as a dance coordinator.
I was introduced into SPCN by Kappa Psi Epsilon (a Pinay sorority I ended up joining, but that’s a whole other story), and I was honestly too painfully shy to talk to more than 3 people in the suite I was in, Moro (now known as Mindanao). The very first time I learned about the people of our suite, however, I wondered why I never knew that there were different groups in the Philippines, be it religious, ethnolinguistic, etc. It sparked my curiosity to learn more, along with Pilipino-American history I had been learning through Kappas.
The road to get there was a little bumpy, but standing on Royce stage for the 42nd SPCN: “Para Sa’yo” truly was the first time my heart swelled with the pride of being a Pilipina. It was a feeling I never wanted to forget. When I applied for the 43rd SPCN committee as one of the leaders of the same place I wanted to run away from before, I thought I would say no if I got it. When I got the call from Frenz, however, my heart could not say no.
Since that call, my SPCN journey has given me so much. It gave me a suite and committee with irreplaceable memories and lifelong friendships. It gave me a place to know more about my culture, and to challenge myself to want to know and grow even more. It gave me a wider perspective about our communities. It gave me the desire to help others know about our culture, and to challenge them in the same way when learning about our struggles and triumphs. It gave me the confidence to say that I am a Pilipina. It gave me a purpose.
Though the 43rd SPCN will not be coming to life on Royce stage, I know (as much as I have cried about it) that the heart of SPCN lies in the community it serves. I do not envision myself returning to the space in leadership, but that does not change my feelings about it. I know that SPCN will be a home I can return to, always and forever.