In July 32 years ago, Dr. Charlie and Chona Montesines-Sonido established the Hawaii Filipino Chronicle (HFC), a newspaper born under the premise that Hawaii’s Filipino community can tell their own stories, and that storytelling and data-based reporting can spur a new generation into action and harness empowerment.
The Sonidos aimed to front a new contrarian offering to the then negative reporting by the mainstream media on Hawaii’s Filipino community — particularly on its immigrant population – that often frustrated, even angered Filipinos throughout the 1980s and earlier decades.
“We started the Hawaii Filipino Chronicle to give a variety of communication channels where the Filipino community can voice their sentiments, achievements, aspirations and challenges. We started it to showcase our culture and perpetuate our traditions. We started the Chronicle to advance, advocate and empower Filipinos in the community,” Montesines-Sonido said, who is also HFC’s managing editor.
The creation of the HFC signaled to the community then, in the early 1990s – a community still fragmented – that as individuals in pursuit of a better life that they are not alone. Further, that there is a mechanism to gather these multiple individual voices and share them in the medium of an ethnic newspaper. So, began an ambitious and transformative project to fashion a new narrative of one of Hawaii’s largest communities on the rise.
Upon HFC’s launching, in a smart PR and costly move, tens of thousands of Filipino households received a free copy of the newspaper via mail for several months that helped to make an immediate promotional impact. Soon after, the HFC could be found at various outlets throughout the state. Today, a free e-copy of the HFC can be accessed digitally in addition to a hard copy at outlets or by subscription. It has been published weekly and biweekly with thematic supplements throughout each year.
To advance their vision, the HFC publishers enlisted like-minded mostly Filipino writers, community leaders, academics, professionals from various fields, activists, cultural experts — who all shares a vision for community engagement and advancement.
With a burning curiosity and investigative skill, HFC reporters set out to find answers on issues that the rest of the state and international community face, but with specific focus on what Filipinos think, how they are personally impacted, what’s in it for their community and where the Filipino community wants to be. What the HFC uniquely presented was placing a Filipino context on the relevant issues of the day in the newspaper’s editorials, cover stories, news, features and columns.
HFC’s increasing popularity drew experts in various fields, local politicians, organizations and businesses in the greater Hawaii community to use the newspaper as a springboard to target the Filipino community. They started to submit commentaries, news and regular columns which not only informed the HFC’s target audience to have greater awareness of the issues and events happening across the state, but it also stimulated active participation of Filipinos outside of their communities to become partners in the greater community.
This transition from the Filipino community being a mostly insular community of the 1980s to what later became a movement in the 1990s called “mainstreaming,” opened the doors to increased Filipino political engagement, appointments to commissions, boards and more Filipinos themselves seeking public office. The HFC was an integral part of that movement and reported on it in their early column, “On the Move” which also focused on Filipinos climbing up the corporate ladder.
“Today as a resource and reference material, the mainstream media, academics and students often tap the HFC for the newspaper’s extensive reservoir of chronicling the Filipino community over decades,” Montesines-Sonido said.
She adds, during each election, the HFC has been a credible data source on the issues and political candidates. “Candidates, both Filipinos and non-Filipinos, reach out to the HFC to share their platform with the Filipino community, including those running for the highest offices like governor, mayor, the U.S. Senate and House. For decades each election year, we conducted our own extensive election polling of the Filipino community that drew attention from candidates and the local mainstream media,” Montesines-Sonido said.
HFC’s impact on the Filipino community and state
HFC Associate editor Dennis Galolo said, “Two instances come to mind in which the Chronicle has benefitted both the Filipino community and the State. First, during election year, the Chronicle has played an important role in introducing aspiring political candidates to our readers. One-on-one interviews, columns and personal profiles provide our readers with more knowledge on the various issues and platforms that these candidates support. The result is a better informed and smarter voting populace.
“Also, during the COVID pandemic, hurricanes, floods and other emergencies, the Chronicle was a source of information for the Filipino community, particularly for those who do not speak English. The Chronicle got the word out to our readers promptly and efficiently,” Galolo said.
Dr. Edna Bautista, Ewa Beach, a staff member since 1995, said “Our Filipino community has benefited from our newspaper as a reliable source of information that bridges Hawaii’s longtime locals of Filipino heritage to newcomers from the Philippines. The Chronicle covers state stories (news, personality profiles, cultural events and more) and features articles from the Philippines and the mainland. I think our readers appreciate the variety of information in our newspaper that addresses our specific interests as Filipinos.”
HFC’s community engineering
Decade after decade, HFC staff transitioned with the times, were involved in community engineering that helped to keep Filipinos alive during COVID-19, sound alarm bells that there is a physician shortage crisis in the state, guide newly arrived immigrants informing them legally how to become a full-fledged citizen and push hard for political representation to have a seat at the table of political power. The HFC was a source of information after the deadly Maui brushfires that disproportionately devasted the Filipino community. It helped direct this community to available resources and updated them on the latest assistance from the government.
HFC’S community engineering is anchored in the power of anecdote, of personal stories told by the many Filipino politicians HFC interviewed like former Gov. Ben Cayetano, the only governor in the U.S. or community leaders like Eddie Flores Jr and Roland Casamina who through HFC solicited the community’s support for the construction of the largest Filipino Community Center outside of the Philippines. The dream of the FilCom Center was eventually realized and is situated in the historic Filipino plantation town, Waipahu.
Central to its goal of community engineering, the HFC has done cover stories on diverse and relevant issues like immigration reform, the opioid crisis, student debt, Asian hate crime, the outpricing of locals from paradise, rent shortage, inflation, wars, poverty, recessions, homelessness, Medicare, Social Security, high cost of prescription drugs, domestic abuse, mass shootings and gun violence, police brutality and policing reform, universal healthcare, underrepresentation of Filipinos in higher education in Hawaii, growing suicide epidemic among youth, mental illness, preparing for retirement, small businesses in Hawaii, Hawaii tourism, Filipinos and organized labor, Hawaii frontline medical workers, unemployment, infrastructure, top careers for students, high cost of Hawaii real estate, and AI and tech impact on jobs, to name a few.
Cultural narrative
Filipino scholars have played an enriching role in the HFC, scholars who share their expertise in Filipino culture to be passed on generationally – the unique Pasko practices, the Catholic Santacruzan and Undas traditions, preservation of Philippine languages Tagalog, Ilocano, Cebuano, and education on Philippines history and book reviews written by historical and contemporary Filipino writers.
“I enjoy writing stories about the Filipino culture and traditions. One of my most memorable was a cock-fighting article that I wrote because I was able to attend a live cockfight in Waialua on a Sunday morning. I also wrote an article on Filipino myths and legends for our Halloween issue. I learned a lot about legends and folklore from the Philippines that I never knew about,” Galolo said.
Highlighting the lives of inspirational Filipino role models
HFC readers say highlighting Filipino role models has been inspiring the community for generations. It has bas been one of the most effective community engineering toward empowerment, Montesines-Sonido said. “We’ve interviewed Filipino trailblazers like Lee Ellen Buenconsejo-Lum, MD, FAAFP who was the interim Dean of the University of Hawaiʻi Mānoa (UHM) John A. Burns School of Medicine (JABSOM), the first dean of Filipino ancestry at UHM and national leaders like Loida Nicolas Lewis, the widow of TLC Beatrice founder Reginald Lewis. Loida later became CEO of the billion dollars company. We’ve done reporting on Rep. Robert Cortez Scott the first and currently only sitting member of Congress of Filipino ancestry who hails from Virginia and recently interviewed Ysabel Jurado who made history this General Election by becoming the first Filipino elected to the Los Angeles City Council.”
Bautista said, “As a writer/photographer for HFC, I get to meet a lot of Filipinos who are doing positive things to make our community proud–from entrepreneurs and artists to government officials and religious leaders. I am honored to be able to write about them and share their stories with others. As a foodie, I enjoyed writing about Fr. Leo Patalinghug, the “Filipino cooking priest.” He is funny, talented, smart and inspirational. I was lucky to eat his food, too.”
Community events
The HFC has been an information center for community events like the annual Filipino Fiesta and Flores Parade, the Ohana Medical Mission Charity Ball, Doctors on Stage musical concerts to benefit the Bayanihan Clinic Without Walls, the annual Filipino Food Week, the annual Taste of Waipahu, the annual Philippine Independence Day Gala (Kalayaan Gala), Pasko sa FilCom, Pasko Parol Making at HOMA, Pinay Powerhouse III, annual Great Malunggay Festival and Parade, welcome banquets for Philippine presidents and other dignitaries, and multitudes of Filipino club events.
Labor of love, surviving through tough times
The 1990s saw the acceleration of the internet that marked the beginning of hard times for most print media. Many newspapers were at the brink of discontinuation, forced to scale back, merge or fold altogether. “The Chronicle should have been closed, by every measure, a long time ago. As a business model, the print media, especially the ethnic media, has been overshadowed by big corporate media and has seen its better days,” Montesines-Sonido said. She cites reports that in the last few years, after the pandemic, over 2,000 newspapers have either closed or merged leaving 1,300 communities without local news coverage.
The Sonidos absorbed financial losses to keep the HFC running and remained committed to their vision. “It [HFC] serves as a symbol of perseverance and our commitment to the community. Despite the overshadowing presence of larger corporate media, the print media, particularly ethnic media, still plays a vital role in sharing diverse voices. In recent years, while over 2,000 newspapers have closed or merged, this situation presents an opportunity to rekindle the spirit of local journalism and ensure that even the most remote communities remain connected and informed.”
Dr. Sonido elaborated, “While the Chronicle may not follow a traditional business model, its value as a community service is undeniable. We believe it plays a crucial role as the voice and advocate for our community, fostering connection and support that goes beyond financial metrics. Supporting the Chronicle means investing in a vital resource for our neighborhoods. And this is what matters to us. The Chronicle is a labor of love. A love for our community and our people!”
HFC Scholarship
In observance of the HFC’s 27th anniversary in 2019, the Sonidos established the HFC scholarship. Dr. Bautista who served as HFC journalism scholarship chair, said “The Chronicle reached out to our Filipino youth by offering journalism and mass communication majors a scholarship. Since 2019, HFC awarded $10,000 in scholarships which helped our young local Filipino college students financially, especially during the pandemic. Not only did they gain media experience by writing for our newspaper, but they told me that they also learned more about their Filipino heritage.”
HFC readers’ anniversary message
Nieva Elizaga, a community leader, has been reading the HFC since the newspaper’s start. She congratulated the HFC on its 32nd anniversary. “It has been a labor of love for Chona and Charlie {Dr Sonido}. Thank you for publishing a newspaper that has kept its high quality all these years. Your editorials are always well written and thought provoking. The whole paper is worth reading. Keep publishing it.” What she would like to see are more articles on places to visit in the Philippines. It seems there are more and more spots to see.
Mary Ann Cabales, Health Information Specialist, East Honolulu, said “the HFC kept readers such as me informed on news and other important events particularly from the Philippines. In fact, I would like to see more news coverage about politics, celebrities and other important people from the Philippines.”
Genevieve Cadiz, business owner of a beauty salon and jewelry store, Mililani, said “the HFC has been publishing community events for years. Most Filipino organizations have their yearly calendar of events published in the HFC calendar. This is one way of connecting ourselves with the Filipino community. Attending organization events like the installation of new officers is a way to meet new and old friends and relatives.”
The HFC invites Filipino clubs, professional, civic and religious organizations to submit their events which are posted in the HFC calendar. Events in the greater community of importance or could be of interest to the Filipino community are also published. Montesines-Sonido said “it’s a way to foster community engagement which is key to community unity and participation.”
Cadiz adds, “It’s common at Filipino events for politicians and state officials to attend. So, it’s an opportunity for our Filipino community to get to know them. I would like to see more stories written in our own language like “Ilocano” or “Tagalog” so the old-timers like the Sakadas can understand more what they are reading. I also admire some of your staff who are friendly and assertive but very approachable.”
Rowena Salvador, retired, Moanalua said, “I like to read about the Filipino community on the mainland that the Chronicle does often, featuring the movers and shakers and Filipino communities in California and other states like Nevada. Our local Hawaii Filipino community is all over the mainland so it’s interesting to know about the communities they’ve moved to.”
Message of Gratitude
The Sonidos said they would like to extend their heartfelt gratitude to the Filipino community for their unwavering support throughout the years. “Your encouragement and support have been instrumental in our journey, and we truly appreciate everything you have done for us. We also want to express our sincere thanks to all our advertisers, friends, and supporters. Your contributions have played a crucial role in making our celebration of the 32nd Anniversary possible. This milestone would not have been reached without your generosity and commitment.
“Moreover, we want to highlight the remarkable efforts of our dedicated staff. Their hard work and relentless dedication have been the backbone of our success. These individuals have spent countless hours, often working late into the night, to ensure that we consistently publish high-quality issues of the Chronicle. Their passion and perseverance are what allow us to serve our community and share important stories each week. Thank you all for being part of this incredible journey! Please continue to support us as we journey together to shape a brighter community for all of us!”
The HFC has garnered multiple awards including the Small Business Administration’s Journalist of the Year in the City and County of Honolulu in 2006. It has been awarded accolades from the Hawaii State Senate and State House for achievement in journalism.
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