Vol Iii Luso American

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In Memory of Luis Nunes

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Consul General Farewell

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Luso-American Fraternal Federation Official Visits

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Luso-American Fraternal Federation Annual Picnic

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Luso-American Fraternal Federation Presidential Testimonials

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Luso-American Fraternal Federation 20-30’s Activities

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Luso-American Education Foundation Annual Conference

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Luso-American Education Foundation Anniversary

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Luso-American Education Foundation 2009 Scholarship Awards

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Luso-American Education Foundation Youth Summer Camp

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Portuguese Continental Union Annual Convention

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Portuguese Continental Union Activities

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Luso-American Education Foundation (East) Annual Conference

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Sociedade Portuguesa Rainha Santa Isabel Official Visits

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Ron Gill Scholarship Award

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Sales Representatives

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e were nearing a long weekend, one of those when our friend Luis Nunes used to gather his entire family and friends and travel throughout the state of California, and it did not matter if he was traveling north or south because the Nunes family has friends everywhere. But this weekend would be different and full of sadness. In a matter of minutes the tragic news traveled throughout California, East Coast, Portugal and to other countries, and the shock was so intense that it seemed like the world had come to a stop to reflect on our friend’s life. No one wanted to believe how this tragic accident occurred. No one wanted to believe that our friend left us, but the truth was, it was time for him to go. To the Luso family, where Luis Nunes had a large number of friends, the news came to us with a strong feeling of loss and sadness. We lost a great friend and a true fraternalist, a great server of our organization. Luis Nunes served the society in various capacities: Luso-American Fraternal Federation Board of Directors (August 1994 to August 1996) Luso-American Fraternal Federation Advisory Board (August 1996 to April 1997) Luso-American Life Insurance Society Board of Directors (April 1997 to April 2008) Luso-American Life Insurance Society Advisory Board (October 2008 until May 22, 2009) President of his Council (Council 65B of Tulare ) for many years. He leaves his wife Carmel, sons Mark and Steven, daughter Nancy, daughter-in-law Sandra and grandson Hayden, a large number of friends in California, the New England States and in the island of Terceira, Azores. Luso American Life Insurance and its officers express our sincere condolences to the entire family.

On June 22 members of the Luso American Life Insurance, Luso-American Fraternal Federation, Luso-American Education Foundation and Sociedade Portuguesa Rainha Santa Isabel, got together to say their good-byes to the Consul General of Portugal in San Francisco Dr. José António Alves de Carvalho. Dr. Carvalho ends his term as Consul General, after 5 years and will be serving his next term in Germany. For the last 5 years, many friendships were made, as mentioned by Dr. Carvalho, and now they will be going to the region of Alentejo for a month and then Germany. Dr. Carvalho and his wife Teresa, had the opportunity to participate in various functions of Luso, including Educational Congresses, visit to the Idaho Council, Annual Conventions and much more. Friend of the community, friend of Luso and friend of all, Dr. Carvalho leaves a large number of friends behind. Present at the dinner were LALIS recently retired CEO Manuel Minhoto, Past Chairman of the Board Albert Vieira, current Chairman of the Board John M. Dias, various board directors of LALIS, LAFF President Liz Rodrigues, LAEF Chairman of the Board Professor José Luis da Silva and LAEF President Dr. Manuel Bettencourt, SPRSI President Tisha Cardoza, and several guests including the Vice Consul of Portugal in San Francisco Manuela Silveira. During the dinner, which was a great success, LALIS presented departing General Consul, Dr. Carvalho, with an engraved watch as a token of our appreciation. The Luso-American Life Insurance Society, wishes Dr. Carvalho and his wife Teresa, best wishes and much of success.

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he 33rd Annual Conference of the Luso American Education Foundation was held on March 27-28, 2009, in Turlock at the campus of California State University, Stanislaus, with the theme: “Portuguese: A Global Language.” A new aspect of this year’s conference was a training strand with about 25 teachers of the Portuguese community and public schools. This strand was organized by Ana Cristina Sousa, Coordinator of Portuguese Instruction in California. On Friday, the University hosted a Portuguese Student Day. Approximately 85 students from Hilmar, Los Banos and Turlock High Schools were given a tour of the campus, informed about how to apply to a university and also had time to learn about the global aspects of the Portuguese language. On Saturday, there was a workshop for Portuguese students who lead Portuguese Clubs at their high schools, sharing the projects and objectives of each club. On Friday evening, there was a banquet at Casa dos Acores, honoring three PortugueseAmerican school superintendents: Isabel Cabral-Johnson of Hilmar Unified School District, Henry Escobar of the Livingston Union School District and Antonio Borba who recently retired from the Salida Elementary School District. All three emigrated from the Azores Islands as children or teenagers, learned English, succeeded in the public schools and went to a university, becoming teachers, principals, and finally superintendents. All three along the way, worked to promote and expand the educational opportunities for Portuguese-Americans. The highlight of the banquet was the entertainment by students from Tulare High School, under the direction of Diniz Borges. They recited poetry, played traditional instruments and sang traditional, as well as songs they composed On Saturday, for the general public there was a strand focusing on political and civic participation. The participants were challenged to go back to their communities and organize themselves to push for the teaching of Portuguese in their local schools by pressuring their local school boards. This strand also had a session in which authors of books of the Portuguese community presented their research.

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n Sunday, June 07, 2009, a Banquet was held at the Hilton Hotel, in Newark, to celebrate Dia de Portugal de Camoes e das Comunidades Portuguesas, the 46th anniversary of Luso-American Education Foundation and honoring Mr.Lionel B. Goularte. Mr. Goularte was the recipient of the Luso-American Education Foundation Dia de Portugal Award, for his valuable contributions supporting the Luso Communities and promoting the Portuguese Language and Culture in California. The keynote speaker was the Consul General of Portugal in San Francisco Dr. Antonio Alves de Carvalho, who acknowledged and thanked the Luso-American Education Foundation for celebrating Dia de Portugal for forty three consecutive years. He also thanked the Foundation for promoting the Portuguese Language and Culture with our annual conferences, supporting, sponsoring or co-sponsoring a myriad of programs related to education, and awarding scholarships to many students every year.

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PCU Past President Jose Soares

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s my second year in office comes to an end, I have to say that I have truly enjoyed every visit and function that I have had the pleasure to attend. We as members of the Portuguese Continental Union are a Fraternal Society, or in short, a FAMILY. That i This final year as President has been just as busy as my first year, visiting all of our lodges up and down the East Coast attending meetings and festivals. To all of the lodges that I have visited, I thank you for welcoming me into your community, treating me like family and for the generous gifts that you presented me with. s what I feel I have with all of you, be it on the East or West coast or the land in between. As we grow we look forward to welcoming others into our FAMILY! These times are not easy for anyone, but when I see how hard our members have worked to prepare for our visits, I feel I must acknowledge their efforts and the time and work that it took them to prepare. So from me to ALL of you -THANK YOU! This year we have seen many changes in our organization, especially on the LUSO Board. I would like to congratulate everyone in their new positions and especially Mr. Larry Soares as our new CEO. We are in good hands. Also, I would like to recognize the birth of SOS-Strengthen Our Society on the East coast with Ms. Edite Furtado as the leader. With her enthusiasm and the team she has put together, we should see many great ideas going forth. I am pleased to report that we did present a full budget and it was approved by our board. Things should run smoothly for the incoming President and their board. I must congratulate Julie Romano on the outstanding job she has done with the 20-30’s group. As their President, wherever we have gone she has been ready to speak about the group and their goals. The way she has represented our Society is something we should all be proud of! The Youth group is growing and John Bernardo their President has come a long way from when he first took office. We understand that it has not been easy with school and all, but he has done a great job of representing our youth in the community. Good job John! With this said, I hope that this year is a positive and enjoyable one for all. Remember, we are all FRATERNAL brothers and sisters. God bless you and your families. To my daughters Samantha and Krystal - LOVE YOU! Joe Soares

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PCU Past 20-30’s President Julie Romano

his year included the pleasure of visiting our California family during their 2008 Convention. I would like to offer a special thank you to them for the warm greetings and hospitality that they extended to me. As a board, the 20-30’s has become more connected and active this year. We have learned the value of hard work and know what it is going to take for us to do our part in the growth of our society. We had another successful trip to Foxwoods Casino, initiated a 20-30’s Newsletter, planned a Boat Cruise, raised more money for our scholarship, have set 5 year goals for our future board members and of course, continued with our annual Sueca Tournament at convention. By fulfilling each of these tasks we are doing our part in keeping the Society strong. We hope that these new events have encouraged members, both active and non active, to remain joined with the Society. To my board members, I thank you for your continued hard work, dedication and patience you’ve shown while working with me during these past two years. Your enthusiasm and positive attitudes are incredible assets that are refreshing and absolutely appreciated. Your dedication to the Society has not gone unnoticed and there are no words that can describe my gratitude for all you have done. I have enjoyed working with you and look forward to seeing the group grow and prosper. To my sister, thank you for being my best friend, even if you had no choice in the matter. You have always pushed me to work harder, to look outside the box and to not give up. Through your own examples, you have inspired me to be a better President. You have showed me that people can make a difference; you have made a difference for me. To my parents, thank you for bringing me into this Society all those years ago. I truly believe that being part of this Society has made me a stronger person. I have learned the value of caring about something that I am a part of, working hard to make it last and managing it so that it thrives. You have both showed me that hard work, dedication and perseverance do make a difference. To the Society, thank you for the opportunity to give back to a community that has given so much to me. Julie Romano

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PCU Past Youth President John Bernardo

hese past two years have been great. I have met so many people here at LAL. I’ve made many friends that I would never have made if I hadn’t been the Portuguese Continental Union youth President. California was so much fun and I met many good friends there as well, including Michael and Kayla. They showed me how to have a great time in my presidency and I was able to see first hand the hard work and dedication that they put into this Organization. I especially enjoyed going to the Presidents visits, even though I wasn’t able to make as many of them as I would have liked to. I apologize for this. The one’s that I was able to go to were a lot of fun and I always felt at home and very welcomed. Being the youth President has taught me to be a better person and how to better interact with people. Having to get up and speak in front of people is difficult, but after these past two years I am finally getting comfortable with it and feel “settled in”. During my speeches, I felt like I was talking to family. That is what this Organization is to me, a great, big family from East to West coast. I know that I am leaving and giving up my position to someone who will be qualified. LAL is the first organization that I have been part of and given such a high rank. Being in college is difficult and time consuming (and not as easy as I thought!). In working to get my priorities straight, I did the best I could. I joined this organization five years ago as a teenager and now I am moving on to the 20’s and 30’s group where I plan to do great things. Time flies and I plan to continue to help build the future of our Society. I will always remain a part of LAL/ PCU I would like to thank Sr. Jose Teixeira for introducing me to LAL and for persuading me to get involved. He gave me the confidence to run for President and I am grateful for that as well. Most of all, I would like to thank Mr. Eddie Figueiredo. He made my position and life so much easier by keeping me up to date with things. The meetings with the Youth Administration were always lots of fun and informative. I thank all of the Youth coordinators for doing an amazing job with the Youth group! Without them things would have been really difficult to organize and get going. I am excited for the 2009 Convention. I look forward to meeting new people and catching up with old friends. LAL/PCU is a wonderful organization and I am proud to be a part of it. John Bernardo

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his year’s Congress of Portuguese Language and Culture was held with the collaboration of the Leslie University at their campus in Cambridge, MA. Theme “One Language; Many Cultures”, and under the direction of Chairs dr. Caetano Valadão Serpa and his wife Prof. Maria Lurdes Serpa, the congress was a great success and included topics such as: The Orthographic Accord; Portuguese Language in the last 50 years; The Politics of the Portuguese Language in the US and the World; the Influence of the Art and Dance in promoting our language.

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2009 CALIFORNIA FRATERNAL CONGRESS RON GILL SCHOLARSHIP AWARD GUIDELINES AND PROCEDURES: AWARD:

A minimum of two $500.00 scholarships will be awarded by the California Fraternal Congress to sophomore, junior or senior year students in trade school or college. There is a limit of one scholarship award per society unless all applications received are from the same society. The scholarship awards will be presented on October 17, 2009 at the annual meeting of the California Fraternal Congress in Sacramento, California. ELIGIBILITY: Applicant must be enrolled as a full-time student in an accredited vocational/technical school or college/university. Applicant must be a resident of California and a member, or a child of a member of a fraternal benefit society who holds membership in the California Fraternal Congress. Applicant must have a cumulative grade point average of at least a 2.0. (on a 4.0 system) Transcript of grades from spring 2009 semester must be submitted with application. Application/essay for scholarship awards must be completed in its entirety and postmarked by September 1, 2009. Incomplete or late entries will be disqualified. Scholarship awards are for one year only. Recipients will not be eligible again for the award from the California Fraternal Congress. PROCEDURES: The Scholarship awards will be made payable jointly to the award recipients and their school. Deadline for submission is September 1, 2009. JUDGING CRITERIA: Overall merits of applicant, cumulative grade point average, school activities, honors, and essay content. (Fraternalism volunteering activities in your respective society). Entries will be submitted to the Chair of the Ron Gill Scholarship committee. The applications will be referred to a three-member panel for final judging. Recipients of the California Fraternal Congress Ron Gill scholarship Awards will be notified by October 1, 2009.

Deadline for submission is September 1, 2009.

CALIFORNIA FRATERNAL CONGRESS Application for Ron Gill Scholarship Award DEADLINE: September 1, 2009 (Please type or print all information) PERSONAL DATA: Applicant's Name: _____________________________________________________________________ Street Address_________________________________________________________________________________ City: _______________________________

State: _______________________Zip: ______________

Telephone Number: _____________________________ Daytime Phone: _________________________ Social Security Number: ___________________Date of Birth: ___________Sex: Male: _______Female________ Are you claimed as a dependent by your parents?

Yes ___ No ___.

If yes, annual family income: $ _________________________ If no, your annual income: $ _______________ Society Name: ____________________________________________________________________________ Lodge/Council/Branch/Court Number: ____________ Location __________ No. of years as a member:_____ COLLEGE DATA: Name of College/University or Vocational/Technical School where you are currently enrolled. Name: ____________________________________________________________________________________ Address of School: _______________________________Phone Number of School: ______________________ Year in school 2009/2010: Sophomore _____________ Junior ____________ Senior Expected date of graduation: Month ____________________

Year

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Major: __________________________________ Minor: _____________________________________ Cumulative GPA based on 4.0 scales: ______________________________________________________ School Activities/Honors: _______________________________________________________________ Scholarship Award Essay: Explain why of the scholarship awards from the California Fraternal Congress should be presented to you. Include other family members in college, major financial commitments, career goals, fraternal activities, volunteer service, special abilities, etc. (Maximum 500 words) The information provided in this application is true. Signature of applicant: ____________________________________________ Date: _________________ Mail complete application to: Carla Cardoso, S.E.S. Chair – C.F.C. Ron Gill Scholarship P.O. Box 247 Sana Clara, A 95052

A TRANSCRIPT OF GRADES FROM SPRING 2009 SEMESTER MUST BE INCLUDED WITH APPLICATION.

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