How bayanihan is grounding Filipino Canadians in ‘ethics of care’ after Lapu-Lapu Day tragedy [Video]

“It was meant to be a day filled with music, dancing, food, laughter.”

Rev. Expedito Farinas choked up as he addressed mourners on Sunday at Vancouver’s St. Mary the Virgin South Hill, an Anglican church with a largely Filipino congregation just a 15-minute walk away from where tragedy had occurred the night before.

The Lapu-Lapu Day Block Party began as a day of “great celebration honouring our heritage, our culture, our tradition,” Farinas told CBC Radio’s On The Coast.

Hundreds of people sang along to artists like Black Eyed Peas’ Apl.de.Ap.

Filipino vendors and food trucks lined the streets to serve the tens of thousands of people who visited throughout the day.

WATCH | ‘It turned out to be a traumatizing day’: Lapu-Lapu Day was a time to celebrate Filipino heritage and traditions, says Rev. Expedito Farinas of St. Mary the Virgin South Hill in Vancouver. Instead, it became ‘a traumatizing day to the whole community.’

But …