https://wiith-archive.ucsc.edu/files/original/d25bb9ef2eaf99d4369d1e7ffd9547b3.pdf e7019f434f20ebef80a08789e524ad5d Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Tabasa Family Collection Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Greg Tabasa Description An account of the resource Jesus Torrente Tabasa was born in the province of Aklan in the Philippines. Jesus first immigrated to Hawaii before immigrating to Alaska in the 1930s to work in the fishing canneries. He then moved to Santa Cruz County to work as a farm laborer, first to Salinas and later to Watsonville. Jesus also worked as a labor contractor for the fishing industry, canneries, and in fields from Alaska to California. In his free time, he enjoyed gambling, fishing, and watching cockfights. Rosita Dionisio Tabasa-Estrada was born on December 25, 1912, in the barangay of Tigayon, in the municipality of Kalibo, in the region of Aklan, in thePhilippines. She partially attended high school in the Philippines until she immigrated to Seattle, Washington with her mother, Benita Carpio Dionisio. They reunited with her father, Juan Dionisio, and brother, Juan “John” C. Dionisio, who immigrated to the U.S. before them. Her entire family then moved to San Francisco, California where Rosita graduated from high school. Upon her graduation, she moved to Stockton, California where she attended the University of the Pacific. While living in Stockton, Rosita worked for her brother’s newspaper as a reporter. One of her assignments was to interview Filipinos at a dance hall in Watsonville. While conducting interviews, she met her husband Jesus Tabasa. They were married on October 21, 1937, and Rosita moved to Watsonville. Rosita and Jesus had five children. Their first child was Jess Dionisio Tabasa born on November 6, 1938. Francine Tabasa-Lopes was born on October 10, 1945, followed by her sister Susan Tabasa-Cruz in 1948. Gregorio Tabasa was born on May 11, 1952, and lastly, Dante “Danny” Tabasa was born on April 11, 1954. In the late 1950s, Jesus Tabasa passed away. Rosita was later remarried to Ludovico Estrada in 1965. The Tabasa family was well known in the Filipino community of Watsonville and were involved in many local organizations. Rosita and Jesus were founding members of the Filipino Community of Watsonville. They were also both officers of their local lodge for the Caballeros de Dimas-Alang. Rosita was a founding member of the Filipino Women's Club and served as president on several occasions. Rosita worked for the city of Watsonville helping out the elderly through an organization called Project Scout. She also worked for the Equal Opportunity Commission. In her role, she helped the Filipino community with voter registration, welfare or social security, gaining citizenship, filing taxes, finding housing, as well as acting as a translator for government documents. From 1938 until its closing in 1989, Rosita Tabasa owned and operated the Philippine Gardens Cafe in Watsonville. Originally called Oriental Cafe, Philippine Gardens was a restaurant in the front and a card room in the back. The restaurant was a central meeting place for manong and the greater Filipino community in Watsonville. In 1992 Rosita moved back to her hometown of Tigayon with her second husband Ludovico Estrada. She lived there for the final ten years of her life and passed away at age 90 on November 3, 2002. Her eldest son Jess Tabasa was a school teacher at E.A. Hall in Watsonville as well as a local historian of Filipino labor and culture. He passed away at age 83 on March 25, 2022. The Tabasa Family Collection was donated to Watsonville is in the Heart in 2022 by Rosita's and Jesus's son, Greg Tabasa. It contains twenty-six items including newspaper clippings that describe Philippine Gardens and Juan Dionisio's career. It also includes reproductions of family photographs and Caballeros de Dimas-Alang convention programs as well as original photographs depicting Rosita at Filipino Women's Club of Watsonville and Filipino Community of Watsonville events. Oral History A resource containing historical information obtained in interviews with persons having firsthand knowledge. Interviewer The person(s) performing the interview Una Lynch Interviewee The person(s) being interviewed Gregorio “Greg” Dionisio Tabasa Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data .m4a Duration Length of time involved (seconds, minutes, hours, days, class periods, etc.) 1:59:00 URL <span style="font-weight: 400;">Link to audio recording on escholarship: </span><a href="https://escholarship.org/uc/item/2t34p7rh#supplemental" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Greg Tabasa interviewed by Una Lynch</a> Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Gregorio “Greg” Dionisio Tabasa interviewed by Una Lynch Description An account of the resource In this interview, originally recorded over the phone, Gregorio “Greg” Dionisio Tabasa speaks with Watsonville is in the Heart team member, Una Lynch. Greg begins the interview by talking about his father, Jesus Torrente Tabasa, who immigrated from the Aklan Province in the Philippines to Hawai’i and eventually to the Pajaro Valley where he worked as a labor contractor. Gred also discusses his mother, Rosita “Rosie” Dionisio Tabasa who also immigrated from Aklan and eventually owned and operated a restaurant in Watsonville. Her restaurant was first called Oriental Cafe and later Philippine Gardens. Greg explains the restaurant's significance to the Watsonville Filipino American community. He describes it as a “gathering place” for the Filipino community to connect and eat together. Greg also discusses his parents’ roles as community leaders and their participation in organizations like the Caballeros de Dimas-Alang and the Filipino Women’s Club of Watsonville. He also reflects on the personal impacts of his father’s and how other Filipino men helped to raise him and his brother, Danny. He explains that after Jesus’s death Rosie continued community and restaurant work through the 1980s. Greg closes the interview by reflecting on a housing and public art project titled Tabasa Gardens that honors his mother and her impact on the Filipino American community. Tabasa Gardens is an apartment community located on Freedom Boulevard in Watsonville. Half of the apartment units will be reserved for farmworkers. In addition to being named for the Tabasa family and their restaurant. The complex features a mosaic mural depicting Rosie Tabasa and her eldest son, Jess Tabasa. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Gregorio “Greg” Dionisio Tabasa Una Lynch Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource February 28, 2023 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Watsonville is in the Heart (WIITH) is a community-driven public history initiative to preserve and uplift stories of Filipino migration and labor in the city of Watsonville and greater Pajaro Valley. All oral history interviews are donated to WIITH by the narrators. Copyright is held by WIITH. Oral history interview recordings and transcripts are available for unrestricted use and reproduction by educators and researchers. Please note that the recordings on this website are provided via escholarship. For access to oral history audio files, please contact the project director at wiith@ucsc.edu. If you are an oral history narrator and would like to remove your interview from the archive website, please contact the project director. Language A language of the resource English Type The nature or genre of the resource Oral History Agriculture Dances Fashion Gambling Gardening Hawai'i Music Philippine Gardens Cafe Watsonville