THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, September 22, 1995 TAG: 9509220057
SECTION: DAILY BREAK PAGE: E12 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY MICHELLE MIZAL, CAMPUS CORRESPONDENT
LENGTH: Medium: 86 lines
NANCY SIMBULAN doesn't like to be alone, but on Saturday, Aug. 19, she was hardly in solitude. In fact, she was beside herself.
That night at the Virginia Beach Pavilion, in front of an audience of more than 300 Filipinos, with runner-ups from California and Texas, Simbulan was crowned the new Miss Philippines-America.
With arched eyebrows, fair skin and heart-shaped lips, Simbulan, 22, is what the Filipinos would call maganda - a filipino word meaning pretty. But the Philippine-American native of Virginia Beach is more than a beauty. She's smart, multi-talented and has an iron will to not only represent the Filipino communities of America but also to help children learn through music - something Simbulan knows a lot about.
``Music is very important in a child's life,'' said Simbulan, who remembers her own mother's teaching her the ABC's and how to count through songs. Later, as a preschool teacher, Simbulan realized that ``the only way they (her students) would listen'' was through music.
Simbulan's own love of song shone early.
``You play the piano and I'll sing,'' a 7-year-old Simbulan told her piano teacher, and the intended piano lessons became singing lessons.
For five years, Simbulan fibbed to her parents, Aladino and Angelita Simbulan, who are from Pampanga, Philippines, about the piano lessons. ``They found out when one day they asked me to play and I didn't know how,'' she said, ``but when they found out that I wanted to sing, they were very supportive.''
Naturally, Simbulan's pageant talent presentation was singing ``If I Could,'' a song about children. Simbulan also sings at various Philippine functions and at the New Bangkok Thai Restaurant off of Indian River Road every Friday.
If Simbulan looks familiar, it's because, besides singing, she also appeared in commercials and in the HBO series ``Vanishing Sun.''
In 1992, Simbulan posed for senior portraits on a Mel Klein's photography commercial that was aired on the Fox TV network. On ``Vanishing Sun,'' Simbulan played several characters, including a cocktail waitress, an Asian beauty and a girl at a party. She also modeled for the cover of ``Shooters,'' a book by Tim Brookeron on how to make mixed drinks.
Continuing to model for books is not one of Simbulan's future goals. She wants to write one.
Since graduating from Tidewater Community College in 1993 with an associate's degree in early-childhood education, Simbulan has worked as a preschool teacher. After observing the problems children face, Simbulan decided to study childhood psychology at Old Dominion University. She plans to write a book about children of different cultures and their problems.
At the Miss Philippines-America pageant, children happened to be the topic of the question Simbulan was asked to answer during the on-stage interview. That portion had been the thing she feared most about the pageant.
Before the pageant, Simbulan read public-speaking books and had friends drill her with questions.
But when the time came, Simbulan said, God was with her. ``I picked the smallest envelope, and there it was,'' she said. The question was: ``If I had the power and finances to help the children in the Philippines, what would I do.'' Simbulan said she would support the education of the children, because it would help the success of the Philippines as a country.
During her rein, Simbulan will take an all-expenses-paid trip to the Philippines and meet Philippine President Fidel Ramos. She will also visit the U.S. Embassy in Washington, D.C. In New Jersey, Simbulan will be interviewed on Radio Mindanao Network USA Inc. She will also serve as a correspondent for FilAm-Image magazine.
As far as fulfilling her platform, Simbulan intends to visit preschools and perform educational activities using songs. Math, science, history and English can all be taught through song, she said. In December, she will visit Children's Hospital of The King's Daughters and perform Christmas songs.
There is one barrier for Simbulan between her ethnic culture and American way of living. It's language.
``We still hold our traditions and family morals, like to respect our elders and be nice to people, but it's unfortunate to my siblings and I that we only know how to speak a little Tagalog,'' Simbulan said. ILLUSTRATION: Photo by D. KEVIN ELLIOTT, Staff
Nancy Simbulan, 22, wants to represent the Filipino communities of
America and to help children learn through music.
Photo
Michelle Mizal is a student at TCC.
by CNB