Alma Manabat Parker—Community Voice
Alma Manabat Parker has been a member of the Ketchikan Wellness Coalition as the Sama Sama Tayo sa Kalusugan Health Equity Program Coordinator and Magasayawan Ketchikan! Program Director since 2021.
Alma is a sun-loving traveler, rom-com watching fanatic, high functioning multi-tasker, who loves event planning & promotion, dancing with kiddos and fabulously fun friendships. Born in the Philippines, raised in the rain forest, she has called Ketchikan home for 42+ years. Working in positions that foster, promote, and cultivate culture, health and wellness for the mind, body and soul is a perfect fit for her!
Revitalizing the Filipino Folk Dance, Art and Music has been a passion project over the last couple years. MAGSAYAWAN (“Lets Dance”) Ketchikan is funded through the Alaska Community Foundation Art, Culture, Play and has provided the initial seed money to offer hands on training/retraining of Filipino dance instructors. The funding also enabled the purchase of traditional folk instruments and regalia, and provided weekly classes for Filipino youth in the community. An award from the Alaska State Council on the Arts Youth Cultural Heritage program recently granted additional funding to further expand Filipino cultural enrichment instruction through summer 2023 for youth programs during and after school classes (Fall 2023).
A a mother to Maya (22 yrs), Jameson (18 yrs) and fur baby Diego (4 yrs) and married for 23 years to retired USMC First Sergeant Dennis Parker, she is a local dance/fitness business owner, dance team coach, and involved in various community boards. One day she hopes to find or build a space to use as a multi-cultural education/resource center that is a true reflection of Ketchikan’s beautifully diverse people.
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