one of them was a jill wynns del rosario. it is interesting -- joanne del rosario. it was interesting at the time because i invited her to the party, and she said, no, i did not want to jinx my election. she said i do not want to go to the victory party because it is only a difference of a few ballads. it was held at the philippine consulate. i walked in and there she was. and i said, you must have won because you're here. so joanne, come on here. yeah. [applause] she was selected one of the 100 most influential filipina women in 2009. [applause] >> good evening, everyone, and congratulations to all of you. it is an honor for me to be here tonight. i have to say, the most gracious complement that anyone can ever give you is when it they say that i was there inspiration or i was their role model, and i thank you for saying that. because back in 2006 when i ran, in no idea what was going to be like. it was sort of put on me by accident. at the time, my brother was the ambassador to the united states in washington, d.c. and i began to circulate in the community as he c

one of them was a jill wynns del rosario. it is interesting -- joanne del rosario. it was interesting at the time because i invited her to the party, and she said, no, i did not want to jinx my election. she said i do not want to go to the victory party because it is only a difference of a few ballads. it was held at the philippine consulate. i walked in and there she was. and i said, you must have won because you're here. so joanne, come on here. yeah. [applause] she was selected one of the 100 most influential filipina women in 2009. [applause] >> good evening,