Serrano
A FilCan proven leader in the community has thrown in her hat in the political arena.
Michele Serrano, a committed community figure in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA), is running for the Scarborough Southwest federal riding nomination in Toronto. The electoral district is one of two high-profile areas in the GTA with two political aspirants of Filipino heritage. These are Michele, a Filipina professional and another, a pastor.
Serrano, popularly known to family and friends as “Chichi”, is vying for nomination to become the official candidate of the Liberal Party for member of parliament in next year’s Federal election.
A multi-licensed career professional, Serrano has been certified to practice in four major industry sectors. As a Chartered Professional Accountant (CPA) and Certified General Accountant (CGA), she held senior management positions in both the public and private sectors. She was controller for the City of Toronto Economic Development Corporation for many years. Michele built a career in corporate Canada and transitioned from the corporate life two years ago as chief financial officer/controller/corporate secretary – Canada for Clear Channel, a world-wide media and advertising company.
Being a Regulated Certified Immigration Consultant (RCIC), she continued working even after retiring from the corporate world. The decision to become an RCIC was born out of her desire to help people especially “kababayans” to realize their dreams of being reunited with their family, coming to Canada and to have a better life.
As a financial advisor , she concentrates primarily on retirement planning to ensure that people are taken care of in their senior years. Her goal is to educate people on how money works and how they can make the most of their budget and be stress-free in their retirement years. Currently, she is completing requirements to be a Certified Financial Planner so in her words, “I can provide better advice and value in investing clients’ resources.”
Born in Quezon City, Philippines to Franklin and Monina Serrano from Albay and Masbate, she studied at Stella Maris College in the Philippines. She also finished her secondary education at St. Joseph’s College School in Toronto. Michele attended the University of Toronto, Ryerson University, Seneca College and Humber College where she received her degrees and certificates in Business Management, Business Administration, Human Resources Management, Accounting and Information Technology and Immigration.
She promised, “I will listen, act and get results for the Scarborough Southwest and together, we can make it happen.” The pledge came several months after knocking on many doors in Scarborough Southwest. “I have listened to many residents but it is not enough to just listen, something should be done about it! When I hear our kababayans say, “pare-pareho lang kayo, magaling kung may kailangan”. I say, “ibahin niyo po ako. “eto po ang card ko, hindi po magbabago ang number, win or lose kung mayroon akong maitutulong tumawag po kayo.”
Being a Filipino social activist and feminist leader, there are many things Michele has done anonymously as she is more concerned about getting things done rather than getting the credit. She reasoned out, “It was more effective and fulfilling to work behind the scenes and watch something unfold and evolve.” She added, “One thing I would like is to be an example of a successful immigrant story to prove to our kababayans that Canada is indeed the land of opportunity, anything is possible and you can make it happen!”
Learning about her nomination drive, several professional and community organizations are endorsing and supporting her political journey. Among the associations are Scarborough Ontario Seniors Association, Federation of Filipino-Canadians, Ontario Filipino Womens Club,and Philippine Canadian Guardians Brotherhood, including leaders like Fr. Terry Gallagher of
Scarborough Foreign Mission , Zeny Uy of Our Lady of Assumption Parish, Rafael Nebres of Bicol Canada Community Association, Dr. Victoria Santigao and Agnes Miranda of World Financial Group
Her Scarborough Southwest Riding encompasses the boundaries of Victoria Ave. in the west, Markham Rd. in the east, south of Eglinton Ave. East and down to Lake Ontario. She is enlisting the utmost support of kababayans residing or are voters in the riding to register as members of the Liberal Party. Michele may be contacted at Tel. 416-988-9613 or email: michele_serrano@ hotmail.com.