Inside the First EVER WNBA Filipino Heritage Night with Golden State Valkyries

By Jennifer Redondo
Photos courtesy of John Avalos, Jennifer Redondo and Carolyn Sideco

The community celebrated the inaugural Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA) Filipino Heritage Night (FHN), as the Golden State Valkyries took on the Washington Mystics. The Filipinx community convened at the Chase Center in San Francisco, California, on Saturday, August 30, 2025. This venue, renowned as the home of the National Basketball Association (NBA) Golden State Warriors, now also hosts the WNBA's Golden State Valkyries. The occasion marked the first WNBA FHN, as the Golden State Valkyries faced off against the Washington Mystics.

This is a big deal! Because it is the very first WNBA Filipino Heritage Nights, and fittingly it was hosted by the Golden State Valkyries. The team's name, drawing inspiration from Norse mythology, refers to a group of fearless and strong winged female warriors who choose the bravest to join them in Valhalla after death. This led to their home court being affectionately nicknamed "Ballhalla." The community enthusiastically embraced this, creating an unofficial t-shirt that reads “BALLHALLA KA SA BUHAY MO,” available for purchase here. Attendees of the game received an official black and violet Filipino Heritage Night Valkyries t-shirt.

The very first WBNA Filipino Heritage Night was a vibrant celebration, kicking off with Senor Sisig co-founders Gil Payumo and Evan Kidera setting the rhythm with the drum. Senor Sisig, known for its brick-and-mortar presence near the Chase Center, was a fitting part of the festivities. The National Anthem was beautifully performed by Jocelyn Thompson-Jordan, Vida Mae Fernandez, and Kylie Abucay, female cast members from “Larry the Musical: An American Journey.” During the halftime show, Bay Area natives Ruby Ibarra and Ouida captivated the audience with their 2025 NPR Tiny Desk Contest winning song, “Bakunawa.” This choice was particularly meaningful as “Bakunawa” refers to a mythological Filipino dragon that consumes the moon, symbolizing resistance and embodying the strength, historical preservation, cultural richness, and identity of the Filipino community.

Later, Violet, the Valkyries' mascot, assisted in revealing The Sarap Shop's newest release. The Sarap Shop is notable for being the first to introduce Filipino cuisine to a major NBA arena, specializing in Filipino-American comfort food. They announced the addition of ube mozzarella sticks to their menu, joining existing Filipino-American items such as the longanisa dirty dog, plant-based lumpiang Shanghai, sisig chicken wings, and sinigang curly fries. To commemorate Filipino Heritage Night, they also introduced ube and creme brulee snow cones as a special treat.

This groundbreaking event was made possible through the collaborative efforts of SOMA Pilipinas, CoachingKapwa Sports Consultants, and Positive Coaching Alliance (PCA). Additional support for the Golden State Valkyries was generously provided by In Her Purpose, Filipino American Arts Exposition (FAAE), Donut Time Designs, The ValQueeries Community Fan Group, and Women's All BBall, along with numerous other Filipinx organizations and families whose enthusiastic attendance filled the venue.

We were honored to host special guests, including Bay Area native and former NBA player Jeremy "Linsanity" Lin, who played for the Warriors, Lakers, Rockets and the Knicks, announced his retirement from basketball on the day of the event. We also had the privilege of spending the day with Filipina-American sports anchor/sideline reporter Cassidy Hubbarth, formerly with ESPN and now part of NBA on Prime at Amazon.

We switched roles with Hubbarth, asking her the questions this time. During our interview, she expressed her excitement about the inaugural WNBA Filipino Heritage Night. She shared that it was "pretty special to be here to celebrate with fellow Filipinos. It means a whole lot and tonight is going to be special." She also spoke about the significance of representation to her, stating that "Filipinos are very prideful people and love to celebrate each other. Every time I am at NBA games, I always see a Filipino in the crowd and they yell and show their support. That's really helped me recapture my pride for my Filipino heritage… when something like this happens where the community comes together, it's hard not to feel that sense of pride."

A big thank you to Carolyn Sideco of CoachingKapwa Sports Consultants, who was instrumental in organizing the community for this event. She shared her thoughts on the inaugural Filipinx Heritage Night for the WNBA's Golden State Valkyries: "This event truly affirmed my belief as a Sports Relationship coach: that people-centered collaboration, intentional infusions of caring and joy, and a goal of liberation for all of us through our sports identities, should be the guiding principles for all major sports clubs. This is the essence of #kapwatizingsports – the Bay Area Fil-Am community and hoop culture united, showing up and showing out!"

The day was absolutely perfect. Before the main event, a group of us gathered for a pre-game meal at Mestiza, a restaurant owned by Filipina-American entrepreneur Deanna Sison. We had a lovely, private lunch, where Deanna and her team served a delicious spread: fresh salad, lumpia, BBQ chicken sticks, pulled pork adobo, calabasa coconut curry, shrimp gambas, garlic rice, and non-dairy soft serve. After lunch, Mario De Mira drove us around San Francisco’s Filipino Cultural Heritage District in their jeepney, “Mahal”, while Raquel Redondiez, Director of SOMA Pilipinas, gave us a tour.

We explored Filipino-American history in San Francisco, admiring the beautiful artwork and murals by Filipino-American artists. You can experience this yourself by taking one of their tours or using their walking tour map, available here. Afterward, Mario dropped us off at the Chase Center – riding a jeepney to the game was epic! Post-game, we celebrated the 99-62 blowout against the Mystics and the success of the first WNBA Filipino Heritage Night at Victory Hall & Lounge, where DJ LadyRyan spun tunes and we toasted with house cocktails like Ube Area and Wings of Victory.

Raquel Redondiez, Director of SOMA Pilipinas, is “excited about the partnership that we have built with the Golden State Valkyries and I look forward to a bright future working alongside other community leaders to help make this a continued success”. The Valkyries organization has several Filipinos on staff, including Maria Valdehueza, their Senior Vice President of Ticketing and Events. Valdehueza's extensive background includes her previous role as Vice President of Ticketing for the Golden State Warriors. She was also a founding member of the Warriors’ Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Council since 2017 and is the Executive Sponsor of the Women of the Warriors Employee Resource Group. We also want to acknowledge Rene Cortes, Account Executive of Group Sales.

We extend our heartfelt gratitude to everyone who contributed to this momentous occasion. This special event was made possible through the invaluable collaboration and unwavering support of our community. We eagerly anticipate organizing similar events in the future, where we can unite to celebrate our shared passion for sports and enthusiastically cheer for our home teams.

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Written by Jennifer Redondo

Co-Founder and Co-Author of In Her Purpose

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