Last Saturday (August 16), Pico Island, the second largest island in the Azores archipelago, hosted the presentation of the book “Monuments to Emigrants – A Tribute to the History of Portuguese Emigration.”

The work, conceived by historian Daniel Bastos, in partnership with photographer Luís Carvalhido, is based on a survey of the Monuments in Honor of Emigrants, in all districts of mainland Portugal and the autonomous regions of Madeira and the Azores. It was presented at the Salão da Silveira, in the municipality of Lajes do Pico, as part of the closing ceremonies of the Festa da Mãe de Deus (Feast of the Mother of God).

The presentation session filled the Salão da Silveira with more than 250 people, including former and current emigrants, local dignitaries, and the local population, and was attended by Ana Brum, Mayor of Lajes do Pico; João António das Neves, Canon of the Cathedral of Angra; Tomás Orlando Cardoso, President of the Silveira Social Center; Manuel Eduardo Vieira, renowned businessman and philanthropist of the Portuguese community in California; and Manuel Bettencourt, Advisor to the Portuguese Communities in California. The former Secretary of State for Portuguese Communities, José Luís Carneiro, who currently serves as a Member of Parliament and Secretary-General of the Socialist Party, was in charge of the event. He highlighted the Portuguese diaspora as an asset of enormous value to the country in general and to the Azores Archipelago in particular. The politician, as in the other speeches given by the guests of honor, pointed to Commander Manuel Eduardo Vieira as one of the most prominent figures in the huge Portuguese community in California, highlighting his human qualities, his entrepreneurial spirit, his benevolence, and the deep attachment he maintains to his homeland. José Luís Carneiro also praised the work of diaspora historian Daniel Bastos, author of another important work that portrays and values the history of Portuguese emigration.

It should be noted that this new book, a bilingual edition (Portuguese and English) translated by Paulo Teixeira, with a preface by Azorean philosopher and writer Onésimo Teotónio Almeida and an afterword by migration sociologist Maria Beatriz Rocha-Trindade, was produced with the institutional support of the Secretary of State for Portuguese Communities and the Lisbon Geographical Society, takes the reader on a journey through a richly illustrated itinerary that covers all regions of Portugal, where there are more than a hundred monuments, such as busts, statues, and memorials dedicated to emigrants, which constitute an important source of information for understanding the Portuguese diaspora scattered across the four corners of the world.

Such is the case of the statue of Commander Manuel Eduardo Vieira, a native of Silveira, who, through a career of entrepreneurial merit in California, became, from the San Joaquin Valley, the largest producer of organic sweet potatoes in the world. His entrepreneurial and philanthropic spirit were behind the inauguration by the Lajes municipality in 2017, in the square in front of the Silveira Social Center, of which he is a benefactor, of a statue in his honor, designed by Azorean sculptor Rui Goulart, which also immortalizes the generosity he has shown to various associations on the island of Pico.

In this sense, the presentation of this concise and illustrated work on the history of emigration, a striking phenomenon in the history of the island of Pico, was a tribute to Commander Manuel Eduardo Vieira. At the same time, it was a tribute to the Azorean community in North America, particularly the communities from Pico, which are strongly present in the United States and Canada and play an important role in the development of the archipelago, perpetuating Azorean customs and traditions beyond borders.

This session, open to the community, included a reception brightened by performances by Manuel Francisco Costa Jr. and the Tuna do Centro Social da Silveira Chamarritas. All proceeds from the sale of the books, which sold out quickly, went to the Parish Church of Silveira.

From Rádio Ilhéu

Translated to English as a community outreach program from the Portuguese Beyond Borders Institute (PBBI) and the Modern and Classical Languages and Literatures Department (MCLL) as part of Bruma Publication and ADMA (Azores-Diaspora Media Alliance) at California State University, Fresno, PBBI thanks Luso Financial for sponsoring NOVIDADES.