Artest to bring half-Filipino son to Manila

NEW JERSEY – Los Angeles Lakers forward Ron Artest will be joined by six companions, including his half-Filipino son Jerron, in a week-long visit to Manila starting Aug. 9, it was confirmed yesterday by his close friend Mimi Ledesma Raquid.

“It’s 100 percent sure – Ron is definitely flying to Manila,” said Raquid, a Bacolod native. “Ron’s manager Ji Lee confirmed the trip. He’s looking forward to making personal appearances in mall tours and on TV, conducting at least two basketball clinics and doing bar performances to promote his new rap song ‘Champions.’ He’s also open to do product endorsements on print, radio and TV. Most of all, Ron wants to visit the Philippines because he’s heard so much of our country through his Filipino friends.”

Raquid, her husband Mike and their three children live in Los Angeles and are known to be in Artest’s inner circle of friends. Last weekend, they were among 25 special guests invited by Artest to a barbecue dinner celebrating the Lakers’ recent victory in the NBA Finals at his two-storey home in Brentwood near the Los Angeles airport.

“Ron never forgets that we were probably the first family in Los Angeles to welcome him after his transfer from Houston last year,” said Raquid. “He texts us all the time, wherever he is. Ron calls us part of his family. Once, we invited him to our house for our daughter’s surprise birthday party and he showed up. Our kids reached out to him by twitter and he responded. He likes to be in touch with his fans. On another occasion, he phoned to ask if he could drop by our house for adobo and halo-halo. I rushed to the nearest Chowking and bought halo-halo for take-out. There’s a video out in the internet showing Ron singing ‘My Heart Will Go On’ at our house.”

The Raquids’ closeness to Artest got the attention of several TV networks, including ESPN, and the family has been featured in media because of the friendship.

“Ron’s a very sweet guy,” said Raquid, a Maryknoll high school graduate who has lived in the US with her husband the last 26 years. “Before we got to know him, we just thought he was one of the NBA’s bad boys. But he’s not a bad boy at all. He’s very thoughtful. He loves his family very much. He and his wife Kimsha have three children – Sadie, Ron III and Diamond. And he has a half-Filipino son Jerron who’s eight or nine years old.”

Raquid said the barbeque dinner at Artest’s home was his way of thanking his closest friends for their support.

“One of the guests was a Filipino writer Nick Halili of Dub Magazine and another was the popular rapper Hayes who recently signed with the producer Timbaland,” said Raquid. “It was just a small group of friends invited by Ron. Now, he’s in Indiana vacationing with his family. Then, he plans to stage a parade in Queens where he grew up.”

Raquid said Artest will visit Beijing to promote the Chinese sports brand Peak before flying to Manila. Trips to Japan and Korea are also being worked out to make the trip to Asia a four-stop tour.

“We brought up the idea of visiting Manila to Ron and Ji,” said Raquid. “Ron liked the idea so I quickly called up my father Rudy (Ledesma) in Manila for him to find out how to arrange it. My sister Leah then asked her husband Vinci Sanchez to contact their close friend Auty Villarama of Waffle Marketing to make a trip proposal to Ron.”

Villarama, who used to manage sports marketing for Nike Philippines, is coordinating the Artest visit in Manila. Aside from his son, Artest is booked to arrive with his manager Ji, agent, publicist Heidi Buech, assistant Rebecca and one more companion.

After the Lakers clinched the championship in Game 7 over Boston, Artest showed up at the press conference with his four children.

Two weeks before Artest’s arrival, Raquid will fly to Manila with her three children to pave the way. Her husband Mike, a biomedical technician with Kaiser Permanente Hospital and Cedar Sinai, will stay in Los Angeles because of work.

“We’ve been planning Ron’s visit for several months now,” said Raquid. “We’re directly in contact with Ron and his manager so we’ve gotten the go-signal for the trip. We’ll all very excited to bring Ron over to Manila.”

Artest, 30, played a key role for the Lakers in the Finals, averaging 10.6 points, 4.6 rebounds and 35.9 minutes in the seven-game series against the Celtics. In the championship clincher, Artest fired 20 points in 46 minutes as the Lakers swamped Boston, 83-79.

An 11-year pro, Artest played for Chicago, Indiana, Sacramento and Houston before moving to Los Angeles. The 6-7 forward was raised in a large housing project of 96 six-storey buildings in Queens, New York. His father Ron Sr. was a Golden Gloves heavyweight boxer. His parents split up when he was 12.