George Daria

GEORGE BULATAO DARIA
CUPOT Executive Board President

George Bulatao Daria was born in Botolan, Zambales,
Republic of the Philippines. After initial schooling in his
hometown, and after a short stint at the Mapua Institute of
Technology, Manila, he was presented with an opportunity
to join the U.S. Navy and see the world beyond the island
borders of his birthplace.

George’s initiation into the Navy way of life began as it did
for most Filipino recruits, at Sangley Point in Cavite City, in
early 1958. His initial training at San Diego, CA led to a
billet assignment at the U.S Naval Academy in Annapolis,
MD later that year. This duty station on the east coast of
the United States was where his family would spend the
majority of their time while George was assigned to
numerous ships and to overseas tours for the next twenty
years. During his time at sea and on various shore

installations, George continuously increased in rank through various shore schools and by at-
ship instruction. His final attained rank of Chief Electrician’s Mate came through much
perseverance, as his time at sea totaled seven different ship postings, seven different shore and
school assignments, and almost two years in Vietnam during the Vietnam War.

After twenty three years of active duty naval service George’s retirement in 1981 came as no
surprise since there were numerous civilian occupational opportunities that required George’s
expertise in the electrical field of ship’s operations. These opportunities led to several overseas
assignments with Tracor Marine, Inc. and Basil, Inc. to Saudi Arabia but a growing family and
growing personal responsibilities led George to finally settle down with Newport News
Shipbuilding, a division of Northrop Grumman and Tenneco, in 1986, where he finally retired in
2005.

Despite an active and overseas professional career George also maintained a full personal
docket during his Navy days. In 1975 he was a founding parishioner of Holy Spirit Catholic
Church in Virginia Beach, VA. His duties as lay minister, financial council member, and mass
coordinator continue to this day. Since 1978 he has been a member of the Knights of Columbus
council #4632 and is a “Sir Knight” in current standing. He also continues to be an active
member of the Filipino American Veterans of Tidewater, serving as president from 1988-1992.
During his tenure as president he helped congressman Own Pickett coordinate efforts to
introduce the first Filipino Veterans Equity Bill.

Since 2004 George has served as the executive president of the Council of United Filipino
Organizations of Tidewater, which has occupied much of his time and effort over the last several
years. With the building of the Philippine Cultural Center in Virginia Beach, the Filipino community
in the Tidewater area gave itself a base of operations and also created a means of generating
funds to sustain this popular gathering place. George’s duties involve general oversight in the
day-to-day activities at the center, in addition to helping develop future growth of the center.

George is happily supported by his wife of forty three years Rose, a past recipient of the TOFA
award. George has the support of his son, John and John’s wife Daria, of Bethesda, MD. George
also has the support of his daughter Wendy and Wendy’s husband Eric, and their daughter
Daria Reese, of Wilmington, NC.

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