By Michelle Zimmer

Born in 1931, H. Dolores Dasalla Sibonga became the first Filipina-American lawyer in Washington state. On October 18, 1973, the Washington State Bar admitted her, making her the first Filipina-American woman member as well.

Dolores Sibonga spent her childhood in the International District (Seattle) and worked at the Estigoy Café, her parents’ restaurant and pool hall.

Graduating from the University of Washington in 1952 with a bachelor’s degree in journalism, Sibonga went to work in the fast-paced world of radio and television news in both Spokane and Seattle. In 1968 she and her husband purchased the Filipino Forum after the death of Victor Velasco, its publisher and someone she considered an “inspiration,” according to a January 26, 2006 article in the Seattle Post-Intelligencer.

Years later, facing her husband’s layoff as a Boeing illustrator, Sibonga went back to school to pursue a degree in law. She learned the difficulties of living on a student’s income, as she, her husband, two daughters and one son survived on her scholarship money.

According to the P-I article, Sibonga said “When you go through raising a family on that, you never forget what it’s like to be poor.” (Seattle P-I, 1-26-06)

After graduating, Sibonga went to work as a public defense attorney and then worked for the King County Council as a legislative analyst, later moving to the office of civil rights.

In August of 1978, she became the first minority woman to serve on the Seattle City Council, replacing Phyllis Lamphere who had resigned. Sibonga was in office for 12 years, serving three terms, from 1980 to 1992.

In 1989, she ran unsuccessfully for mayor. Her campaign did bring the Asian American community together, which was important when she ran for City Council president, although she did not win that election.

After leaving politics, she returned to being a lawyer. Over the years she has served on many different public commissions, notably the Horse Racing Commission for two years (1998-2000) and the Human Rights Commission for five years (2000-2005).

At 74, Sibonga attempted to return to the Council to fill the seat of Jim Compton, who resigned in January 2006. She was one of the five finalists; Sally J. Clark was appointed to fill the vacancy.

Sibonga remains an active community member, serving on the boards of the Wing Luke Asian Museum, the Art Institute, Inter*Im, Port Jobs, and the King County Board of Tax Appeals and Equalization.