Issue 35, January 2021
Ruben Nepales
Belle Villafuerte, RN Frontliner loses a husband to COVID
Tyrese Bender
The Hollywood story in photographs
Rhodes Scholar raised by a Filipino mom
Letter from the Editor
Let ’ s go back to a government that cares W
e look to the future with optimism because, by nature, people always hope for better days. In the plague year of 2020 where hundreds of thousands died from a deadly virus, and needlessly from the incompetence of an unlamented administration, the suffering was nothing short of horrific. We look toward 2021 and believe the days would bring better tidings in our lives. A new administration comes in at noon on January 20, 2021. It will not solve all our myriad problems, but the tone will change and become more empathetic to the things which ail us. The previous administration was singular in its devotion to dividing our people. One hopes Joe Biden and Kamala Harris will bring to the table simple competence in governance, a belief in science, and a willingness to accept in humility that they will not have the answers to every problem confronting the nation. The incoming administration
President-elect Joe Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris brings a First Lady who is an educator and appears to have a commonsense approach to raising a blended family. From Mayor Pete to Janet Yellen, the Biden Cabinet seems stocked with individuals who are conscious of the struggles of ordinary Americans. They are definitely not billionaires or a lineup of clueless white men who populated an administration notable for its disdain for immigrants and the tapestry which makes up the American nation.
This is an administration that will listen to Dr. Anthony Fauci and not ridicule him because his warnings on a pandemic contradicted the self-proclaimed “stable genius.” He who is notable for his laziness to listen to briefings or understand the intricacies of governance. This is an administration that promises to treat our allies as friends and our foes, such as Russia, as what they are: opponents who have violated the sanctity of our elections.
Contributing Writers Tricia J. Capistrano Ludy AstraquilloOngkeko Joel David Mariel Padilla Wendell Gaa Maricar CP Lindy Rosales Hampton Danielle Vania Angelito Cabigao Bonus
Founding Editor Cristina DC Pastor Address P.O. Box 8071 New York, NY 10116
Contact Thefilamny@gmail.com
The FilAm is a publication of A&V Editorial THE FILAM |
It is for these reasons that we at The FilAm look forward to the promise of 2021. The outgoing president, as history buffs well know, is not the first wholly incompetent president who took charge of the affairs of the republic. In our living lifetime though, he is the worst by far for his cruelty, corruption, negligence, and insatiable demand for attention. One promising factor is the arrival of vaccines which can finally fend off the Coronavirus which has killed more than 300,000 of our fellow citizens, and the death toll could well rise to 500,000 before all is said and done. The vaccines, if adopted widely, may well provide us an exit ramp from the dark days of this disease and restore a semblance of normalcy back in our lives. This is the promise of 2021 and the following years under Joe Biden. There remain many issues such as climate change, systemic racism, and income inequality that blight our nation. At least we can go back to a government that in its basic form cares for our lives as Americans and will work for a better union, even for those who voted against it.
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Natalie Ava Habana and brother Julian Bayani
Zed Alexander Payumo
Kids groan the discomfort of wearing masks but warn: ‘COVID can give you tummy aches’
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By Cristina DC Pastor
ids say the darndest things; they also dispense the wisest advice. Zed Alexander Payumo, 7, stressed the importance of wearing a mask because “COVID can make you sick and give you tummy aches.” A second grader at Success Academy Hudson Yards, Zed, however, is a little bummed that people have to wear masks because “I can’t remember them.” He meant people he is meeting for the first time and whose faces are half-shielded. “But if I come to their house, I can remember them.” If you work the cash register at a cafe, he admonished, “You should wear a mask.” Zed’s parents Augee Francisco and Joey Payumo own the very popular coffee shop Kabisera in Lower Manhattan. He said, “Take your mask at home after the restaurant. Or just stay home when they don’t deliver your masks. Wait till they deliver your masks.” He believes doctors and scientists can “get rid” of COVID “with a plan.” He meant the vaccine. “If it works, they will test it on people.” He can’t wait for the pandemic to be over so he doesn’t have to keep his face covered most times. Recognizing that the pandemic has been “stressful to many,” the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has recommended that children 2 years and older wear masks. They should be worn in public or around people who are not members of the same household.
Trinity Hope Bosley Natalie Ava Habana, 7, a second grader at Memorial School in Emerson, New Jersey, thinks people who wear masks “voted for Joe Biden.” She insists that people wear them for the sake of safety. Younger brother Julian Bayani, 5, who goes to the same school, puts it starkly: “Wear a mask so you don’t die.” THE FILAM |
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Both children of Venessa Manzano and Mark Habana swear to wearing masks although they’re too young to be Biden voters. When kids listen to reason at home and in school, chances are they understand the science behind washing one’s hands and avoiding packed crowds to keep the virus from spreading and sending people to hospitals. The Habana siblings, together with elder brother Xavier Laurence, understand the word “quarantine” and why they take classes in front of a computer. The family has been rediscovering the joys of just being together baking Cookie Monsters and playing card games. Trinity Hope Bosley of Hanover, Maryland thinks masks “look good” on people. Although she has complained to her parents Michael Dwain Bosley and Imelda Antoc-Bosley that masks make it hard for her to breathe sometimes, she makes it a point to wear one when the family goes out. “I can’t really breathe when I’m wearing a mask. That’s why sometimes I put it down a little bit so I can breathe some air,” said the 6-year-old student of Liberty University in Lynchburg, Virginia. Trinity – who loves skating, reading books, and competing in beauty contests — thinks people are “being careful” when they go out, faces covered. And what about those who refuse? “They are so ‘bastos’ and they’ll get sick.” She prays that “Papa God will make the Coronavirus go away.”
Diplomat’s book dedicated to Filipinos who care about their heritage Ambassador Virgilio A. Reyes Jr. retired from the Philippine diplomatic corps at the mandatory age of 65, in 2014, after 35 years of service.
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ut luckily for us living in these troubled times, he released his book, “A Memory of Time” before the year 2020 ended. In the words of Gemma Nemenzo who writes the Prologue: “It is a book that will benefit everyone who cares about our homeland’s heritage from which our collective soul soars.” A book we need to remind us how much we miss our beloved home country the Philippines. Some of the essays in the book were previously published in the Philippine Daily Inquirer Lifestyle section in a column called "Salamisim" (Reflections) as well as in Positively Filipino. Some are original and published for the first time here in a scintillating brew. I met Ambassador Virgil almost the same time when he joined the Foreign Service because his wife Marie Luarca Reyes was a classmate of my sister Imelda “Mely” Nicolas at St. Theresa’s College. I was two years their senior at STC. I would meet the Ambassador at social and cultural events in New York and in Manila and we would have the occasion to discuss salient developments in the Philippines. Like his wife Marie, his elder sisters Cynthia and Georgina were also graduates of STC Manila, an institution which had produced writers and committed Filipino citizens. Virgil has shared with me the humorous note that he had been a Theresian for one year when he was a Grade One student and STC still accepted boys. He was a classmate of Renato Corona who would become the 23rd Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of the Philippines. They were part of what became known as "Mother Redempta's Boys." His writings in Part 1 took me on his travels to Cape Town, South Africa where he discovered, among other things, that Filipinos had established a fishing colony in the 1860s and that their descendants still lived there. Here, he met notable personalities, such as Nelson Mandela who was the Nobel Peace Prize recipient for 1993 and Bishop Desmond Tutu who received the same honor in 1984. He met Fidel Castro when he was working with the Philippine Mission to the United Nations and attended a meeting of the Non-Aligned Movement on Disarmament in Havana, Cuba in 1988. He writes about his impression of Aung San Suu Kyi upon her release from house arrest in 1995, when he was assigned in Yangon, Myanmar. He visited the fabled Rick’s Cafe in Casablanca, Morocco, where the movie with Humphrey Bogart and Ingrid Bergman played 24/7.
Retired Ambassador Virgilio Reyes Jr.’s diplomatic career in pictures: ‘An erudite, profound, and insightful writer.’ Part 2 of his book extensively describes the impact on Philippine culture and arts of illustrious artists and personalities such as The Incredible Nick Joaquin; NYC dancer, author, and culinary expert Ronnie Alejandro; classical guitarist Michael Dadap, who is the music director and conductor of the exquisite Children’s Orchestra Society (a school he runs with his wife Dr. Yeou-Cheng Ma); another STC graduate Therese Rodríguez, who is head of the Asian & Pacific Islander Coalition on HIV/AIDS or APICHA; his late father Virgilio Reyes Sr., who was Press Secretary to President Diosdado Macapagal and news editor of the Manila Chronicle. Esteemed journalist colleagues Johnny Gatbonton and Rosalinda Orosa paid his father a moving tribute in the book. Virgil and his four siblings were already adults when their father passed away from a heart attack at 55, but they continued his tradition of writing and communication. His sister Georgina was dean of the UP Institute of Mass Communication while their mother Erlinda Alcantara-Reyes was chairman of the UP Department of Speech and Drama. Their grandmother Esther Tempongko-Alcantara had been an English professor at the Far Eastern University to such notables as Kerima Polotan-Tuvera. Writing and communication are truly in their blood. THE FILAM |
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The title of the book is a line from ‘The Aeneid’ by the Roman poet Virgil.
Part 3 of the book includes a review of the Philippine Gold Exhibit held at Asia Society from September 2015 to January 2016. It was the most attended exhibition in the history of the museum, the first time that gold products produced in the 12th to 13th century before Spain’s colonization of the Philippines were exhibited in the United States. Part 4 of the book are the Ambassador’s own reviews of books he has read and Broadway shows he has seen. Part 5 of the book contains the author’s own reflections about the Philippine historical places: the Walled City of Intramuros; Quiapo, which is now becoming a Mindanao enclave; the historic house belonging to the author’s ancestors in Maragondon, Cavite where Andres Bonifacio was sentenced to death in a kangaroo court. The author has also written a heartwarming tribute to his mother Erlinda Alcantara Reyes, who raised her five children for the next 20 years after her husband died. I encourage everyone to read “A Memory of Time” one article at a time and let its clarity of observation wash over you after reading each essay. The Ambassador is truly one erudite, articulate, profound, and insightful writer. “A Memory of Time” is available at Amazon.com.
Ruben Nepales’s coffee table book of Hollywood greats By Cristina DC Pastor
Imagine curling up with a mug of cocoa and browsing thousands of uncommon photos of Hollywood celebrities: Robin Williams’ eyes welling with tears from laughing so hard. Olivia Colman appearing “unroyal” with a funny face. Or Ian McKellen wickedly breaking into song.
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ntertainment journalist Ruben Nepales snapped several thousands of candid photographs of Hollywood celebrities and published hundreds of them in a shimmering coffee table book called, “Through a Writer’s Lens.” We’re talking two decades of covering film stars, directors, writers, producers and fashion stylists, and several hundred hours of photo shoots, visits to film sets, and interviews anywhere from London to New York. The end product is 260 pages of photographs of celebrities appearing to be ‘just like us.’ “I have literally thousands of photos from almost two decades of taking pictures of talents as I interviewed them,” Ruben told The FilAm. “Many are in color. Some are in black and white, most are candid shots and there are also posed shots.” The idea to compile them in a book came from former fashion model, indie film and music producer Bessie Badilla, a close friend of Ruben and his wife Janet, also an entertainment writer. “The book was totally Bessie’s idea,” he said. “I am very grateful to Bessie for her vision. I never, in my wildest dreams, imagined that I have enough good material for a coffee table book.”
Two decades of covering film stars, directors, producers, and cinema talents. He further said, “Bessie has a great eye for beauty and photography so I was flattered that one night in New York, she first brought up the idea that I should come up with a coffee table book of my photos. And that she would publish it.” It took seven months into the pandemic for Ruben to complete the publication project – browse all the photos with Janet, pick out the ones that would go into the album and coordinate with printer. “With the lockdown and slowdown – no more travels to visit film and TV sets or to interview talents or wherever – I finally had the time.” The biggest challenge was searching for some of his favorite photos many from so many years ago. They may have been unlocatable in his hard drive but they live on online. “Thank goodness for the invention of Google!” he beamed. The book contains “playful, unguarded” photos of, just to name a few, Meryl Streep, Robert Downey, THE FILAM |
Publisher Bessie Badilla: The book was her idea. Photo by Filbert Diego Kung Jr., Judi Dench, Robert Pattinson, Al Pacino, Kristen Stewart and Darren Criss during or after interviews. “I usually wait when the talent smiles or laughs or makes expressive ges5
tures with their eyes or hands.” One who is especially unforgettable was Robin Williams. “I am glad I have lasting images of him being funny and so endearing,” mused Ruben. He has one caveat, an “unspoken boundary” of sorts. When the celebrity is overcome with emotion or cries during interviews. “I put down my camera out of respect.” Filipino-American actors – such as Reggie Lee, Nico Santos and Vincent Rodriguez III – are also featured in the book. Said Ruben, “I took their photos at the height of the pandemic. They graciously and generously agreed to pose for me.” Both subject and photographer wore masks and observed a healthy distance. Perhaps unknown to many, Ruben loves photography as much as he is passionate about writing, said Janet. “He loves to take photos of scenes that inspire him, of moments that excite him, of people’s candid emotions, of history unfolding right before his eyes,” she said. “I am always happy to see the result, especially when he captures the unique, rare moments of a star in a particular mood.” Variety editor Tim Gray praised “Through a Writer’s Lens.” He said, “Ruben Nepales is smart, has great taste, and observes things that most people overlook. These qualities make him a good photojournalist and they make this book so great.” Ruben is the first Filipino to be elected to membership in the Hollywood Foreign Press Association (HFPA), the association of international journalists which presents the Golden Globe Awards. He has served for many years as a board member. In 2012, he became the first Filipino to be elected as chairman of the board of the HFPA. Special, limited edition hardbound copies of “Through a Writer’s Lens” are available at $125 plus $10 for shipping and handling; in the Philippines, ₱6,000 plus ₱200 for shipping and handling. To order, send a message to: https://www.facebook. com/throughawriterslens/.
Press and industry are praising Ruben V. Nepales’ ‘Through a Writer’s Lens’ “Ruben Nepales is smart, has great taste, and observes things that most people overlook. These qualities make him a good photojournalist and they make this book so great.” Tim Gray, Variety “Ruben Nepales’ gorgeous second book, ‘Through a Writer’s Lens,’ a visual tome of sorts that features some of the stellar Hollywood talents the award-winning Fil-Am photojournalist had interviewed through the years.” Rito Asilo, Philippine Daily Inquirer “Now comes Bessie Badilla, sophisticate and former model, who has revived the art of the coffee table book by way of Ruben’s voluminous library of exquisite photographs taken of Hollywood celebrities.” Nestor Cuartero, Manila Bulletin “First-rate! A joy to behold from page to page, with its splendid shots and memorable quotes. Only a master photojournalist like Ruben Nepales could have accomplished this: a magnificent pictorial document of Hollywood’s top icons and legends.” Vincent Nebrida, global film industry veteran “Entertainment journalist Ruben Nepales snapped several thousands of candid photographs of Hollywood celebrities and published hundreds of them in a shimmering coffee table book called, ‘Through a Writer’s Lens.’ ” Crien Pastor, The FilAm
To order your limited hardbound edition (12 x 14) copy, PM at www.facebook.com/throughawriterslens. $125 plus $10 for shipping and handling in the U.S./P6,000 plus P200 for shipping and handling in the Philippines
The refreshing treatment of same-sex romance in ‘Monsoon’
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here is same-sex foreplay in the movie, Monsoon. Henry Golding of Crazy Rich Asians plays Kit, a gay Vietnamese British man, who returns to Vietnam 30 years after he and his family members left in the ‘70s after Vietnam won the war. Kit meets Lewis (played by Parker Sawyers, Southside with You), an African American man, in Saigon. The movie is a liberal’s ideal. Kit and Lewis’s relationship and Lewis’s race is incidental to the story. They connect just like heterosexuals. Even after this year’s racial awakening, I find that the representation of people of color and LGBTQ in the US media is limited. The sweet but unremarkable development of Kit and Lewis’s relationship is refreshing. Monsoon is based on the experience of writer-director Hong Khaou whose parents are Cambodian. His parents moved from Cambodia to Vietnam to
By Tricia J. Capistrano
Henry Golding (right) and Parker Sawyers as lovers Kit and Lewis who meet in Saigon. escape Pol Pot’s murderous regime. His family later migrated to the UK. When the movie opens, Benjamin Kracun’s cinematography immediately situates us in buzzing, humid Saigon-it’s a bit like Manila but not Manila-and then later in less restless Hanoi’s quiet beauty.
As Kit visits an old friend and looks up the places he used to go to as a child, fellow immigrants like us will recognize Kit’s bewilderment at the change of his former home and of course compare the scenery, our colonial histories, politics, and the current economic footing of Vietnam and the Philippines.
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Hong Khaou’s movie reminds me of fellow British writer Kazuo Ishiguro’s work, Never Let Me Go and Remains of The Day. A multitude is expressed in the silences. Watching Monsoon is worthwhile especially during this time of reflection. For those of us who have moved away, we may need to brace ourselves for what we are about to fathom. Monsoon is available to rent or buy on iTunes, Google Play and other streaming platforms. Tricia Capistrano writes about books and movies from Southeast Asia. Her essays have appeared in Newsweek and MrBellersNeighborhood.com. She is the author of ‘Dingding, Ningning, Singsing and Other Fun Tagalog Words.’ Her essay, “Inadequately Asian” which appeared in this publication, was chosen as the Best Personal Essay by the Philippine American Press Club in 2017. She can be reached at tricia.capistrano@gmail.com.
Former consul unable to speak, walk is diagnosed with rare neurologic condition By Cristina DC Pastor
A video showing former Consul Khrystina ‘Khrys’ Corpuz Popov suffering from a neurologic disorder was received with shock and an outpouring of emotion throughout the Filipino American community.
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he video, showing Khrys tearful and clinging unsteadily to her husband Dmitry ‘Dima’ Popov as the two of them walk in the middle of a farmland, was circulated two days before Christmas. Dima is providing the commentary in his Timelapse Traveler channel on YouTube. He said his wife of four years has been diagnosed with a kind of neurologic disorder called Central Pontine Diagnosis, Pituitary Adenoma and Panhypothyroidism. He said the condition is rare and “difficult to treat” unlike the more common Parkinson’s Disease or stroke. “All our friends, we are all shocked, sad, and cried,” shared Juliet Payabyab, president of United Mindoro International, and a community leader in Astoria, Queens. “We didn’t know she had a problem.” Dima said the condition was not immediately known to the family. In March of 2020 they went to the hospital because she was “catatonic.” It was found out that a 2012 radiation treatment for a brain tumor left some scarring in her brain. “It was discovered through an aggressive radiation treatment to remove a brain tumor,” he said in the video. “It left some scarring that remained dormant this whole time.” At the time, too, Khrys was pregnant, he added. “Supposed to be our first child…At least we were able to see the (baby’s) heartbeat.” The pandemic happened around the time of her diagnosis.
Khrys and Dima attend a dinner gala at Cipriani’s in 2018.
Their ‘big reveal.’ Dima and Khrys’s video may be viewed on his Timelapse Traveler channel on YouTube. Khrys spent eight days in the hospital. What followed after she was discharged was a series of physical and speech therapies three times a week at St. Luke’s Medical Center at Bonifacio Global City where the couple live.
||First date in Brooklyn
The young career diplomat and her husband, who is an IT professional, met in New York in 2015. She was the officer in charge of Public Diplomacy during the term of Consul General Mario de Leon. In her early 30s at the time, she assumed the role and THE FILAM |
became the Philippine Consulate’s liaison to the FilAm millennials. She met Dima, a resident of Brooklyn, via a dating app she tried on the suggestion of a persistent friend. Their first dinner was at Purple Yam during Filipino Restaurant Week. Dima grew up in Ukraine when it was still a state within the Soviet Union. When he was 9 years old, his family fled to the U.S. and settled in Brooklyn. Russian is his first language. “It wasn’t instant connection,” she recalled in a 2019 interview with The FilAm. They had two weddings – a civil ceremony in New York City with 7
De Leon as the principal sponsor, and a church wedding in Tagaytay attended by both their families. Khrys returned to the home office in Manila in early 2019 when her six-year tour of duty ended. Dima was excited to join her and get to know the Philippines. He felt an “instant connection” seeing people biking in Intramuros and finding Filipinos to be such a warm people. In the video, Khrys, who was wearing a red sweater, leaned on Dima’s chest and managed a muffled “sorry,” seeming to apologize for the discomfort her condition has imposed on their life together. “No need to be sorry, it’s not your fault,” said Dima as he kissed the arc of her head in a way that is both comforting and reassuring. “For sure, we’re in it together every step of the way.” “You know how special she is to me,” said community leader Vivian Talambiras Cruz, who was one of the wedding sponsors together with De Leon. “I love her dearly and hope the Lord will see her through these challenging times.”
Side effects of COVID vaccines The news about the coronavirus vaccine has been positive lately.
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any health care workers around the country received their first dose of the PfizerBioNTech vaccine after it acquired emergency use authorization (EUA) from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on December 11. A second vaccine, from biotech firm Moderna, has cleared the same regulatory hurdle. If all goes as expected, as many as 20 million Americans could be vaccinated against COVID-19 before the end of the year. While it may take a while for production to ramp up to the point where a vaccine is readily available to the general public, health experts say there is one thing that’s critical for people to understand before they roll up their sleeves for the shots: The vaccines may cause side effects. According to the FDA, the most common side effects among participants in both the Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna phase 3 clinical trials were: • Injection site pain • Fatigue • Headache • Muscle pain • Chills • Joint pain • Fever However, these reactions are “temporary,” and they “self-resolve” within a few days, says Wilbur Chen, M.D., a professor of medicine and chief of adult clinical studies at the Center for Vaccine Development and Global Health at the University of Maryland. Even so, it’s “ultracritical” that health experts are transparent with the public about what to expect. “Where a mistake could be made is in people being surprised or not being prepared for side effects,” adds William Moss, M.D., executive director of the International Vaccine Access Center at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
||Transparency builds trust Polls show that as many as 42 percent of Americans say they are unwilling to get a coronavirus vaccine when one becomes available, for reasons spanning the unprecedented speed of the vaccines’ development to a general mistrust of vaccines. People are also concerned about potential side effects from the shots, according to a recent Pew Research Center survey, making it “critically
Patient awaits vaccination. Getty Images important” for health experts to be upfront about all the possibilities, Moss argues. Another reason people need to know about any potential side effects: Both the Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna vaccines require two doses, given a few weeks apart. And unanticipated side effects from the first shot could deter people from going back for the second, which is needed to “get the most protection the vaccine has to offer,” the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) points out. “We don’t know what happens after a single dose,” Moss says. “Certainly, we can’t expect [that one dose will confer] the high degree of protection” that both doses demonstrated in phase 3 clinical trials. “So it’s really important that people get two doses and not be thrown off or discouraged,” Moss adds. Finally, knowing that a sore arm or a fever is a possible side effect helps ease public alarm, says Hana El Sahly, M.D., associate professor of molecular virology and microbiology at Baylor College of Medicine. If someone experiences an unpleasant, but expected, response, “they can take some symptomatic treatment and have reassurance and minimize their anxiety around the vaccine,” she explains.
||‘A good thing’ Side effects from vaccines are not uncommon. The seasonal flu shot, for example, can cause fever and fatigue, among other reactions. And the vaccine to THE FILAM |
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prevent shingles can induce shivering, muscle pain and an upset stomach, to name a few. In some ways, these mild to moderate reactions are “a good thing,” Moss says, because “it’s a sign that the immune system is responding to the vaccine.” Nevertheless, they shouldn’t be downplayed. For some people, a sore arm “is a big deal,” Chen points out. Reactions from the coronavirus vaccine may even cause recipients to miss a day or two of work. The key, experts say, is to weigh the temporary discomfort against the long-term benefits: a potentially high level of protection from a disease that has uprooted everyday life for many of us and has killed more than 1.6 million people globally. “We are willing to tolerate discomfort in other aspects of our life — many people exercise and have muscle aches afterward, and don’t say, ‘I’m never going to exercise again,’” Moss points out. “There are just many aspects of our lives where we need to be willing to make the trade-off for some degree of discomfort for a longer-term gain.” It’s also important to keep in mind that the majority of reactions occur shortly after vaccination, so “there is a degree of reassurance” that the side effects reported in the clinical trials are likely the extent of any unpleasant short-term reactions, El Sahly says. For the full report, visit aarp.org.
COVID descended on Belle Villafuerte, RN’s family and claimed her husband By Cristina DC Pastor
It happened in the home of a Filipino American nurse.
Born in Makati, Metro Manila, Belle came to the U.S. when she was 14 years old. She and Al met at a New Year’s Eve party her parents hosted in 1972. Both their parents were friends. Four years later, the two were married in the Bronx. The year 2020 would have been their 44th wedding anniversary. Belle is a leader in the close-knit FilAm nursing community and was the president of the Philippine Nurses Association of New Jersey from 2014 to 2016. “Today, eight months after my first symptoms started, I am still being followed up every three months as some of my lab work, especially my LFTs (Liver function tests) are elevated. I am, however, able to be more active and getting back to my love of cooking and dancing.” Her prayer is to be able to stay around long enough to take care of grandchildren. She likes to joke with close friends that because of COVID, she was able to shed some pounds. “The one positive that came out from this ordeal.”
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registered nurse, her husband, and son all tested positive for the Coronavirus. Belle Villafuerte, RN and son Drew survived, but Al, a respiratory therapist and patriarch of this Rockland County family, passed away in May. It was quite sudden, by Belle’s lucid recollection. On March 15, “Al came home from work not feeling well and in fact already told his boss that he would not be able to go back to work the next day. I took his temperature, and he had a fever.” Early Wednesday of March 18, Al tested “Positive for the Coronavirus.” That same evening, Belle started to feel shooting pains all over her body. Soon, she was manifesting the classic symptoms of COVID-19: shortness of breath, no taste, no smell and overall physical weakness just like Al. On March 20, her physician sent Belle to get tested and started her on antibiotics. Three days later, the results came back: “Positive for the Coronavirus.” Belle was incredulous. Al, she said, was a picture of health and had no pre-existing conditions. “He played two hours of tennis practically every day, ate predominantly fish and air-fried chicken, no oil frying except on occasion.” She, on the other hand, was, at the time, suffering from Vertigo, complicated by Labyrinthitis. Not exactly comorbidities that encouraged the Coronavirus to thrive. But she was also being examined for a small lump in her maternal breast. All tests came back negative and there was no risk for any cancerous growth. It was COVID that got to her. “For 14 days I took the maximum allowed dosage per day of Tylenol in five divided doses,” she described her treatment. “I had one bout of 99.2 temp when I didn’t take Tylenol and my temperature went up immediately and shooting pains all over my body. Al even said when he was still at home that he heard me moaning in the middle of the night from the pain.” Belle stayed in the guest room which she disinfected thoroughly. Al took the master’s bedroom, and their son Drew, who works as a kitchen manager at a burger joint, stayed in his room – their home divided into three healing zones. A daughter who is a Social Worker at a Long-Term Care/Sub-Acute facility, did not get
Her prayer is to be able to stay around long enough to take care of grandchildren. the infection although she was exposed daily to a high percentage of COVID patients. “Almost on a daily basis, I was tempted to call 911 because of the severe shortness of breath with my SPO2 (oxygen saturation level) dropping in the mid to high 80s. I tolerated the hardship as I did not want to be intubated in the ER, as I know that’s what they would have done with the symptoms I was exhibiting. I did not want my kids, although adults, to have two parents in the ICU, and not being able to visit them,” she recalled. “I just remembered praying and asking the Lord to give me the strength to persevere and survive.” On May 9th, Al died while Belle and Drew were still in recovery. Today after almost eight months, Belle could look back with a tinge of levity how she wished 2020 never happened. THE FILAM |
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Belle and Al, who met at a New Year’s Eve party, were married 44 years.
COVER STORY
Rhodes Scholar Tyrese Bender carries his heritage with understated pride By Cristina DC Pastor
With his mother Maria Bender and elder sister Moriah.
His mother couldn’t stop crying on learning he was going to be a Rhodes Scholar.
est Point Cadet Tyrese Bender was recently named one of 32 U.S. Rhodes Scholarship awardees, possibly the first Filipino American to receive the prestigious honor. He hopes to earn a Master of Philosophy Science in Sociology and Evidence-Based Social Intervention and Policy EvaluationEvaluation from Oxford University. . Beyond that, he will belong to an exclusive league of the ‘best and brightest’ that includes former President Bill Clinton, New Jersey Senator Cory Booker, and journalist Rachel Maddow. Tyrese, who excelled in athletics as well as academics, spoke to The FilAm about his biracial identity and how it has given him a “unique” perspective as he explores different cultures and meets different people. Born in San Antonio, Texas, to a Filipina mother and an African-American father, his parents divorced when he was a little boy. Both his parents have served in the U.S. Army where they met. He and his elder sister, Moriah, were primarily raised by their mother
and half-Filipino identity has invigorated my understanding that where we come from and how we view ourselves are both fundamental aspects that guide who we are.” Tyrese is an engineering management major at the military academy. He is a two-year track team captain and contributor to the inaugural U.S Corps of Cadets Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Strategy. “He is one of those kids that is as solid as the granite that forms the foundation of much of this institution,” said Army Director of cross country and track & field Mike Smith in the Patriot League website. He said his mother raised him and his sister “guided by her strength, discipline, and direction.” Maria Bender (would you like to use her maiden name? No, as this would likely confuse her with my Tita (Maria Singian)) traveled to the U.S. when she was 16. “My mother tells me that not only is her home country a lot warmer during the winters, but that the Philippines is a truly fantastic place filled with beautiful islands, people, culture, and of course, food,” he said.
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‘Being a mixed-race child often meant I was quite different. I learned to draw strength from that.’ Maria. Their father, Tyron Bender, was present as they were growing up. (Would you like to include the name of your father?) “My half-Filipino identity is something I wear with a sense of pride,” he said in an email interview. “Though being a mixed-race child often meant that I was quite different from everyone else, I learned to draw strength from this difference. My half-Black THE FILAM |
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Maria garnered support from her extended family to look after her children while she worked. “My Lola played a huge role in filling my diet with my favorite Filipino dishes, to include Sinigang, Lumpia, Tocino, Giniling, and Adobo.” She joined the Army and left with the rank of corporal before Tyrese was born. She juggled two jobs when the kids were in school, and later settled on a career as a project manager for a financial consulting firm. “Her eight years of service (in the Army) existed as an example of leadership, selfless service, and strength that proved to me that I, too, could use my life for the betterment of others,” he said.
||Stellar athlete His father, who was born and raised in a small town in Louisville, Mississippi, was “able to be a part of our upbringing.” “I inherited much of my athletic drive and appreciation for sports from my father, who was a stellar athlete in his younger days, while my sister inherited most of the musical talent in the Bender family,” he said. He said his parents raised him guided by the principles of respect and hard work. “My mother taught me at a young age that, to truly impart a vision into the world, I needed to listen, understand, and respect different perspectives. And when the world and the people
in it fought back, working hard and appealing to the better angels of our nature would always help inspire others, making our struggles matter.” His mother, he told CBS’s Norah O’Donnell, “really ingrained in me this idea that if you want something you have to go get it.” When asked for her reaction to the scholarship, he beamed, “She couldn’t stop crying.” Being biracial has helped him realize that family, understanding, inclusion, and other values transcend the supposed barriers that exist among cultures. “Though we look different, eat different foods, and practice different customs, my upbringing as a half-Black and half-Filipino individual helped show me that if we choose to listen, understand, and respect one another, that these differences can come together, imbuing all of us with a newfound sense of strength,” he said. Sonny Busa, a retired diplomat with the U.S. State Department who also served in the U.S. Army, said Tyrese “represents the best of Filipino Americans.” “The scholarship recognizes not only high academic achievement, but physical prowess, combined with outstanding leadership skills in the furtherance of community welfare,” said,” said Busa, a graduate of the West Point Class of 1976. “Tyrese as the second of command of the West Point Corps of Cadets, over 4,000 strong,
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Cadet Tyrese Bender. ‘Solid as a granite.’ Photo: Patriotleague.org exemplifies leadership in a school considered to be the top leadership school in the world.” “Of course,” he pointed out, “there should not be any doubt that his character is a direct result of being raised by a strong Filipina single Mom.” “Rhodes Scholars are chosen not only for their outstanding scholarly achievements, but for their character, commitment to others and to the common good, and for their potential for leadership in whatever domains their careers may lead,” says a statement from West Point.
2 Filipino killers are on Death Row By Cristina DC Pastor
Two Filipinos out of a total of 124 foreign nationals are currently on Death Row awaiting execution, according to data from the nonprofit Death Penalty Information Center.
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migrant workers with temporary permits, resident aliens, undocumented aliens, asylumseekers, and persons in transit.” The data provided may not be accurate because of the difficulty of ascertaining the nationality of death sentence persons, and the criteria for determining nationality varies from state to state. “Compounding the problem is the stillwidespread failure of U.S. law enforcement officials to notify detained foreigners of their consular rights. Without this notification and subsequent communication at the request of the detained national, foreign consulates in the United States are likely to remain unaware of the true number of their nationals who are imprisoned, let alone sentenced to death,” states the website. The support for capital punishment is waning because of several cases of mistaken convictions as well as a disproportionate high number of Black suspects in incarceration. This has led to several states abolishing the death penalty. Americans surveyed by DPIC have said that life in prison without parole is a “better approach for punishing murder than the death penalty.”
he DPIC website shows the biggest number of foreigners who had been sentenced to capital punishment as coming from Mexico with 50 individuals, followed by Cuba and Vietnam with 8 incarcerated nationals each. The rest are nationals from a variety of countries each with anywhere from 1 to 5 inmates. Countries in the Asean region count 4 in Cambodia, 2 each in Laos and the Philippines. The latest data, provided by Mark Warren of Human Rights Research, is dated September 23, 2020. The Filipinos meted the death penalty were identified in the website https:// deathpenaltyinfo.org/ as Sonny Enraca of California and Ralph Simon Jeremias of Nevada. In Nevada, only 5 foreigners Support for capital punishment has been declining because of cases are on Death Row and a Filipino is one of them. California has 60 foreigners awaiting of mistaken convictions. capital punishment. News reports state that Sonny Enraca was sentenced to death in Riverside County on July 23, 1999 for the fatal shooting of an actor who had appeared in the “Boyz N the Hood” movie. As reported in mycrimelibrary.com: “Enraca, a Philippine national who had lived in the United States for eight years, was a member of the Akrho Boyz Crazzy (sic) (ABC) gang, an affiliate of the Bloods. Enraca initially denied any involvement in the shootings but confessed soon after he was arrested.” A second Filipino, Ralph Simon Jeremias, was sentenced for the “execution-style” shootings of Paul Stephens and Brian Hudson in 2009, according to the Las Vegas Review Journal. Jeremias said the victims were already dead when he came to the apartment complex to buy marijuana. Two of his friends disputed this account, and said Jeremias entered the building alone and shot the two men multiple times, according to the news report. As stated in the website, a “foreign national” is an individual who does not possess U.S. citizenship. They would Sonny Enraca; Ralph Simon Jeremias. Photos: Mycrimelibrary.com; Review-Journal generally include “tourists and visitors, THE FILAM |
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Marathon-watching ‘The Mandalorian’ By Wendell Gaa
Thanks to modern digital technology, home entertainment has provided us much-needed relief from all the daily hardships continually plaguing the world.
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ne popular streamline series which has already made a positive impact on pop culture and has nearly entered the universal lexicon is “The Mandalorian” on Disney+. The first ever live-action TV spinoff series of the epic sci-fi space opera saga Star Wars, “The Mandalorian” is the story of a lone helmeted bounty hunter by the name of Mando (real name is Din Djarin) who has been tasked to retrieve and protect a young mystical being called “The Child.” The boy is believed to possess special abilities which hold the key to the fate of the galaxy, and who also happens to be the same galactic species as the iconic Jedi Master Yoda. Now in its second season, the heart and core of “The Mandalorian” has truly been the endearing paternalistic relationship between Mando and “The Child,” or more popularly known as “Baby Yoda.” Each episode has chronicled the adventures of the two as they navigate the dangerous parts of the galaxy where enemies from many sides are out to eliminate them. Even though his face beneath his helmet has only been shown once briefly in one episode of this series thus far, Chilean actor Pedro Pascal absolutely owns the starring role of the antihero Mando, with an intriguing mixture of stoic intensity towards his rivals and growing empathy towards his friends and allies. He has already proven to fans his diverse acting range with his memorable performance as the charismatic Oberyn Martell in the hit fantasy drama show “Game of Thrones,” as well as the main antagonist opposite Denzel Washington in “The Equalizer 2.” “The Mandalorian” has also been notable for featuring guest celebrities, and a recent episode featured one of our own, actress Diana Lee Inosanto, whose father is famous FilAm martial artist Dan Inosanto who was a training partner of the legendary Bruce Lee. A
California native, Diana guest stars as the intriguing and morally ambiguous Magistrate Morgan Elsbeth who has, to say the least, an interesting encounter and exchange with Mando and The Child. Diana magnificently exhibits her physical prowess and combat skills which apparently runs well in her family of skilled martial artists, and I sincerely do hope we may be able to see her as a recurring character on the series. By her looks and moves, I would never have guessed that she is actually in her mid-50s in real life! Filmmaker and director Jon Favreau created “The Mandalorian” series and his vision of it being a space western has been nothing short of creative brilliance throughout the entire run of the series thus far. A director, as well an actor who truly has a passion for his craft and the entertainment industry, Favreau has already lent his talent to the Disney company by helming the director’s chair for the 2016 live-action adaptation of the 1960s classic “The Jungle Book.” He has partaken in the Marvel Cinematic Universe performing as Happy Hogan, close confidante and
Mando and Baby Yoda navigate the dangerous parts of the galaxy. friend of Robert Downey Jr.’s Tony Stark/Iron Man. I remember well the first time I watched Favreau perform onscreen as the best friend of Sean Astin’s character in the 1993 football drama “Rudy.” I’m very happy to see how he has recently made huge strides in Hollywood and his future as a top-earning filmmaker alongside George Lucas and Steven Spielberg is no doubt secured.
“The Mandalorian,” which is now my personal favorite new series to come out within the past year, has already bagged seven Primetime Creative Arts Emmy Awards, which is indeed an encouraging sign of its potential emergence as one of the top addictive and acclaimed series of the 2020s. With a third season already in the works, we can all have something to look forward to as a source of home entertainment, as well as a hopeful post-pandemic future.
FilAm martial artist Diana Lee Inosanto plays the morally ambiguous Magistrate.
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Confidentiality for survivors of domestic violence, trafficking
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ictims of domestic violence, stalking, sexual offenses and human trafficking can now protect themselves from their perpetrators by getting a new undisclosed address. The Address Confidentiality Program (ACP) of the New York State Department of State will facilitate a swift and secure enrollment into the program for individuals who previously could only apply for the program via mail or fax. The ACP is available to assist individuals who are trying to rebuild their lives after experiencing a violent situation that put them in harm’s way. ACP is a free state program that allows victims to keep their physical address hidden from their perpetrators by using a substitute mailing address provided by the Department of State in lieu of their actual home, school or work address. The program currently serves approximately 3,200 people. “In New York, we help protect our most vulnerable from violent situations that can endanger them and their families,” said Secretary of State Rossana Rosado who oversees this program. “The online application for the Address Confidentiality Program will make it faster and easier for thousands of New Yorkers in threatening situations to get protection from their perpetrators and help save lives.” Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance (OTDA) Commissioner Mike Hein said, “Survivors of human trafficking should never have to live with the fear that their perpetrator may one day identify where they reside. The Address Confidentiality Program gives victims added confidence that they won’t put themselves at risk when providing their mailing address. This added layer of security will help more survivors step out of the shadow of fear cast by their traffickers and onto the path toward lasting stability.” The ACP helps victims by: • Using an ACP substitute address. Once certified, the ACP participant, will receive an ID card containing his/her name, unique ID number and the substitute address, which is a Post Office box in Albany, New York. The card will
‘Survivors of human trafficking and domestic violence should never have to live in fear.’ Photo: Unsplash
On a regular day, there are more than 20,000 phone calls to domestic violence hotlines nationwide. THE FILAM |
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also indicate the expiration date for the program participant and includes ACP contact information. • Accepting service of process. Participants in the ACP have designated the Secretary of State to accept any legal notices on their behalf. The Secretary of State’s office will not reveal any identifying information to the process server. The program will only verify whether the person being served is an ACP participant. A copy of any process will be mailed to the participant via certified mail. • Handling their mail. Any first class, registered, or certified mail sent to the substitute address will be re-packaged and forwarded to the participant’s actual mailing address. This is done daily, Monday through Friday (except holidays). Participants should expect a five to seven-day delay in receiving their mail. ACP will not forward packages, periodicals and catalogs, unless clearly identified as pharmaceuticals (prescription drugs) or they were sent by a government agency. According to the NYS Office for the Prevention of Domestic Violence (OPDV), in 2018 there were 341,909 phone calls in its domestic violence and sexual assault hotlines. Moreover, the National Conference on Domestic Violence indicates that, on a regular day, there are more than 20,000 phone calls placed to domestic violence hotlines nationwide. The numbers also show that in New York State in 2019, about 65 women died in the hands of an intimate partner. New York State’s Domestic and Sexual Violence Hotline can be reached by phone: 1-800-942-6906, text: 844-997-2121 or chat: @opdv.ny.gov. The New York State Response to Human Trafficking Program, which provides case management services and is funded by the OTDA, has confirmed more than 250 cases of human trafficking in New York through October. Victims in confirmed human trafficking cases can now participate in ACP. For more information and assistance with the application process, please visit the ACP webpage at www.dos.ny.gov/acp or call toll free at (855) 350-4595. — New York State Department of State
FilAms shocked that suspect in 9/11-style plot got pilot’s license in the PHL
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ilipino Americans were shocked to learn that a Kenyan national, who was planning a 9/11-style attack against the U.S., had obtained a pilot’s license in the Philippines. Law enforcement and intelligence agencies announced on December 16 the unsealing of an indictment charging Cholo Abdi Abdullah, 30, with six counts of terrorism-related offenses, “including conspiring to hijack aircraft in order to conduct a 9/11-style attack in the United States.” They alleged that Abdullah, an operative of the African terror organization Al- Shabaab, obtained pilot training in the Philippines in preparation for the attack. He was arrested in July 2019 in the Philippines, and was subsequently transferred on December 15, 2020, to the custody of U.S. law enforcement for prosecution on the charges. He was expected to be presented the following day before Magistrate Judge Robert W. Lehrburger in Manhattan federal court. According to a press statement issued by the following -- Audrey Strauss, the Acting United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, John C. Demers, the Assistant Attorney General for National Security, William F. Sweeney Jr., the Assistant Director-in-Charge of the New York Field Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (“FBI”), and Dermot Shea, the Commissioner of the Police Department for the City of New York (“NYPD”) – Abdullah “obtained pilot training in the Philippines” preparing to hijack a commercial aircraft and crash it into a building in the United States. “This (is a) chilling callback to the horrific attacks of September 11, 2001,” it says. The plot was detected before it could be carried out. Beginning in 2016, according to the statement, Abdullah “traveled to the Philippines and enrolled in a flight school there (the “Flight School”), for the purpose of obtaining training for carrying out the 9/11-style attack. Between 2017 and 2019, Abdullah attended the Flight School on various occasions and obtained pilot’s training, ultimately completing the tests necessary to obtain his pilot’s license.” Strauss, the Acting U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York, praised the “outstanding efforts” of the FBI’s New York Joint Terrorism Task Force, which principally consists of agents from the FBI and detectives from the NYPD. She also thanked several law enforcement and legal agencies in Kenya and the Philippines. In the Philippines, she made special mention of the assistance provided by the Philippine National Police; the Philippine Department of Justice; the Joint Terrorism Financial Investigations Group-Philippines; and the Philippine Bureau of Immigration. FBI Assistant Director-in-Charge William F. Sweeney Jr. said: “Nearly 20 years after the 9/11
The September 11, 2001 attacks that killed nearly 3,000 people were carried out by the Al-Qaeda terror group.
terrorist attacks, there are those who remain determined to conduct terror attacks against U.S. citizens. Abdullah, we allege, is one of them. He obtained a pilot’s license overseas, learning how to hijack an aircraft for the purpose of causing a mass-casualty incident within our borders.” He faces a maximum sentence of life in prison, and a mandatory minimum sentence of 20 years in prison. FilAms, who are following the news, such as makeup artist Victor Palmos, expressed shock that a 9/11 style plot was being hatched and that the Philippines became a center of interest. “So shocking, I watched this on TV,” he said. He believes though that Abdullah chose to study in the Philippines not because of any nefarious intent but because of cost. “It is cheap compared to other countries.” What is bothersome to retired schoolteacher Pacita Ros is whether the suspect had expanded his terror network and recruited Filipinos. “I hope this man hadn't found disgruntled or disillusioned folks to join him in his mission,” she told The FilAm. She commended Philippine law enforcement agencies that tracked down Abdullah and reported him to the U.S. “I'm happy to note that our intel is working.” Army veteran Apollo Bala is disappointed that an individual with links to a terror group managed to enter the Philippines undetected. He said, “The Philippines should screen visiting foreigners thoroughly especially those who come from THE FILAM |
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Kenyan Cholo Abdi Abdullah charged with plotting attack reminiscent of 9/11. countries that support or sponsor terrorism.” This is not the first time the Philippines played a major background role in terror incidents in the U.S. Ramzi Yousef, a key plotter in the 1993 World Trade Center bombing in NYC, fled to the Philippines and was involved in the deadly explosion of a bomb he planted on a Philippine Airlines flight to Tokyo in December 1994. The PAL bombing was a trial run for various schemes, one of which involved flying a jet into CIA headquarters in Virginia. Yousef is a nephew of Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, believed to be the mastermind of 9/11.
A Special Immigrant’s journey to America By Lia Ocampo
Lia Ocampo worked at the U.S. Embassy in Manila for 18 years, starting out as a Human Resources Clerk, at the U.S. Department of State and departing in 2012 as a Human Resources Specialist at the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. She is known as a Special Immigrant, a title reserved for foreign nationals who are employed by the U.S. government abroad and recognized for their “long, faithful, and valuable service.” In her book “What We Know for Sure: Inspirational Stories of Filipino Special Immigrants in America,” Lia has compiled the narratives 25 Filipinos she has worked with, became friends, and are now living in the four corners of America. The book opened with her own story. Below is an excerpt. A native of Batangas, Lia arrived in the U.S. through New York City. After a series of metamorphic and hilarious attempts at finding her place in what used to be called God’s Country, she now works as a flight attendant, splitting her time between New York and Florida. Her children — Jonathan, Mary Frances, and Joshua — have joined her, but that is not the end of her diasporic journey. Her story continues to unfold showing how “hard work, faith, and determination” have seen her through the good, the bad and the lonely times. — Ed
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arrived in the “Big Apple” in July of 2012, carrying two suitcases packed with my necessities: framed pictures of my children, my resume, my favorite clothes, and what I hoped would be enough money to get me through. My decision to leave the Philippines was in some ways very easy, but in other ways challenged me to my core. I had spent 18 years working for the United States Embassy all for the chance to immigrate with the goal of bringing my children with me. Although you needed 20 years as an employee to be eligible for the Special Immigrant Visa (SIV), my years of exemplary service to the embassy allowed me to receive an exemption and I was granted my SIV after 18 years.
so much interview practice that my nerves finally calmed, and I found the confidence I needed when I talked to potential employers.
||Friends who cared
Her first home in New York was a dark basement with no windows.
||My first home
The first place I called home was a dark basement apartment. There were steep, narrow stairs that led to a door. Once inside you walked right into the kitchen. There were no windows to allow natural light. I had one tiny room that just had enough space for a single bed and my things. I shared the one bathroom and the kitchen with several other tenants. I had grown up in a similar environment, so perhaps that is why I didn’t mind the place initially. I could handle it until I couldn’t. The noise bothered me. In the mornings when I tried to sleep, people were outside my bedroom door talking. I had no privacy. So, after two months I found another place. The new place wasn’t much different than the first and within three months I was moving again THE FILAM |
Every week I had set aside time to talk with my kids. And no matter where I was living, the first thing I did was unpack their photos and place them next to my bed. Their faces were the last thing I saw at night and the first thing I saw in the morning. Keeping them close and talking when we could got me through those difficult and lonely times. I would tell myself, time and time again, you chose this Lia, so you can’t be sad or unhappy. You will achieve your dream. When I started looking for work, my search became a full-time job. I kept a steno-pad filled with lists. I wrote down every company and position I applied for to track my progress. I went on every interview that I got. I took nothing for granted. Over time, I gained 17
Although I had planned my money out carefully before leaving the Philippines, accounting for the time I would be unemployed, I still found myself with less funds than I needed. New York was expensive and with no money coming in, reality hit hard. I soon found I had almost no funds. I sought solace with my two friends Marichu Cansino and Hazel Del Rosario. Marichu and I had been best friends since college, and I knew if I reached out to her, she would help me. She understood my dilemma and wired me money immediately. A short time after, I realized I wouldn’t have enough money for my rent. So, this time I texted my friend Hazel in Arizona. Hazel and I are close friends and we had met while working at the embassy. She empathized with my struggles and sent me money right away. Their understanding and generosity helped me through those initial months in the States before I found employment. In what seemed like my never-ending job search, I joined one of the many organizations available to immigrants. This organization helps recent immigrants apply their skills, education, and previous experiences to the U.S. workforce. I got accepted. They taught me advanced job search skills and I honed my interviewing skills through their mock interviews. In addition to joining an organization designed to help immigrants, I read about a program at Pace University to receive a Human Resources Generalist certificate. I knew the more I could put on my resume in terms of experience, education, and certifications, the better chance I had to land a job. But this course was not cheap. I didn’t let that stop me. I emailed the campus registrar and told them my story. Thankfully they granted me a discount, and I was on my way to getting the additional certification. My interviewing skills ramped up and my new certification added to my resume, I got my first job. Eight months after my plane had touched down on U.S. soil, I had a place to live, had done some travel, and I was employed by a large non-profit organization as a recruiter.
COVER STORY
A ’70s Queens eatery that fed activists and a spirited community coming into its own
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rna’s International Cuisine in Queens was the watering hole for Filipino Americans in the Seventies, much like today’s Jeepney in Manhattan or Purple Yam in Brooklyn. It was a restaurant where families celebrated special occasions, like a birthday party or a graduation. For families in no mood for home cooking on a Sunday, they would walk to 73-10 Roosevelt Avenue in Jackson Heights after coming from church. Usually the place would be packed, but always they would be welcomed with a kindly smile from owners Ernie Hernandez and his wife Aida who would scurry to find a way to accommodate everyone. Ernie is from Lemery, Batangas, and Aida hails from Canlubang, Laguna. “Mom’s a great cook,” said Erna Hernandez Barenio when interviewed by The FilAm by email. Her mother was assisted by brother-in-law Manny Hernandez, who worked as a chef in Paris. Erna’s was just the right venture for an enterprising immigrant family. Although Filipino dishes, like Crispy Pata, Palabok, Kare Kare and Lumpiang Sariwa were standard menu, Erna’s International Cuisine also served French fare, such as Escargot, Cordon Bleu, Chicken Coq au Vin, and Filet Mignon courtesy of Manny’s Paris experience. Erna was 4 years old and one year shy of pre-school when the restaurant opened. It was named after her, being the only daughter. Erna currently works as a pre-school teacher in North Carolina. She and her husband Brian own Water & Lightning toy company based in NC that manufactures toys made from sustainable wood from the Philippines. While still in NYC, she was an active member of Arkipelago, an organization of artists and community workers promoting conversations on immigrant rights, generational gaps, and racism through arts-related projects.
By Cristina DC Pastor
Erna Hernandez Barenio: She was 4 years old when the family restaurant opened.
Owners Ernie Hernandez and wife Aida welcome diners; Today they are retired and living in North Carolina.
||Catering paved the way
“Mom ran an unofficial daycare in the apartment,” she recalled when the family was still residing in Queens. “Many were kids of neighboring FiliTHE FILAM |
pino families. In addition to watching the kids, she was already catering. Between that and the catering, customers were urging them to open a restaurant.” 18
Which they did in the spring of 1979. Erna’s was mainly a two-person operation with Aida and brother-in-law Manny lording it over the kitchen. Ernie assisted on weekends when he wasn’t working at a bank, and Erna’s Lola Carna, Encarnacion Trinos, helped when she was visiting NYC. Aida hired Pinoy folks from the community as dishwashers, servers, and bartenders. Little Erna, who loved being with people, was the sassy girl who enjoyed playing host to customers. “I would ‘demonstrate’ the proper way to dip and then eat Lumpiang Shanghai,” was how she recalled her role then. The Hernandezes were not exactly newbies to the business of running a restaurant. “My Lola Carna had a small restaurant in Cabuyao, Laguna,” said Erna. “When mom was in high school, they would make bibingka from scratch and sell it at the school. Dad and Tito Manny had an uncle that owned a bakery and I think they helped out there.” Erna’s International Cuisine was a go-to place at a time when there were only a handful of Filipino eateries in New York City. Today, there are more than 20 across the five boroughs based on a curated list by Zomato.com. Many younger FilAms have gone into the business seeing how Americans are starting to appreciate the ‘revamped,’ more modern take on Filipino cuisine. Aida recalled only two other Pinoy restaurants at the time: Nipa Hut in Queens and Maharlika in Manhattan. PhilAm Food Mart was another popular Filipino establishment at a time — when rent was anywhere from $700 to $800 a month — but it was more of a grocery store. Erna’s had eight tables plus counter service, and a maximum capacity of 40 people.
“It was fairly small,” said Erna. Despite the cramped dining, it served as a community gathering place for “loyal customers” like the KDP (Union of Democratic Filipinos) and the Jaycees whose members would go there after events or rallies or get Erna’s to cater on special occasions. Visiting politicians from the Philippines, such as senators Ernesto Maceda and Rene Saguisag, had feasted there as well. Actors Bert Leroy and Eddie Gutierrez introduced their pots and pans business at a private home with Erna’s providing catered food. Aida recalled to her daughter how once there were large orders of Rellenong Manok. That’s how she came to know that former President Diosdado Macapagal was in town! Actress Amalia Fuentes had been hosted there by friends. Amy Besa and Romy Dorotan of Purple Yam were regulars. Said Erna, “Every time I would bring my parents with me to Purple
A packed Erna’s dining hall. Yam, they enjoyed reminiscing about those days. In fact, when they celebrated their (book launch), they gave a special shoutout to Mom and Erna’s…for feeding us poor activ-
ists at the time and for laying the groundwork in promoting Filipino food here in NYC.” The restaurant was in business for three years. It became entirely a
catering business for a few decades after that. “According to Mom, the overhead was high, and there was little profit even with the steady customer base,” said Erna. The Hernandezes realized there was more income from catering and “it didn’t make sense financially to keep the physical restaurant going.” Aida, who is now 78 years old and living with Erna’s family in North Carolina, looks back with fondness at those years when they provided comfort to a community with food created from the family’s recipes. It’s like passing on a well-loved tradition. She noted how some of today’s Filipino restaurants have a “twist” to the food they serve and are not strictly traditional. “I see it as a good thing,” she said. “Any kind of broadening of Filipino food and palate to the greater community is a good thing.” But for her, traditional cooking is more satisfying because it warms the heart and brings back memories of home.
to all our readers! From The FilAm
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Issue 35, January 2021
2 Pinoy killers
Languishing on Death Row
Lia Ocampo
Why is she called a Special Immigrant?
Erna Barenio
Her family’s restaurant fed activists in the ‘70s