Where is this person from
Early Childhood in the Philippine’s
How or why did they move
What is her family status
Social status before and after her move
Economic factors before and after her move
Her educational opportunities accomplishments
How did their diversity affect her move
How has her diversity been affected her life after her move
Where Suzette is from and her Early Childhood
Suzette, Born in the Philippine’s ( in a rural village (in the jungle) in 1962. She was the youngest of 6 children at that time. Her family were very very poor. The hut in which they lived in at the time had mud floors and it was a very dangerous area for children, as there were many wild animals close to their village. She remembers not having many clothes and never had shoes. Her biological father was a marine and when his deployment was up, left her and her mother and came back to the states. Her mother’s first husband died of Tuberculosis, leaving her, her mother and other siblings living with other family members in order to survive.
How or why did she move
Suzette’s mother met another marine whom was a Master Gunnery Sergeant that was stationed in the Philippine’s. They fell in love and he married her. When his deployment time was up, he came back to the states, set things up to move Suzette, her mother and the 2 youngest of her 6 siblings. Her mother was not allowed to bring them all, due to laws and regulations at the time. They made their way to California in 1968, she was 6 when she arrived in California.
What is her family status
Suzette’s family status has always been a tight knit, close family. Before the move and after the move. In the Philippine culture, family is everything! It is first and foremost in all daily activities. Where the younger members of the family learn from the elders and take care of the elder’s as they progress and grow older. Even though they had moved from the Philippine’s and lived in California, the Filipino cultural was ingrained in her. Her step-father was able to adopt her and her 2 siblings. Her mother and now father did not have anymore children. One thing Suzette has learned, is that sometimes family doesn’t mean biological, it means, those people who are here for you and vice-versa. It is those people who make a great and better difference in your life.
Her social Status before and after her move
She was very poor in the Philippine’s. They had nothing, so her social status was below lower class, as she put it. Until they were able to move to the states, her step-father would send clothes, shoes and other things to get them by. She said she remembers the shoes, her 1st pair, they were black rubber boots, fitting for the rural jungle she lived in and kept her feet dry. She said she was in AWE! Moving to the states and living on base, she was considered middle class, because of her step-fathers rank in the Marine Corps. It was the first time she ever lived in an actual house, with a real floor and toilet (there were no toilets in the jungle). She stated to me, it took some getting used to, but after about a month of not having to use the restroom in a hole, where she may be eaten by a snake, being able to bath every night, having warm water, electric, an actual bed, and being able to play outside without the fear, again of being eaten by some wild animal, that if she stayed in this place forever and this was all that she would ever have in life, she would be happy with that, as she never knew these things existed. Things only got better for Suzette, at 13, they moved off base into an upper- class neighborhood in Oceanside, Ca. She was then considered, upper-class, she stated, she was just a 13 year old, living in her parents house. To this day if you ask her what class she is, she will say, just an average Filipino American, working class person.
Economic factors before and after her move
The economic factors before Suzette’s move, were zero. They were rural village farmers. They had nothing. They lived in a village and farmed their own food (that was their life and their social class). When she moved to the states, there we many more economic factors. Many businesses, factories, grocery stores (she was in awe of these, as she thought it was amazing, you could just go and buy your vegetables and not grow them). There was basically money as she puts it. Something she had never seen or know of before.
Education opportunities and accomplishments
When Suzette arrived in the states, she could not read or write, and the only English she could speak, is what little her mother had known. Her mother could speak very little. Lucky for them, there were other Filipino women on base who had married and re-located to the states. This is where she was able to learn English, she went to school, learned to read and write. She lived on base until she was 13. She was in middle school ready to start high school. She graduated Valedictorian of her class in 1981. She then went to college at University of California and in 1986, she received her bachelors degree, in Electrical Engineering, she worked in this field for a couple years and decided she was Joining the Navy as an engineer. This is where she met her future husband and how she ended up in Southern Applachea Ohio, where there is NO diversity as she states and where she feels as if she is home! Once out of the service, she started working at a footwear company, where she thrived, and they paid for her to go to get a design degree. Although, she is now retired, she retired as VP of footwear development. She believes in giving back and giving to those in need, and she feels as if that is her greatest accomplishment.
Religion
Suzette states she has never really had a religion. Although, she believes in god, she just believes in following her own moral compass, knowing the difference between what is wrong and what is right and lastly, to make this world a better place before she entered it.
How did Diversity affect her move
There was little diversity in the Philippine’s at the time she lived and moved from there, at least where she was from. Her mother,and father, knew her family needed more in life to succeed. When moving to the states and on to the base, there was more diversity and structure like she had never seen. This made her want to learn. Although, her mother and siblings clinged to their tight little group they had be-friended, they were not subjected to much diversity and racism as she stated. Reason being, they have moved to a city on a base, where diversity was becoming rampant at that time. She wasn’t always greeted with open arms, but she was taught to ignore it, to not let mean and nasty people with their mouths full of hatred, make her something she was not.
How has diversity affected her life after her move
The diversity after her move, as she grew older, entered college where she seen it more and more every day and was more knowledgeable to it, made her want to strive and be a better person. Although she says she can say diversity affected her more in a positive way. Like striving to get great grades in school, going to college (2 different degrees). Giving back to those less fortunate, especially to her family in the Philippine’s. As the years passed, her mother and father would send money and provisions to the children, she could not bring to the states with her. As time progressed, and moving with the times, her family in the Philippine’s moved from their rural village, closer and closer, time after time to larger and larger cities, In 1995, they moved to Taft, a city in the Philippine’s (where diversity is rapidly growing and been growing for years) and close to Manila. As adults, Suzette and her 2 brothers living and working in the states, would also send money, (this is where family comes first and never forget where you came from). They were able to send their nieces and nephews who wanted to attend college, to college. The ones not attending college worked within the city, to help provide for those who cannot work. After the devasting Typhoon flood in 2013 ravaged most of Taft. It was time for a new game plan. In 2015, Suzette, her parents, and siblings, along with donations from friends, enough was sent to build an internet café in Taft, as the diversity and growing international travel, there was a need for this kind of business. Diversity for Suzette and her entre family, has proven to be a benefit for them. She agrees, that without the color of her skin, her nationality and being able to check that box on applications, she may not have been afforded what she has been given. This is why she is so eager to give back, not only to her family around the world, but here in the states as well, especially in Southern Appalachian Ohio.