Hooked on CLOY amid COVID-19

by Susan Palmes-Dennis

Charlotte, North Carolina—As we approach the weekend let’s take a break dear readers from the pandemic that is COVID-19 and talk about some things more relaxing and feel good like the Filipino’s ongoing fascination with Korean dramas which I only got hooked on due to my home quarantine with husband Ronnie.

My baptismal into the K-drama craze as it is commonly called started innocently enough with that now famed ‘Crash Landing On You’ series. While my husband Ronnie and I vacationed in Cagayan de Oro City last December I would often see my daughter Janice Baisas watching the series known by the hashtag #CLOY on her IPad.

Initially dismissive at first, my curiosity got the better of me after several days and I mistakenly asked what she read at the time and she replied that she wasn’t reading, she was watching CLOY. I asked what CLOY is only to be ignored by Janice whose facial expressions ranged from sadness, joy or even outright intensity. 

She asked me about North and South Korea and I answered her what I know about those countries and that peaked my interest on CLOY. Only when I returned to the US and had little to do at my home during quarantine--other than my weekday online radio broadcast ‘Barangay S’ at the Way Kurat FM Balingasag Facebook page (Mondays and Wednesdays to Friday every 7 to 8 am Philippine time), my weekday columns at Mindanao Daily and my blog—was I told that CLOY stood for ‘Crash Landing On You.’

Watching drama series  is not my thing anymore though I am a hopeless romantic because I read the books of Elin Hilderbrand or Nora Roberts.  The last time Korean TV series I watched was ‘Lovers In Paris’ which aired God knows when. 

So I checked out CLOY on Netflix one afternoon and I was hooked after one episode. I’m sure I slept at 5 am and woke up at noon to resume watching it until I finished the whole season. The main actor Hyun Bin  was quite affecting in his role and I was convinced by his acting and his looks. 

Hyun Bin,I am in my 60s and if I were young again, I will find you. I give credit to his buddies in the series. They were cute, funny and loyal to him and Siri. A thumbs up to the whole cast including the director, scriptwriters and the team.

Oh and did you readers know that I ended up watching Memories of Alhambra. Maybe, after COVID 19 and the airports are open again, I would ask my husband who was stationed in South Korea that we pass by there to see the demilitarized zone again. Good luck Hyun Bin and be safe always.

Uplifting road trip to sisters of St. Clare

by Susan Palmes-Dennis

Charlotte, North Carolina—My husband and I are currently in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland visiting family especially the grandbabies.

Spring is officially here but the winds are still nippy. My daughter Gg Palmes-Boddison reminded me last Saturday that we would join a group of three Filipino-Britons with Maita Yestes to visit the contemplative nuns of the Order of St. Clare.

Joining us were Carmen Salas Hewett, who was born and raised in Mambajao, Camiguin province and Dalian Dalugdog Sleigh, who is more a native of Butuan City though she spent some time in Davao City.

Maita is known to some who follow my columns and blogs. I consider Maita a relative since she is from my hometown of Tagoloan, Misamis Oriental. I knew her late mama who was only two years older than me.

Everyone in her family are known to me. So as we drove to the monastery I took in the scenery and marveled at all the greenery and other visible signs of spring.

We passed by ponds or parts of the lake and didn't ask about those places as we regaled each other with stories of our lives; funny and lovely life stories that made us yearn all the more to visit the birthplace of William Shakespeare and the Beatles among others.

I didn't know what to expect from our visit to the convent. What I did know was that the group prayed for me the past two years when I was at my lowest point due to my breast cancer.

At that time in my life, among my precious recollections were of Gg sending me photos of her, Maita and other friends with the sisters of the convent.

These memories made me upbeat as we reached the monastery, a ranchhouse of sorts that stood on flat ground and surrounded by flowers and a Statue of the white Virgin Mary at the entrance at Ellesmere, Shrophire.

A woman with a cover on her head opened the wide door that was apparently locked inside and from where I sat in the truck, I can see that she is a nun.

The ladies in our group led by Maria stepped out of the vehicle and ran towards the sisters who were also excited to meet them as they hugged each other. The sisters received the rice, fish and cake from Dalian, cakes from Jacob and many more.

The nun who opened the door was Santa Pedra and she had many keys with her strapped on her waist. She told us she would see us at 1 pm.

With that reminder in mind, we decided to have lunch and left in search of a fish and chips place. 

We found one and Carmen paid for the orders. As we finished our meal, we had dessert of biko or “sticky sweet rice” brought by Dalian.

Dalian told us as we ate that she learned how to make biko from her grandmother during her childhood.

Dalian sold yema (a Filipino sweet custard confection made of condensed milk and eggs) at school and it went so well that she convinced her siblings to sell it too.e o

At 2 pm we were led to a receiving room and waited for the nuns who met us 30 minutes later. They wore the brown habit of St. Claire of Assisi. St. Claire is an Italian saint who was one of the first followers of St. Francis of Assisi,

Our visit was providential as it came on the annual commemoration of the Annunciation of the Lord. The tall nun with a clear face was from Sinabacan town in Misamis Occidental said the Annunciation was a holiday for them.

Since they are contemplative sisters, they stayed inside and pray most of the time. Prayer time consisted of reading psalms and hymns scheduled at 10 to 12 pm everyday.

Upon entering the convent, the nuns made the vows of poverty, chastity, obedience and enclosure along with a commitment to serve the Lord all the days of their lives.

I saw pure joy in their faces when we visited them. As we greeted each other, I learned that these nuns all came from various places in the Philippines—Leyte, Samar, Cebu, Sinabacan in Misamis Occidental and Kidapawan, Cotabato.

The Order of St. Clare have monasteries in Cebu City, Kidapawan and in Manila, Philippines. Thus it was no surprise that they were happy to see us “kababayans” from the Philippines.

As we talked, the mere mention of Filipino homegrown treats like siakoy, Goldilocks, biko and suman (sticky sweet rice snack) sent the sisters, who are in their late 30s to early 40s, into fits of giggles.

Which is no surprise as they have no TV, radio and even newspapers. Only one of them has a phone used only for emergencies and they spend most of their time in prayers, gardening, sewing and baking.

In case they get sick, they are brought to doctors and if they pass away, they are in a cemetery within the convent grounds. Sisters Bonaventure, Guiseppe, Divine, Stephanie,and Anne Joseph are headed by Mother Bernadette and Mother Carmel.

Before we left, they invited us and everyone to attend their May 6 anniversary and I promised them to invite those interested to join the observance and to pray for them.

Specific requirements are listed on their website. Before we left we wrote personal petitions for the sisters to pray for us and they did.

They also sang songs for us which touched me to my core and made my grandkid Jacob listen and behave. My husband Ronnie said the songs “were beautiful” and he was fortunate to hear them sing.

Thank you Dalian Dalugdog Sleigh, Carmen Salas Hewett, Maita Cabunoc P. Yestes and daughter Gg Boddison and grandson Jacob for the memorable trip.

Farewell Dr. Emmeline

by Susan Palmes-Dennis

Charlotte, North Carolina – A walk to raise awareness on Amgotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) will be held on April 20 by the Neri family in Raleigh, North Carolina in honor of the late Dr. Emmeline Ho Neri, wife of Andy Neri.

The Neri couple have four children—Ansell, Anthea Neri Best, Abegayle Neri and Andrew Brian Neri. Anthea made the announcement after her mom was laid to rest at the columbarium in St. Raphael Catholic Church at Raleigh last Feb. 28.

The walk will also raise funds for research on a cure for ALS which remains elusive as acknowledged by Reverend Fr. Bruce Bavinger, SJ, celebrant and homilist during the occasion.

Dr. Neri died last Feb. 21, about 10 days after she was honored in a party by the Filipino American Women  Association (GSS or Gabriela Silang) at Raleigh.

Tess Ferrer- Turner, a close family friend and past president of the Philippine American Association of North Carolina (PAANC) said she was surprised to see her friend already on the dance floor during the party.

Diagnosis
“She was so happy and she danced the cha-cha," Turner said. She said she was told later that Dr. Neri started to slow down after the party.

It was five years ago when the Neri family started to see changes in their matriarch's behavior.  

Two and a half years later, Anthea said they received word of her mother's diagnosis from Duke University that she had ALS and frontal lobe dementia.

Their initial shock was followed by denial and later acceptance. It was then that the children rallied behind their parents and Andy took care of Emmeline to her dying day.

Anthea said the family decided to travel and maximize whatever time they can spend with their mother over the next two years.  The Neri couple traveled through the US, Philippines, Disney and Mexico despite the doctor's frail condition.

“ALS and dementia were chipping away at her body but not her energy,” Anthea said. She said her father would dance with her mother, laugh with her and helped her shower daily.

Smartest woman

Andy also dyed his wife's hair, painted her nails and tried his best to do her makeup. There was never a day that went by that he didn’t tell her he loved her and that she was the smartest woman he knew.

Dr. Emneline was born Jan. 2 in Cadiz City, Philippines, the eldest of five children of a successful business owner.  She studied at the Southwestern University School of Medicine and earned her medical degree.

She opened her own practice and pharmacy.  While working at the hospital in Manila she met her husband Andy, a native of Tagoloan town in Misamis Oriental and part of the illustrious Neri clan.

Two of the Neri children, Ansell and Anthea, were born in the Philippines. The Neri couple decided to migrate to the US after the birth of their first two children. 

They settled first in Virginia as Andy continued working in the US Navy and Emmeline stopped working and took care of their growing family. Later, she went back to work when their children were big enough.

Took to heart
The Neri couple later had another daughter named Abegayle and a son, Andrew Brian. Dr. Emmeline also kept busy with volunteer work at the Filipino American Women's Association and hosted parties at their house.

For over 20 years, she worked as a medical professional in the justice department of the Federal Bureau of Prison.  During her stint there, Dr. Emmeline lobbied for better conditions for the inmates.

All four children shared lessons learned from their mother in separate eulogies duing the memorial service.  Son Ansell studied at the University of North Carolina Greensboro and is the president of June Neri Financial, Raleigh NC.  

Ansell is also past president of the Philippine American Association of North Carolina (PAANC).  During the service, Ansell said their mother took to heart her faith, her family's welfare and the community.

Ansell's sister Anthea Neri-Best holds a bachelor's degree in Clinical Laboratory Science at WCU. Anthea is also an actress, singer and Human Empowerment ambassador.

Unconditional love

Her mother's illness and death taught the Neri children some lessons on unconditional love. “They made their vow 40 years ago and that vow was tested everyday. I saw it first hand,” Anthea said.

Anthea also said she learned that time spent with family is valuable and irreplaceable.  Her sister Abegayle, a B.S Administration graduate at ECU is now connected with Omnicom Media Group, a leading global media network in New York City.

Abegayle said she learned from her mother to never buy designer shoes at full price and that life is what you make it. 

“Because of her, I learned to dare to dream big and know the value of hard work,” she said.  She also said her mother always put family first and it stuck with all of them.

The youngest Andrew Neri graduated from the University of North Carolina Greensboro and is in the US Coast Guard stationed in New York.  Andrew said his mother was a shield who taught him to believe in himself.

Last dance
“For the past five years I was able to spend time with my mother.  She was diagnosed with ALS two and a half years ago, which was about the same time I joined the army and they allowed me to go home every month to be with her.”

“I am happy I got to watch the Sound of Music on repeat with her.  I am happy I got to dance with her during our trip to Mexico  and I am happy she saved one last dance for me last week,” Andrew said in his eulogy.

When he talked about his siblings, Ansell said Andrew was awarded personally by the director of Homeland Security while sister Abegayle created ads for many Super Bowl events. Sister Anthea sang at the Carnegie Hall.

Anthea later said her mother treated everyone as her family and would take in her friends and treat them as her own.  “She had a truly giving heart and a calling to help others that will live on forever on the lives and hearts of those she had contact with,” she said.

In his homily, Fr. Bavinger confirmed that Andy and Dr. Emmeline stayed together until the end when it was time for her to go.  

He said Dr. Emmeline was a “woman of faith” and a devotee of the Holy Rosary whose life the faithful can learn so much from.  To her family, friends and everyone she touched during her lifetime, Dr. Emmeline will be sorely missed. 

Florami's passion, dedication

Florami at left with yours truly

by Susan Palmes-Dennis

I'll try to do some personal profiling of the past presidents of the Filipino-American Community of the Carolinas Inc. (FACC) and for starters, I will talk about 2013 FACC president Florami Lao Cordero Lee.

I fondly call her President and why I call her that is a secret between us. Her book of choice now is a book by US evangelist Billy Graham entitled “Where I Am" and she reads as much as she can in her spare time, aside from her volunteer work in her church.

A little throwback to explain my Florami Lao Cordero Lee is a person of interest to me: When I first came to the US a decade ago, fresh from retirement from my journalism career in Cagayan de Oro City, I looked for ways to continue the work I left behind to ease the boredom and the new life in a new place.

It was not easy then as I have a few friends to get information about the community and events. But when I met Florami Lao Cordero Lee all my qualms and questions were met and answered.

Aside from being an interesting subject, she is friendly, courteous and willing to answer my questions about the Filipino-American community in Charlotte.

Florami (wearing striped blouse) works with children in Sunday School

I later came to know that her late brother was one of the original signers of the Articles of Incorporation of the FACC back in the day.

Florami had been in the US for 35 years now. She married Whatt Lee, a very likeable guy who always wears a smile as a badge. 

They have two children named Dina and Kellen. Florami is a proud grandma of Kellen Martin Jr. and is excited about a coming granddaughter.

She is inspired to spread the word of God to children and is currently involved with the Good News Club through the Children's Evangelism Fellowship. Florami teaches Sunday School to 2nd to 5th graders at her church.

Florami is in-charge of the music, teaching hand gestures and songs to children. On her free time, this petite past FACC president reads a lot if devotional books.

Born in Cebu City, Florami grew up in Quezon City but can understand a little Bisaya since her late mother Naomi was from Danao City, Cebu. She said her late mother talked to her in Bisaya while she grew up in Manila.

Florami recounted a story in which she, as a seven-year-old daughter was asked by her mom to buy “ tam-is” or “kamay” in a sari sari store. Despite her best efforts to say “kamay”, the store mistakenly gave her a soap with the brand name “Camay.”

As she cried while heading home, young Florami promised to learn different languages. 

To this date Florami can talk Tagalog and understand Ilocano. Her late dad Higidio was from Pasuquin, Ilocos Norte.

Florami also joined and volunteered for mission trips and true enough she has been in out of country missions in countries in Nicaragua and in other states in the US. 

At times, she was nominated by the church for these mission trips.

“I've volunteered in a few local churches and hospices in Monroe. We likewise serve and recognize the caretakers, feeding the homeless people on the street and joined home evangelical missions," she confided.

Florami said she immensely enjoyed the experience of sharing the word of God to other people.

“I went with a different church on my mission trip, namely Joy Church in Matthews. I’m in the missions committee of my church, the Benton Heights Baptist Church and serve in the Missions Committee with the Union Baptist Association. But it is really my passion doing mission trips that involve children," Florami said.

She is now employed in the city of Monroe and spends time with the Filipino American community and church. She is also a member of the executive committee of Women's Empowerment in Charlotte and is also into Bible study.

In addition to family and social commitments, Florami finds time to pursue another personal passion, namely dance. In fact Florami founded the Philippine Cultural Dance Troupe of Charlotte years before she took the helm of the FACC.

With so much on her plate, Florami's enthusiasm and drive can be infectious and I can only admire her dedication in pursuing what she feels most passionate about like church. (For questions and comments please email me at susanap.dennis@yahoo.com or follow me on Instagram at carolina1girl)

Hard work spells success for Gorlach kids

The Gorlach kids

by Susan Palmes-Dennis

The Gorlach family of Gastonia County, Charlotte, North Carolina has their way with the dictionary so to speak.

Siblings Robert and Marielle Gorlach each won spelling bee honors in Gastonia County with Robert winning last year's Gastonia County Spelling Bee. This year, his sister Marielle won Piedmonth's Spelling Bee and Robert couldn't be happier especially since their sibling, fourth grader Maxine, also qualified for the finals.

Marielle's secret to spelling bee success is to study hard. “None of the words were that challenging," she said. Marielle, the middle child of three in the Gorlach family, said she spends her extra time reading books like Harry Potter “of course” and playing the clarinet. 

Still, the stiff competition she faced from the contestants especially Maxine were enough to make her feel relieved when she hurdled the dozen questions thrown her way en route to her victory.

Robert was unable to compete since turning freshman but he was happy for both his sisters nonetheless. The family's neighbors and friends acknowledge that the Gorlach children are a force to reckon with in spelling bees. 

And why not since the children can count on their father, a psychotherapist by profession, to help them train for the spelling bees. Their mom Thelma recently opened the first Filipino-American store in Gastonia County. 

Fil-Am artist joins Charlotte Condom Couture show

Edelweiss de Guzman with her model

A Filipino-American artist and former official of the Filipino-American Community of the Carolinas Inc. (FACC) will join in the Condom Couture Charlotte event scheduled at the Fillmore Charlotte center on Feb. 24. 

Edelweiss de Guzman is representing the Philippines in this fashion show aimed to benefit and promote the Planned Parenthood South Atlantic group.

Edelweiss said it is a unique runaway fashion show where local designers use condoms to create fashionable, wearable art in order to promote safe sex.

This is the fourth time that de Guzman would be participating in the show and she is excited about joining anew after a one year hiatus during which she did volunteer work for the FACC.

The theme for this year's show is “Around the World.” Planned Parenthood is a nonprofit organization that provides reproductive health care in the US and around the world. Last year Planned Parenthood celebrated its 100 year anniversary.

Edelweiss's concept is Reyna Emperatriz (Queen Empress) St. Helena of Constantinople during the Santacruzan based on a yearly event in the Philippines. 

The dress adorned with pearls styled like the Philippine archipelago is known as “Perlas ng Silinganan” (Pearl of the Orient).” “The Santacruzan is a yearly festival that I enjoyed while growing up in the Philippines,” Edelweiss said. 

Every month of May in every year, all the beautiful young women in town would join a procession casting a flower and a cross, Edelweiss explained.  Her Filipino-American model would carry a cross and flowers at the runway. 

Edelweiss will have only one dress for the show which will have 1,000 pieces of condoms on it. She already ordered 1,300 condoms for the dress. The first condom couture dress Edelweiss made was in 2015 and it was later auctioned off. 

“I have 50 percent to the organization, Planned Parenthood. The concept of that 2015 dress was cosmos, supernova,  time, space and distant memory,” Edelweiss said.

Her dress reflected her fascination on the perception of life and the universe. In 2016 she was inspired by expressionist movement film and theater in creating her dress. 

“The year 2016 was a homage to German expressionist film. This particular style can be also seen on American filmmaker Tim Burton’s film and art. I am a huge fan of Tim Burton,” Edelweiss said. She wasn’t surprised that she found out later that Burton was also inspired by German expressionists. 

Weiss studied European film in college before she switched to fine arts. 

Last year, Edelweiss created a dress made of white condoms that was inspired by a 1910 icouture homage to the Industrial Revolution. 

She called the dress style as steampunk couture in which the past is the future and the future is the past. 

Edelweiss said Planned Parenthood was defunded in 2016 and they gave all the proceeds of the fashion show. 

De Guzman is a co-founder of the Art Ecologie group, a collective of artists who use eco-friendly materials in their work. 

She grew up in the Philippines and moved to the US when she was 18. Her works include illustrations, paintings and haute couture made from recyclable materials.

De Guzman is an immediate past 2nd Vice president of the FACC and chaired the FACC Gala Event in October of last year.  

The fashion show would be hosted by Ramona Holloway, co-host of the Matt and Ramona Show of 107.9 The Link. Music for the show will be from Miami Dice and DJ Spider while the NC Dance District will deliver a dance performance.

Love through mail and phone calls

by Susan Palmes-Dennis

Charlotte, North Carolina---This story is a keeper for a lifetime.  Despite advances in technology employed mostly by millennials, my friend Rowena Tocayon Montemor still prefers writing love letters on paper rather than email.

In fact she kept all the love letters written by her ex-boyfriend and now husband of 27 years Bill at their lovely home here in Charlotte, North Carolina. Rowena also kept the letters she wrote to Bill in a special place at their home. 

I will tell you about Rowena's love story starting with her in Calbayog City, Samar province in the Philippines. 

“Weng “as Rowena  is fondly called by close friends and family members, has two sons with husband Bill. She said they wrote each other letters for two years before she finally started working on her fiancée visa. 

When asked why she wanted to write letters on paper she explained “it is more meaningful and you can pour your emotions and sentiments to it.” “There is no doubt we can express more in writing than face to face conversation since we are more restrained when talking than writing,” Rowena said.   

It was in 1987 and Rowena was 16 ½ years old at the time when she stayed  in Olangapo City after being asked by her pregnant cousin whose husband was away as a member of the US Navy. 

She remembered that she met her future husband who then visited her cousin's friend. Rowena sat on the stairs when Bill arrived.  “I recalled that because that was 2 days before my 17 birthday,” Rowena said. 

The meeting was brief but eventually very memorable to Bill and Rowena was surprised that a year later the good looking American Marine returned and looked for her. 

Unknown to Rowena or Weng that chance meeting with Bill was all it took to get him smitten by her long hair and “kayumangi (clear) skin.” Rowena said it was only later than she learned that Bill requested to stay a month in the Philippines to find and know her more. 

He  proposed to Rowena a week after his arrival. He found an engagement ring at the US base in Olongapo city. And he popped the marriage question to Rowena who enthusiastically said yes.

When Bill returned to the US, Rowena said they kept in touch through letters. Weng said she always looked forward every day for a letter. “He would write six times a week,” she said.

Rowena said each letter would be two to three pages. She responded with letters of her own. “It was meaningful and when I write I can pour my emotions into it,” Rowena said.  

The correspondence took years and they also talked over the phone for hours. Rowena said she remembered going to the local PLDT office to make the calls. On Sept. 22, 1990 Rowena arrived in California and days later, married Bill.

They celebrated at a McDonald's outlet. Bill is a native of Massachusetts and was  in California, then assigned to Jacksonville, North Carolina for seven years. Rowena said she and Bill went to Japan on a seven-year assignment and then moved to North Carolina. 

She said their marriage is “almost perfect.” “There are always ups and downs,”  Rowena admitted but other than that she said she could not ask for more. 

In those days, love is cultivated through mails and phone calls. Rowena and Bill are proof that distance is no issue when it comes to connecting with each other. 

On that note, I greet everyone a Happy Valentine's Day. (Comments and questions please send to susanap.dennis@yahoo.com)