A salute to Pinoy ‘survivors’

LOS ANGELES – The situation there in the Philippines is a little nebulous. It isn’t surprising then that not a few are wanting to look, not so much for greener pastures, but for more stability.

Everyday, more and more people queue up in front of the United States Embassy in Manila. Still more are calling to set up appointments for interview. Each one is driven by the so-called American Dream.

But what’s it all about?

For those who have gone through the Exodus, arriving at The Promised Land was not without its share of hardships and difficulties. But the good thing about it is, here in the States, the hardworking always make it.

Nurses, Homecare/Facility Administrators

Brighton Convalescent Center, a 99-bed skilled nursing facility in Pasadena, is now hiring more RN supervisors to cover all shifts for seven days of the week.

"The facility is not required to maintain RNs on all shifts. But Brighton wants to pride itself in providing excellent quality care. We want to ensure that the residents get all the help they need to enable them to achieve their highest level of individual functioning," said Alexander Macabuhay, the Filipino administrator/ executive director of the American-owned 12-year-old facility.

Through the years, Brighton has maintained a good survey history and the predominantly Filipino staff, headed by Macabuhay, are bent on keeping it that way.

"All skilled nursing facilities are similar in terms of the services offered. But the only thing that sets us apart is the level of quality and care we give our residents and the support we extend families," said Judy Coto, assistant director of nursing/RN supervisor.

Macabuhay added that the strength of Brighton lies in its interdependent staff that combines constant training and experience in effectively addressing the residents’ concerns.

"Most of us are Filipinos, so we operate like a big family and that’s how we treat our patients," Coto added. Aside from the pamilya atmosphere inside the facility, Brighton Convalescent Center has also developed cooperative efforts with their physicians who are given special privileges in major hospitals in Pasadena, Glendale, San Gabriel Valley and Los Angeles.

Dentists

It’s basically a dental clinic on-the-go. The husband-and-wife team of Carson Dental Care, Dr. Cecilia Aluning and husband Gody Aluning, operate Dental Mobile Clinics that use up to 200 square feet of work space. In it are two fully-equipped operational chairs, an on-board x-ray machine and a laboratory needed for full and complete services comparable to the common traditional office location. She uses the mobile for those patients who are ambulatory in the board and care homes and retirement facilities. For the skilled nursing facility, her treatments are done inside the facility using her portable dental unit and equipment.

"Working in a mobile clinic takes a lot of hard work, patience and perseverance," Dr. Aluning said.

Carson Mobile Facilities offer an array of mobile dental services: full oral examinations, cleaning and polishing, full mouth x-rays, gum treatment, root canals, extractions, and fillings. They also offer full and partial dentures, crowns and bridges. The Mobile Dental Facilities now service about 30 nursing and retirement homes, mainly in LA and Orange Counties. Each has an average of 99-bed capacity. The larger ones have 150 beds.

"When the regular dental office is slow, we have the mobile that makes up for it. We don’t have to wait for the patients, they just wait for us," Dr. Aluning said.

According to Dr. Aluning, the idea came from her uncle, Dr. Billy Torres, who is also a dentist. In fact, he was the one who convinced Dr. Aluning to leave The Sin City for the City of Angels to work as an assistant in his office, Torres Dental Office.

After trying her hands on computer and nursing, Dr. Aluning went to the Philippines and obtained her degree in Dentistry from Centro Escolar University and graduated in 1992.

Like Aluning, a lot of dentistry graduates in the Philippines travel to the US hoping to get a license to practice. It’s not easy. A lot of them work as dental assistants while they wait for their papers or review for the Board. But as in Aluning’s case, perseverance is the key.

Food Business

A little over four years after they set up the first JBJ’s Bakery in Carson, California, the Rojas family have now opened their third branch in Loma Linda.

"Siguro kasi aggressive din kami talaga. I think that’s why it’s doing good," said Doris Rojas, owner of JBJ’s, the bakery known for its fresh, soft and yummy pandesal.

People frequent its first two branches in Carson (860 E Carson Street, Suite 117 and 124 W Carson Street) to load up on merienda goodies and treats like bibingka especial that has the delicious flavor of the Filipino simbang gabi staple; sweet ensaymada that’s fast-becoming a favorite among foreigners; empanada; tarts and so much more. Doris, husband Rollie, and their three kids have even come up with their own sweet bread creations like pan de ube and other tasty treats. And looking at how JBJ’s Bakery has grown, it’s hard to believe that when the couple first bought the business, neither of them knew how to bake.

"We only had background in running a restaurant since we had our own place in Cavite when we were still in the Philippines," said Doris, adding that they initially set out to get into the home care business which is a very popular venture among the Filipino-American entrepreneurs. But when the couple heard that their favorite bakery was up for sale, Rollie decided to don an apron and learn pandesal-making instead. They added that they loved the bread so much they just had to buy the bakery and learn how their favorite baked goodies were being made.

Now, Rollie is the "master pandesal-baker" at JBJ’s Bakery.

JBJ’s Bakery continued to grow in Carson after the Rojas family learned the ropes with their first branch. Not many miles from their first outlet, they bought another bakery that was being sold by its owners who wanted to retire.

The name JBJ’s stands for the three kids of couple Doris and Rollie – Jackie, Bernice and Justine. The eldest of the Rojas kids, Jackie and her American husband, Scott, are now handling the outlet. Because of its distance, the couple has relocated and is now living in Loma Linda to be close to the bakery.

No doubt, the family-owned JBJ’s Bakery is now as hot as their signature pandesal.