I was raised in San Clemente for over 50 years. My family was always passionate about giving back to the community, to our church, and other local fundraisers`.

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I learned by example of giving back to the community or helping in other places of the world. As a result of the U.S sponsored evacuation of Vietnamese refugees, my family, sponsored several refugees after the fall of Saigon. My family helped with fundraising efforts for our church. In addition, my parents became close friends to our local priest.

 

He worked tirelessly to improve the lives of the poor and underrepresented. In the ‘60s, he marched with Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. in Selma, Alabama, and supported Cesar Chavez. My family would have him come over for dinner and I was inspired by his kindness and compassion. This inspired me to advocate for civil rights.

 

My family aided in relief efforts following a devastating earthquake in the 1970’s. My mother was always inspiring people to fulfill the American dream by giving business counsel or personal advice to take the chance of starting your business or owning your own home. My mother inspired families in the 1970’s and 1980’s to achieve the American dream.

 

Once I grew up in San Clemente, I followed a path into Nursing. As a Registered Nurse, I was a strong patient advocate working in a variety of areas of practice such as Operating Room (OR), Peri-Operative, Post-Operative, Oncology, and others. I contributed extraordinary patient care, professionalism, and advocacy for the betterment of the patients, while providing excellence in care. My favorite area of practice was working in the Operating Room with highly skilled Surgeons.

 

I was involved in Humanitarian Surgical Missions with a couple of nonprofits. I volunteered with Humanitarian organizations providing care and logistics for surgical missions in developing countries.  These organizations provided corrective surgeries to people with congenital anomalies, traumatic injuries, eye conditions, exams, treatments, and medical training to healthcare personnel.

 

I was the Nursing Coordinator for a non-profit organization providing plastic and reconstructive surgeries to people in developing countries. I was critical in the start-up phase of the organization. I helped with this organization with the procurement of supplies, medications, equipment, and the recruiting of Registered Nurses and Surgeons for the organization. I compiled and contacted a nationwide database of medical professionals that could be utilized for medical missions. Furthermore, I also provided logistics management services for surgical missions to Central and South America. I was a Nursing Liaison, and conducted a site inspection to determine the viability of working with an organization and to determine location suitability.

 

One achievement was solving a recruitment and volunteering issues between local Humanitarian organizations. With my efforts, two groups decided to work collaboratively with each other sharing Surgeons, Registered Nurses, equipment, and other medical staff. This co-operation has lasted for over a decade. Some of the surgeries involved a specialized field such as Maxillofacial surgeries that involves operations to correct midline defects of the jaw, lip, face, or mouth. This was a specialized field involving pediatric patients and the correct surgeon and anesthesiologist were needed. Only some surgeons had pediatric experience and that limited the number of physicians within each foundation.

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After years of nursing, my advocacy for patients transformed into being a passionate advocate for South County issues. Several years ago, a fellow San Clemente resident led a call to action to fight against the TCA regarding Toll Roads. The Toll Roads were planned to go through established communities, businesses, schools, parks, and recreation centers, as well as destroying open spaces, and mitigated lands. One thing that I could do is to voice my concerns. I was inspired in attending TCA Board meetings speaking on the issues ensuring the Board understood our position and the problems with the Toll Roads. We also held the TCA accountable in paying down their bonds. 

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In addition, I spoke against constitutional violations that people experienced such as First and Fourth Amendment violations by the TCA. The TCA had unlawful searches of our belongings and our personal belongings were confiscated. The TCA wanted  to restrict our free speech that would prevent us from advocating against the Toll Road. I started advocating for constitutional rights and fighting for free speech rights that a person's voice needs to be heard and recognized. Early this year, I spoke in support of Second Amendment rights.