Filipinos have been in the United States since the 16th century, yet many of their stories remain untold. For the past year, Positively Filipino has been running a series on notable Filipino Americans who have made their marks in this country. There are hundreds, or maybe even thousands more, that need to be added to this story, and we need your help. If you know of a Filipino American who deserves to be included in this line-up, please send us their names and any supporting documents you may have to pfpublisher@yahoo.com. For now, we are including only those who are currently active and visible in the media and the community, regardless of their religious, sexual or political orientation. Thank you.

Gabriel Uy, Deputy Director

Uy is the Deputy Director of Intergovernmental Affairs & Public Engagement to Vice President Kamala Harris. He served as an Associate Director in the White House Office of Intergovernmental Affairs. He managed state legislature outreach and supported the Administration’s Afghan relocation efforts with the National Security Council and Operation Allies Welcome. A member of the Army National Guard since 2014, Uy served on active-duty tours with the U.S. Army Africa/Southern European Task Force in Vicenza, Italy, and the National Guard Bureau in Arlington, Virginia. He was previously the Nevada Political Director for Vice President Kamala Harris’ presidential campaign and served as an aide for the late U.S. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid of Nevada. Uy holds a B.A. and B.S. from the University of Nevada-Reno.

Lisa Angulo Reid, Owner of Dear Flor

Reid launched her cannabis gummy business, Dear Flor, in 2023. The gummies are 100 percent vegan and infused with authentic Filipino flavors such as ube (purple yam), kalamansi (native citrus) and buko pandan (coconut and screwpine). Having worked in the advertising industry, Reid noticed that Google searches for Filipino food surged by 525 percent and searches for ube surged by 300 percent in the U.S. from 2016 to 2021. She wanted to create a product that not only celebrated her Filipino heritage, but also challenged societal norms within the AAPI community. “Flor” pays homage to her family’s roots and memories of her mother’s older sister, Ate Floring. Reid’s mother shared stories about their life in the U.S. with her sister through letters. Thus, Dear Flor, as the name of the company is a way to share the warmth and familiarity of the culture. Despite some people’s apprehensions about marijuana, Reid says, “Our mission is to bring Filipino culture to the world, one flavor at a time,” Reid says. “We want people to see our flavors and know they are Filipino. So, it’s not surprising our dream is to get Dear Flor to as many people as we can. We want to reach people who love Filipino culture. We want to reach all people out there that have a Filipino friend — and everyone out there has a Filipino friend. If you don’t, you should get one!”

Marita Etcubanez, Lawyer

Etcubanez is the Vice President of strategic initiatives for Advancing Justice | AAJC. She leads the organization's efforts to build awareness, conduct anti-harassment bystander intervention training, and encourage reporting of anti-Asian hate. Prior to joining Advancing Justice | AAJC, she was director of legal services for the Asian Pacific American Legal Resource Center in Washington, D.C. Her ten years of experience providing direct legal services to low-income communities includes advocating on behalf of migrant and seasonal farm workers with Texas Rural Legal Aid, as well as working with labor pool workers as part of the Homeless Persons Representation Project in Baltimore. She holds a law degree and bachelor’s degree from The University of Michigan. She is admitted to practice in the State of Maryland and the District of Columbia.

Vance Roush, Founder, Overflow

Vance Roush *(Source: The NASDAQ Entreprenuerial Center)*

Filipino American Roush (his parents are from Manila and Davao) learned early on that no matter how hard his parents worked, it was not enough to pay his college tuition at the University of Washington. He held three jobs and found ways to pay for college. After graduation he moved to Silicon Valley in 2011 and worked for Google. As ex-CFO of VIVE, the church he and his wife were part of the founding team, Roush saw a gap in the online donation space, especially in donating stocks as a gift. He and Kyle Woumn joined forces to create Overflow and raised $10 million in Series A funding. They are betting on “the goodness of human nature.” Roush says, “Our big thesis is that people will want to be more and more generous in the future. If that thesis is not true, we won’t exist in a few years. But if our bet is correct – that when people are generous, they’re going to want to continue to be generous and they’re gonna want to continue to give more – we become a really important and cool company.”

Megan Paragua, Chess Prodigy

At a very young age, 11-year-old Filipino American chess prodigy Paragua emerged victorious at the World Cadet Rapid and Blitz Championships 2024 in Durres, Albania. Competing in the Rapid Girls 12 and under category, Paragua showcased her strategic prowess, culminating in a thrilling 66-move victory in the final showdown. Paragua is a fifth-grader at Columbia Grammar Preparatory School in New York City. Last year, Paragua nabbed the Woman Fide Master title (WFM) at the XXXIII Pan-American Youth Chess Festival 2023 Standard competition in Chicago. “As the top player of the Empire Chess Training School of Chess in the USA, the WFM sets her sights on further challenges, primed to compete in the upcoming 2024 US Girls’ Junior Championship in July,” Inquirer.net reports.

Victoria Bossong, Sprinter

Victoria Bossong *(Source: Manila Standard)*

Filipino American sprinter Victoria Bossong is a third-year student-athlete at Harvard University. Bossong, who is preparing for the coming season of the US National Collegiate Athletic Association, earned the No. 1 ranking in 2024 NCAA Division I East Outdoor Qualifying List. In the last weekend of March, she ran the 800-meter finals of the Pepsi Florida Relays in two minutes and 92/100ths of a second for a gold medal. Her clocking is considered as the best time in the NCAA pre-season. “I’m hoping to compete for the Philippines. And If I can bring down my time to 1:59 to qualify for the Olympics, I’m really excited for this summer,” she said. Bossong could represent the Philippines once she completes the process of obtaining a Philippine passport. Her family originated from Puerto Galera in Oriental Mindoro. She graduated from Cheverus High School and was raised in Cumberland, Maine. Her mom, Dr. Catalina Yaco Atienza, a dentist, graduated from Centro Escolar University College of Dentistry.

Johnny Wilson, Football Player

Johnny Wilson *(Source: Philadelphia Eagles)*

Wilson is a wide receiver for the Philadelphia Eagles of the National Football League. He played college football at Arizona State and Florida State. He is Filipino American on his mother’s side and grew up in Los Angeles, California. He attended Calabasas High School. Wilson is 6’7” and 237 pounds with long arms. “His size alone makes him difficult to bully at the line or throughout his routes, but he supplements that with crafty use of his length and impressive power to run through physical defensive backs…. Wilson is also an exceptionally smart route-runner. He does an awesome job of setting up his route breaks by attacking defensive backs' shoulders and making them open up one way before cutting back the other,” per Bleacher Report.

Maria Luisa Ramsey Kagahastian, aka as Jaya, Singer

Jaya is the daughter of comedian and singer Elizabeth Ramsey. She entered show business at the age of ten as a backup dancer for her mother, but she began performing alone in 1982 using the name Louise Ramsey. In 1985, mother and daughter moved to the U.S. and lived in different cities in California. Louise ran away from home and moved to New York, landing a job as a backup singer for Steve B’s group of musicians, and her name changed to Jaya. From 1995 to 2013, she returned to the Philippines to record songs, hold concerts, host variety shows at GMA and ABS-CBN, judge singing competitions, and act in musicals and soap operas. In 2010 Jaya won Best Female Vocal Performer for the song Hiding Inside Myself at 23rd Awit Awards. In 2021, Jaya moved back to the U.S. with her son, Dylan.

Mitchell Saron, Fencer

Saron, a Filipino American student at Harvard University who recently secured a spot in Team USA’s fencing lineup said he was overjoyed after realizing that he would soon fulfill his childhood dream of competing in the Olympics. Team USA’s fencing team announced on X on March 27 that Saron, 23, will be competing in Men’s Saber for both individual and team categories at the 2024 Summer Olympics Games in Paris. Saron secured his spot after his fencing team won a silver medal at the Padua World Cup on March 3 and a gold medal at the Men’s Saber World Cup in Budapest, Hungary, on March 24.

Talilo Marfil, Rapper

Marfil is a rapper and advocate for the power of community and takes readers through his favorite Portland hangouts. The self-proclaimed “Filipino Typhoon” has emerged as a force worthy of the name in Portland’s hip-hop scene and as a change agent to make the city more vibrant. He accomplishes the latter through Ascending Flow, the nonprofit he co-founded with his fiancée, Thy Tran, to support through the arts youth aging out of foster care. Known for his quick style of rap that dazzles listeners as he tight-ropes across cadences blending street wisdom, world history, raw vulnerability, and inspiring lyrics with masterful precision, Talilo stands out as one of the Pacific Northwest’s elite rappers. His 2022 single, Big Flip, which immediately went viral on TikTok, sees the rapper enjoying new success and gaining new fans across the world.

Source: Google and Wikipedia

The Magazine

Fil-Ams Among The Remarkable And Famous, Part 58