Filipinos have been in the United States since the 16th century, yet many of their stories remain untold. For the past years, 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.

Louie Rabara, Data Controller of the Artemis Project

Rabara, 29, works with NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) on the real-time operations team. He is involved in monitoring crucial telemetry streams during missions. He was part of NASA’s Artemis II mission, contributing to real-time space operations as a member of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) team. Rabara explained that during launch operations, teams are stationed at NASA’s mission control in Houston, where spacecraft systems are closely monitored as they leave Earth.

Arianne “Nikki” Jubay Lazaro, Senior Materials Engineer of the Artemis Project

Arianne “Nikki” Jubay Lazaro *(Source: Sunstar/Mayor Amos Edwin Cabahug)*

Lazaro, a Cebuana engineer, was part of NASA’s Artemis II Mission. She served on the Orion Fracture Control Team, ensuring that the safety of the Environmental Control and Life Support System remained intact during space travel. Coming from the town of Balamban, the mayor praised Lazaro, saying, “You serve as an inspiration to the youth of Balamban and beyond, proving that with passion, perseverance, and hard work, even the stars are within reach.”

Armila Reyna Fernandez, Engineman

Armila Reyna Fernandez *(Source: Cebu Daily News)*

Fernandez, from the municipality of Dumanjug, Cebu, joined staff aboard the USS John Murtha in the Pacific to help retrieve Orion and its components following its splashdown. She served as engineman second class petty officer on the primary recovery vessel for the Artemis II crew and the Orion capsule. April 10, 2026, saw her on far bigger waters in a different southwest. She stood with colleagues aboard the USS John Murtha in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of California during the momentous occasion as Orion returned to planet Earth. During the mission, she and the recovery support team positioned themselves at sea to assist in the safe retrieval of the spacecraft carrying commander Reid Wiseman, pilot Victor Glover, Christina Koch, and Canada’s Jeremy Hansen. Fernandez mainly functioned as the vessel’s engineman. She also handled recovery logistics, including ensuring maritime security.

Jay Bustamante, NASA Engineer

Jay Bustamante *(Source: Cebu Daily News)*

Bustamante, who studied at and graduated from Don Bosco Technical High School, CITE Technical Institute, and Cebu Institute of Technology-University in Cebu City, helped keep Orion’s propulsion, electrical power, temperature control, and life-support systems in top shape. As a young boy, he would take apart the remote-controlled car he received for Christmas. After completing his studies, he was recruited to the United States because of his background in electronics and computer engineering. He later earned an advanced degree in Electrical Engineering and moved into the space industry.

Dr. Gabriel Garcia, Health Professor

Dr. Gabriel Garcia *(Photo by James Evans/University of Alaska Anchorage)*

Dr. Garcia is a Philippine-born, Alaska-raised Professor of Public Health at the University of Alaska Anchorage (UAA). He received the Alaska Public Health Association’s Short Term Service Award in 2002 and The Barbara Berger Excellence in Public Health Award in 2012. At UAA, Dr. Garcia has also received the Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Community Service, the Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Diversity, and the Center for Community Engagement & Learning’s Community Builder Award.

Dr. Garcia, along with a group of UAA faculty members and students, received UAA’s Stewardship Award in 2014 and the American Lung Association in Alaska’s Breathe Easy Champion Award in 2015 for the group’s successful effort to make the University of Alaska system smoke- and tobacco-free. From 2015 to 2024, Dr. Garcia served as one of the health commissioners of the Anchorage Health Department. His research interests include social determinants of health, health promotion and disease prevention, racial and ethnic health disparities, and health communications.

Joey Macadangdang, Chef and Restaurant Owner

Joey Macadangdang *(Source; Macadangdang’s Maui Post/Facebook)*

Born in the Philippines and raised on his family’s piggery farm, Macadangdang learned how to cook rice at a very young age. In 1983, his family moved to Hawaii, and at 14, he started working as a dishwasher, busboy, and cook. In 1987, he moved to Oregon and worked as a chef at Kampai Restaurant. In 1994, he joined Roy’s Restaurant (Roy Yamaguchi) as a sous chef and later became executive chef, where he polished his signature flair for Asian-local infused dishes.

In 2015, Macadangdang opened his own restaurant, Joey’s Kitchen, in Maui, blending Filipino and Spanish influences. In 2023, he opened another restaurant, Balai Pata, to pay homage to Filipino families and create a place where diners feel at home. He also led relief efforts after the devastating fire in Lahaina, serving hot meals to the community.

Bianca Catbagan, Director

Bianca Catbagan *(Source: bia-film.com/Photo by Isaac Inocentes)*

Los Angeles-based Filipino American director and photographer Bianca Catbagan has been selected for the 2027 cohort of the prestigious AFI Directing Workshop for Women+ (DWW+). Founded in 1974, the AFI Directing Workshop for Women+ (DWW+) is a tuition-free directing program created to address gender inequity in the film industry. It remains one of the most influential initiatives supporting emerging filmmakers.

The 2027 cohort includes eight directors, each of whom will develop and direct an original short film over the course of the program. As part of the AFI DWW+ program, Catbagan will direct Royal Blood, a historical drama set in the Spanish-colonized Philippines in 1888, in which Maria Clara, the idealized Filipina created by José Rizal, is viewed through a queer lens.

Before leaving to pursue her master’s degree abroad, she worked as a commercial director and independent filmmaker, directing films such as Suntok sa Buwan, Laya, and the documentary Letters to the Future, a personal project chronicling what it was like to be young in Manila in 2014. In 2018, she graduated from Columbia University with an MFA in Film Directing.

Her film Paraluman was nominated for a Golden Egg at the Reykjavík International Film Festival in 2016, while another film, Supermodel, won a grant from the Cinematografo International Film Festival and screened to a sold-out audience in San Francisco. She also dabbles in development and producing, most recently for the show Family Style, a food and travel series by Indie Pop Films, YOMYOMF, and Warner Bros./Stage 13.

Eric Lachica, Activist

Eric Lachica *(Source: USMedicarePH.org)*

Lachica is a Filipino American activist who seeks to help Filipino American seniors in the Philippines obtain long-term Medicare coverage during retirement. Together with the Philippine Nurses Association of America and the Association of Philippine Physicians in America, he spearheaded a lobbying effort in 2021 that successfully persuaded President Joe Biden to release the first five million doses of the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine to the Philippines. Lachica was also active in efforts to secure benefits for Filipino World War II veterans and their families.

He is a Political Science graduate of the University of Southern California and earned his master’s degree in International Relations from California State University, Los Angeles. Over the years, he has held various positions, including Community Outreach Specialist with the U.S. Census Bureau in Los Angeles; Senior Media Specialist at United Way of Los Angeles; Regional Manager of the Anti-Hunger Coalition of Gaithersburg, Maryland; Executive Director of the American Coalition for Filipino Veterans Inc., with more than 4,000 members; and Partnership Specialist at the U.S. Department of Commerce, Census Bureau, from 2009 to July 2010.

USN Petty Officer Remigio Cabacar, Veteran

USN Petty Officer Remigio Cabacar *(Source: Liberty Zabala’s Instagram)*

Senior Chief Petty Officer Remigio “Rey” Cabacar was recognized by the Maryland House of Delegates on January 30, 2023, for his distinguished service in both his military career and community work. He is one of a small group of living WWII Filipino veterans in the Capital Area. He enlisted in 1945 during the latter part of World War II. He went on to serve on numerous ships, including during the Korean War. He also witnessed the testing of the atomic bomb at Bikini Atoll. He served honorably for 25 years before retiring in 1969.

After retirement, he embarked on an 18-year career with the FBI after being recruited by FBI Director Patrick Gray as his personal chef. He later served three more FBI directors from 1969 to 1987.

He has also served the Veterans of Foreign Wars for almost 50 years and is a five-time commander of VFW Post 5471. He has twice been named an All-American Post Commander. Cabacar played an instrumental role in several pieces of legislation aimed at improving benefits for Filipino veterans, including the restoration of hospitalization benefits for veterans living in the Philippines, funding for the maintenance and upkeep of the Veterans Cemetery at the former Clark Air Base, and the naturalization of children of Filipino soldiers and scouts who served in WWII under U.S. command.

Cabacar and his wife, Carolina, have been married for 65 years. They have four adult children, 11 grandchildren, and a growing number of great-grandchildren. He was awarded the Congressional Gold Medal on October 25, 2017.

Shayne Nuesca, Journalist

Nuesca is a Filipino American journalist born in the Philippines and raised in Anchorage, Alaska. She is passionate about thoughtful representation of her community and other Asian Americans and people who deserve equity. She laid the groundwork for Filipinos in Alaska, a project by KTOO Public Media and America Amplified that shines the light on the Filipino experience across the state.

Raised in Anchorage’s Spenard and Sand Lake neighborhoods, Nuesca studied journalism and public communications at the University of Alaska Anchorage and earned a master’s degree from the Newhouse School at Syracuse University. She works with local and national organizations to uplift underrepresented communities through advocacy and multimedia storytelling.

Joel Jong Clemente, Nurse and Author

Joel Jong Clemente *(Photo courtesy of Joel Jong Clemente)*

Joel Jong Clemente is a registered nurse based in McKinney, Texas. He and his family have lived in the United States for 20 years. A freelance writer and author of the books The Story of a Prudent Nurse and Our Journey, he has received several awards and recognitions, including Best Nursing Book finalist, Amerika Prestige Awards, Global Nursing Leadership and Literary Excellence Award, Philippine Nurses Association of America North Texas Outstanding Service Award, Filipino Leaders Coalition of North Texas Creative Filipino Excellence Award, International Impact Book Award, and the Immigrant Journey Professional Excellence Award.

He also contributes nursing articles monthly to the PNAA Inside PNAA newsletter and serves as an active officer and Faithful Navigator of the Knights of Columbus Assembly #3004 in Allen, Texas.

Margie Llorente Gonzales

Marietta “Margie” Llorente Gonzales was born and raised in Manila, Philippines, with her sister before moving to America in 1994. After starting a new life in Daly City, California, she and her husband moved to Las Vegas in 2002. She became part of the first Transportation Security Administration (TSA) baggage screening team at McCarran Airport, where she published the airport’s newsletter for several years.

Her twin passions for civic engagement and politics led her to become involved with the Asian American & Pacific Islander Democratic Caucus (AAPIDC) and Hillary Clinton’s 2008 and 2016 presidential campaigns, during which she prepared the first-ever traditional Filipino kamayan for the Democratic National Committee. She also advocated for a pathway to green cards for Filipino teachers recruited by the Clark County School District.

Source: Google and Wikipedia

The Magazine

FilAms Among The Remarkable And Famous, Part 78