ABOUT ME

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     I was born and raised in a small village in the Philippines, where farming was our way of life. I knew the truth of a hard day of work. The hot sunny days spent in the field were necessary to have food on the table for our family. We planted rice in a muddy field, cooked our food using firewood, washed our clothes by hand, and had no indoor plumbing. We would walk a long distance to get our drinking water. It was a hard life.
     
     On July 13, 1959 I was born in Kagawasan, San Miguel, Bohol, Philippines as the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Patricio Refugio. I have three brothers and one sister who passed away. I also have many aunts, uncles, nephews, nieces, cousins, etc. that are happily living in the Philippines. I also consider the friendly people in my village a part of my family as well.

     I was a working student while also being supported by my parents. On March 21, 1981 I graduated from college with a Bachelors of Science in Agriculture at Bohol Agricultural College in Bilar, Bohol, Philippines. I worked in Reforestation after graduating and managed my uncles dry goods business for two years.

     My life totally changed in 1987 when Patrick Ford sent a lovely letter from the United States to the other side of the world – my village in Mahayag, San Miguel, Bohol, Philippines. After corresponding via letters for over a year we joined hands on February 13, 1988.
I came to the States on June 17, 1988 with Patrick and we lived in Colorado for six years. I worked as a dental assistant and took English classes to become more fluent. On August 27, 1992, I became a loving mother of Phaedra Felice Ford. I received my American citizenship on February 26, 1993 and a year later we moved to Florida. Then on July 15, 2006 I earned a Pharmacy Technician degree from Penn Foster Career School through online classes.

     My focuses in life are to support my daughter through her education, live a simple life, and most importantly a healthy life.  Patrick will always be in my heart forever. I'm now in a wonderful relationship with Mr. Steven and we're all looking forward to the future.

     I'm now retired and I love playing tennis, reading, listening to music, watching films, and taking care of butterflies. I have a butterfly room and garden where I raise them from egg to adult and release them in my backyard. I have also two grand-dogs Chiisai and Ronin.