Asian Journal- The Filipino-American Community Newspaper

The cornerstone of Reflections is in the caliber of the people who have been a part of it over the past 19 years. Since its inception, Reflections has had the privilege of giving due credit to captains of the industry, outstanding professionals, selfless humanitarians, talented artists, brilliant entrepreneurs, and men and woman of substance in our community.

On our 20th year, we are maintaining this tradition by giving recognition to a wave of outstanding FilAms. Allow me to introduce some names on our 2008 list:

Atty. Jemela Agraviador-Nettles, Reflections Awardee of Excellence in Immigration Law

By now, we may be familiar with Jemela’s work. She is the celebrated attorney behind the successful and, more often, the expeditious green card petitions of Philippine entertainers such as April Boy Regino and family, Lorna Tolentino, Jolina Magdangal, Miguel Vera, Mon David, Marco Sison, Dingdong Avanzado and Jessa Zaragosa by way of the E1 visa or extraordinary ability category.

She has been widely praised for her outstanding work in immigration law as well as her personable relationships with her clients. She understands the plight of every immigrant because she’s been through the same struggles as an immigrant herself.

As an attorney, Jemela encounters ethical and moral dilemmas, but she has managed to stay on the path by letting her firm faith guide her practice.

Jemela is also a dedicated philanthropist, having helped establish the Marilou A. Popera Foundation in memory of her younger sister who died of gastric cancer.

Amy Gill, RN, BSN, CHPN, Reflections Awardee of Excellence in Healthcare

Amy is the Administrator and Patient Care Services Director of the Glendale-based St. Ann Hospice, a well-reputed and certified hospice agency licensed since 1996 and accredited by the Joint Commission since 2003.

Much of St. Ann Hospice’s success is due to the hard work and commitment of Amy whose solid professional credentials fit very well with running a busy hospice agency.

Amy boasts of 28 years nursing experience. In 1980, she had her start as RN in a 600+ bed city hospital in Bronx, New York. After two years, she moved to the West Coast and assumed a wider role by venturing into medical surgical care and home healthcare. In 1988, Amy yet again took on more responsibilities by engaging in different aspects of administrative nursing which involved hospital budgets and utilization, Medicare/Medical reimbursement, and quality management care and performance of hospital medical staff.