Suddenly living in an unfamiliar place with unfamiliar relatives, Galarrita was left feeling uncomfortable and confused. She quickly realized that she and her siblings were being raised by  overly strict grandparents, especially her grandfather.

    “We would all be sleeping and if we did not wake up to do our chores in the morning before school, he would whip us,” Galarrita recalled. “He would pinch our stomachs and pull us all the way up to the ceiling.” Her grandfather would also whip her whenever she would cry.

    Growing up with the physical abuse further pushed Galarrita to work hard in everything she involved herself in as a means to eventually see her mother in America.

    At four years old, she watched her mother board a ship floating at sea, leaving her and her brothers and sisters behind with the people that were trusted. Her mother was off to make a better life for herself and planned to bring her children with her when the time was right.

    “Every time I saw a big ship go by on the water, I would cry,” she said. 

    Shortly after, her mother fell in love with Lucien Belliveau, a French American man in the United States Air Force. By the time Galarrita was eight years old, her mother had happily married and moved to the United States of America to build a life with her partner. Young Galarrita was driven and determined to reunite with her mother, as long as she completed her education. 

    “My mother petitioned for me to come to the United States, but I said ‘no’,” Galarrita said. “I wanted to finish college first.”

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    Galarrita was in her junior year of college when she was approved to come to the United States of America. She was determined to graduate with her nursing degree before she left the Philippines to ensure that she had a stable future for herself no matter where she went. Her two siblings, Joel and Douglas, did not finish college and went to America as soon as they were approved.

    Her sister Raquel constantly told her that she was not going to make it, finish college, get married, or see their mother in America. Raquel kept money away from Galarrita that was meant for her as well.

    By 22 years old, Galarrita graduated college. She was prepared and ready as she finally flew to the United States without any accompaniment. Her dreams were coming true. She did not know what to expect. She was immersed in a culture unlike anything she had ever experienced.

    Residing in North Smithfield, Rhode Island, Galarrita immediately saw how westernized her mother had become while they were separated. Her mother wanted her, Joel, and Douglas to adapt to American values as fast as possible. The three siblings had a difficult time adjusting in the beginning of their new lives. This caused friction between their mother and them.

    “[My mother] would tell us, ‘the door is wide open to get out,’” Galarrita said. “It hurt my feelings. The country is new [to me], the culture is new [to me], then [my] mother is telling [me] that the door is wide open for [me] to get out. Where am [I] supposed to go?”

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    Five months after Galarrita first came to America, she had to go back to the Philippines to retrieve her nursing license. There she was taken around by a man, Edmund Lim, that she once went on a blind date on set up by Raquel. Galarrita had immediately disliked him. She was still intrigued by her first love, Marcial Galarrita.

    Lim sent her flowers three times a week although they lived on different islands. He would repeatedly invite her out and ask her on dates and each request was met with resistance from Galarrita. Eventually, Lim regularly threatened Galarrita that he would commit suicide if she did not go with him.

    A day into her short return to the Philippines, he told her that they were getting married. In fear that he would kill himself if she denied the arranged marriage, they were wed. 

    Back in the United States, Galarrita gave birth to their only child. Her marriage with Lim was unhappy, unpleasant, and negative. She focused on her baby and her career as a source of happiness and pride. She was soon employed as a registered nurse and kept herself at work with long hours as her child grew older. She gained the respect of many co-workers and supervisors, enamored by Galarrita’s unending drive and desire to achieve whatever needed to be done. Galarrita bought her own spacious house in North Smithfield and treated herself to beautiful dresses and Swarovski crystals.

    Four years ago she divorced Lim after decades of oppression and sadness. Marcial Galarrita, who had immigrated to New York in the 1980s, reentered her life. She reunited with her first love. This year they happily got married. 

    Moving to America ultimately taught Galarrita how to stand on her own two feet and rely on herself in all ways, especially emotionally and monetarily. Her natural determination made this easy for her. She was eventually hired by a hospital that has now been her long-term employer for over a decade. As a woman of color, she was the first Asian woman in the history of the hospital recently promoted register nurse to supervisor. The hospital has been running since 1905.

    Galarrita prides herself in her strong work ethic, conviction, and vision as to how she continues to thrive and grow as an individual.