Nena Lozada Smith: Growing her fabled Red Poinsettia Ball  

Nena Lozada Smith has been through a myriad of community organizations since she first arrived in the U.S. in late 1990s. She made tons of friends and is known to bring joy  to people’s lives through her vivacious parties.

From then till now, her name is associated with dazzling fundraising where women wear floor-length gowns that swish and sparkle.

Nena swears, “Filipinos love to dress up.”

She should know. Her legions of guests are growing by the year. Her last Red Poinsettia Ball on December 3, 2023 had 490 attendees (from 300 to 350 in previous years) at Leonard’s Palazzo in Great Neck, New York some showing up even though they did not RSVP. Nena has learned to deal with such unexpected situations. “I just asked for more tables,” she shrugged.

Red Poinsettia is by far her most well-attended. It happens during the holidays, a season for  celebrating. A dedicated fundraiser becomes Miss or Mrs. Red Poinsettia for the year.  The proceeds go to the titleholders’ favorite province to support medical missions, public schools and other humanitarian causes. Women – among them professionals, nurses, caregivers, teachers, retirees, single parents, etc. — said this is what attracts them to support the Red Poinsettia Foundation. It’s not all about purposeless partying although dressing fancy is part of the fun.

Other Nena events, such as  Friends Indeed USA and Philippine American Women Glambassador of Hope and Friends, are equally well patronized.

Friends Indeed USA, which was organized in mid-2000 and almost two decades in existence, is a more stately black-and-white dinner affair usually held in September or October. Friends Indeed is proud to be the recipient of the Lingkod sa Kapwa Pilipino Award in 2018 courtesy of the Commission on Filipinos Overseas.  Nena (together with friends Corazon Reyes and Linda Pelayo) went home to Manila to receive the plaque from no less than President Rodrigo Duterte. The LINKAPIL award is conferred on Filipino individuals or organizations for their “exceptional or significant contribution to progress and development in the Philippines. It speaks of the enduring sense of bayanihan of Filipinos even when they have found new homes in other countries.” A Friends Indeed Village in Bohol is a recipient of their charity work.

The Philippine American Women Glambassadors of Hope is another one of Nena’s many fundraising platforms. The charity raises funds for needy communities in the Philippines, she said, especially “children in difficult situations.”

Nena’s efforts have not gone unnoticed. She has received numerous awards recognizing her many projects for the Filipino American community: Most Outstanding Asians bestowed by the City of New York’s Office of the City Comptroller, Achiever Community Awards given by the Philippine Consulate, Outstanding Filipino-American Award in Community Service from the Filipino Heritage Foundation are just some of many for which she is grateful.

As a true mover and shaker,  Nena has been associated with many legacy organizations such as NaFFAA, FALDEF, PIDCI, and Handang Tumulong.  One wonders, what else could she be planning next?

Maria Eva Villa: Connecticut’s pride at Red Poinsettia

Maria Eva Villa from Greenwich, Connecticut is this year’s Mrs. Red  Poinsettia Beacon of Hope and Light.

When she walked around the Leonard’s Palazzo ballroom wearing sash and crown, she  said she couldn’t believe what was happening to her.

Eva, 70, said she was like floating on air wearing her extravagant red gown by the Paris brand Anne Fontaine. Her unfathomable joy made her emotional.

“I was very happy, ang ganda ng feeling. Maybe this is what it means to have a good life. I couldn’t believe it,” she said.

When told she didn’t look her age, she just smiled and brushed off the compliment.

Eva met Nena last year at an event in Connecticut organized by a Filipino women’s association in the state.   She said she is honored to be chosen the 2023 Mrs. Red  Poinsettia Beacon of Hope and Light.

Eva came to the U.S. in 1989 through Spain. She was working as a nanny for the family of  a Spanish airline executive who has a home in Upstate New York. When the family decided to return to Spain, she stayed behind and worked for a Morgan Stanley bank manager in Connecticut. She worked as a caregiver and cook for this family for 20 years and was able to become a U.S. citizen through her employment. She later became a caregiver for a gentleman with a kidney-related condition. She was trained in dialysis treatment and provided care for him for four years. When he passed, he left her a house in Connecticut, she said.

“I’m the only one in America of my four siblings,” said Eva who hails from Iloilo where her family owns farm lands. Her father worked as a farmer and a carpenter and her mother was a cantor in church.

Eva has an adult son, age 36, who has a thriving auto emission center business in the Philippines.

Melissa Lyn & Jaylyn Rivera: Mother, daughter make Red Poinsettia history

December 3 was a historic Red Poinsettia night.  Melissa Lyn Cayabyab Rivera from Manchester, New Hampshire and her youngest daughter Jaylyn Myles, 6, were honored at the dinner gala.

For the first time a little girl was crowned Little Red Poinsettia 2023. Her mother Melissa Lyn would join her as Mrs. Red Poinsettia Ball Queen 2023. Mother and daughter wearing their sashes and crowns walked the ballroom to applause and the approving smiles of guests.

“I felt blessed, grateful and thankful,” said Melissa. “I see this crown as an opportunity. An opportunity to represent Red Poinsettia charitable trust, an opportunity to serve, which I am looking forward to, to go back to our country to help a school in our province of San Carlos City, Pangasinan and to be the best version of myself. I represent this charity with pride, grace and poise.”

Melissa, who works as a micro technician with BAE Systems and an entrepreneur met  Nena in one of her events in Connecticut. She was introduced by her friend Vina Dunn.

“We had instant connection,” she said. “I wanted to be part of her humanitarian projects.”

She wanted to donate school supplies to children in her province and support a feeding program. Red Poinsettia organizes missions to the Philippines where they donate food and clothing to underdeveloped provincial towns. 

Daughter Jaylyn is the youngest of three children of Melissa and husband Paul John Rivera, a  senior software engineer at Hewlett Packard Enterprise.  Their two other children are  Jaymier Lyle, 15, and Jayred Lloyd, 10.

Jaylyn is a first grader at Green Acres Elementary School.  Her teacher describes her as “extremely shy but a smart girl.”  Her two older brothers whom she calls her “bodyguards” take good care of her even if sometimes she bullies them, said Melissa in jest. 

She enjoys her modeling, gymnastics and dance classes. Her favorite actress is Vanessa Hudgens, a fellow Filipina, who plays Gabriella Montez in Disney Channel’s “High School Musical.” 

Melissa came to the U.S. in 1998 and met her future husband here. She enjoys attending and dressing up for pageants especially the elegant ones organized by Nena Smith. 

As she likes to jokingly tell her friends: “We don’t have this in New Hampshire.” – Cristina DC Pastor