new beginnings

One's grit is critical to one's success. Grit is vital for survival, for triumph. It is resilience amidst adversity. It's passion and perseverance put to the test.

- BUM D. TENORIO, JR.

At the onset, Alona "Tylou" Alimagno-Bowman, my sister from another mother, flew to California to mend her broken heart. She was 25 then. What was supposed to be a short healing vacation in 2006 for Tylou, who just finished Architecture at the University of Santo Tomas then, led to an opportunity that would change her life.

And the change includes being on top of operations of a big, male-dominated construction company in the US. Tylou, who started as an estimator, is now the vice president of operations of Best Contracting Services Inc., "a large specialty contractor that provides construction services for the entire building envelope." The building envelope, according to Tylou, "is any work that wraps the building against water including roofing, waterproofing, metal panels, sheet metal and glazing works."

"That time, I was at a crossroads in life. It was mid-June 2006 when I gathered the courage to send my dad a simple but life-changing text: 'Pa, I need a favor. Please buy me a ticket to the US. I need to move on and get my life back.' Without hesitation, my father replied, 'OK. When?'"

Before her 26th birthday on July 10, 2006, Tylou flew to the US with a piece of luggage filled with clothes and memories. She never realized that her plain request for a plane ticket from her father was actually a passport for a new break. On the day she decided to choose herself was also the moment she promised to rebuild it.

And rebuild her life she did even if it meant being on her stilettos, so to speak, in a male-dominated world. Even if it meant riding the bus when she was new in the US, missing the stop and walking in the dead of winter just so she could figure things out.

Along the way of rebuilding her life, there were men at work who challenged her, who questioned whether she belonged, who questioned if she could lead.