Filipino immigrants to the USA Alan De Leon and Amabel Nugpo-De Leon tied the knot 25 years ago and nurtured their partnership towards entrepreneurial success and long-lasting romance.
Initially there were risks. Amabel dropped her years of working in nursing facilities to become a businesswoman with a hubby for a business partner. And then Alan had to relinquish his role as Director of Rehabilitation for a clinic so he could run a home health agency with his wife.
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Fil-Am power couple in health care Alan De Leon and Amabel Nugpo-De Leon
They were eyeing a level-up, purpose-filled kind of living the American Dream.
Kudos for them for their commitment. They eventually established the Vanura Homehealth Services in California’s Inland Empire Region where they also raised their own family. They were blessed with three lovable sons (Alec, Aaron, and Andre) and an entrepreneurial run that has kept growing to this day.
Armed with strong spirituality and passion for health care professionalism, their first home health agency - which is basically clinical treatment and rehabilitation done at home of patients - took off big-time; its expansion necessary.
Twenty-five years later, they are full-blown chief executives, running several companies that employ hundreds of professionals and service a large number of patients. Their home health sites affect US-based communities in positive ways.
Vanura developed a high reputation for their quality service, professional look, and consistency in excellence. Random people began labeling it as the top home health agency in that burgeoning area of California.
Same wavelength, same drive
Last December, US-based Filipino writer Yugel Losorata had the privilege of seeing up close how Alan and Amabel routinely spend their time together.
US-based Filipino writer Yugel Losorata (2nd from left), with the De Leons and few of their home health business employees from the states of Arizona and California.
They invited him for a road trip from Southern California to their place in Sterling Grove, City of Surprise, Arizona. It’s actually a posh model-house they purchased due to its proximity to Vanura AZ – their home health business expansion outside of California whose work force was set to celebrate their Christmas party.
Losorata went with select executives from DeNu Consulting office (located in Ontario, California) where both Alan and Amabel occupy separate offices. Those rooms, by the way, meant they have separate roles to mind, while essentially together in heart and mind. They’re literally a few steps away in case they need to consult each other.
“Being on the road together makes us go through the businesses and our personal lives truly together. Otherwise, we won’t be seeing each other often,” pointed out Amabel with a cute grin during a quick snack stop.
The trip through the sweeping deserts of California to the arid-yet-breathtaking Arizona was an opportunity for a veteran writer to observe the way the two communicate.
According to the journalist whose byline has appeared in various news outlets, conversations between Alan and Amabel were relatively minimal throughout the six-hour drive from DeNu to their rest house in Arizona. They let the music inside their Mercedes-Benz van capture the gentle mood amid the long stretches of roads, jagged mountains, and caressing sunlight.
The mix of classics and current tunes as playlist magnified their broad perspective over things, with Alan on the steering wheel, Amabel keeping things still, cultivating that mental calm between them. It’s a peaceful breeze warmly interspersed with few exchanges of words deemed necessary.
Time Together
Both moving to the US back in the 90s. They were complete strangers before they met and fell in love. By 2001, they got married, and in the same year they put up Vanura.
“Me and Alan, from the very beginning, plan to be together, to live simply. It doesn’t matter where, as long we were together. If it’s going to pull us apart, it’s not good. I didn’t aim for material things,” she shared.
Being together on the road, at business functions, out-of-town trips with their kids, or friends and staff, is a visual manifestation of that vision. Their regular routine benefits them while overseeing multiple companies. Their decision-making is guided by same-page mentality, with every major move resulting from thorough discussion and deep thought eye-to-eye.
It is big bonus for most couples who are able to spend time together. For them, physical togetherness is a need they can’t live without. Everything they have worked on owes its success to it. It is a bond that goes beyond a signed marriage contract. It is a commitment to be one in mind, body, and spirit.
Small wonder the De Leon couple has become the epitome of a triumphant partnership that now owns more than 10 companies.
House of Surprise
Amid the embracing backdrop of a cold, dry Arizona night, the event at the Sterling Grove Clubhouse saw many Vanura AZ employees and special guests enjoy games prepared by the organizing team from DeNu. Several trophies were given to deserving professionals who have kept the now five-year company running like a well-oiled machine.
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Team Vanura Homehealth Services Arizona.
A number of the employees actually got to showcase their singing and dancing skills to the delight of all attendees.
1991 Voice of Asia winner Maribeth Pascua, whose rendition of Denpasar Moon became popular in Southeast Asia, was a featured guest in last December’s event by Vanura Arizona.
Celebrity singer Maribeth Pascua, family friend, known internationally as the Voice of Asia, and the artist behind the most popular version of the classic Denpasar Moon, treated everyone with her searing rendition of a traditional Christmas song.
Then of course, there were the inspiring speeches, like one from Arizona local and key Vanura AZ figure Don Lee, and from Alan and Amabel themselves.
“We serve one patient a time. We’ll figure it out. David only used one stone and Goliath fell. When you have a team rooting for you, you can do anything,” Amabel assured.
Grateful and Fired-up
Alan emphasized the power of being grateful as key to success. He said in his short-but-sweet speech, "The five-hour drive from California to here got us to reflect what transpired to all those 25 years. It all boils down to gratitude."
He noted, “We set up Vanura when we were starting our family. Our three boys went through the struggle also during times we were away from them. But it's about learning to just be thankful for the time we spent with them and the time that we, as husband and wife, spend together growing the business. The gratitude is still there.”
In the couple's Arizona home, Losorata cherished the privilege of having buffet breakfasts and dinners with them and their staff they collectively dub as firehouse leaders. Firehouse is an operative word in the companies of Alan and Amabel.
The writer from Manila watched with amusement Alan grill steaks and Amabel do the laundry. Their expertise and experience as clinician and nurse, respectively, always come in handy in situations when they have to act like everyday persons.
The relaxing aesthetics of their abode mirrors their care to important details, whether in their businesses and the way they handle the dynamic flow among their teams.
When they hosted an after-party at their house, sweet laughter and wonderful words of wisdom filled their home.
Holding hands
Losorata recalled that on their way back to California with him seated right behind the couple, a remarkable moment crystallized and he felt lucky to have witnessed it. It was signaled by a particular song - that of Christian Bautista’s The Way You Look at Me - coming out of the van's speakers.
Without uttering a word, Alan and Amabel reached out each other’s arms and held tight as the tune went through the suddenly romantic night. They did not let go until the song was over.
The moving ballad made them feel relaxed, and reminded of their partnership that has gone through a lot and actually delivered. The touching gesture was acknowledgment of a marriage born out of their commitment to raise a harmonious family, build home health agencies, and provide help and hope to communities.
Recognizing deserving employees is a valuable part of company culture that Alan and Amabel encourage.
The beloved couple with Lemuel Palahang of Vanura AZ.
(Photos by Filgraphix)
