Finding a home in Homewood: Filipino immigrants create community in their adopted hometown

It feels like yesterday that Carmeliza Navasca came to the United States.

In 1985, Navasca traveled with her family to the U.S. from the Philippines. They settled in Hawaii at first, following her uncle, who had joined the U.S. Navy 20 years prior.

The family eventually made its way to California in the Silicon Valley area, Navasca said. It was there Navasca would finish her public education and meet her husband, Shannon Starr. Starr grew up in Sacramento, and the pair both attended the University of California in Berkeley, though they did not hit it off until their time in graduate school at UC-Davis.

After years of moving from one state to the next for both of their respective careers in teaching college mathematics, the pair began teaching at the University of Alabama at Birmingham in 2012 and eventually settled in Homewood.

“We don’t have a family here, so living in Homewood gave us that sense of community,” Navasca said.

Navasca is just one of several Filipino immigrants who live or work in Homewood.

Cristina Castor, head of children’s services at the Homewood Public Library, said her family has been in the U.S. since the 1980s, following her aunt, Dolores Cook, who came in 1972.

Cook said her family fled the Philippines as the country was placed under martial law by then-President Ferdinand Marcos. Cook’s family came to Tuscaloosa before making their way to the Birmingham metro area.

“That was a real culture shock for us,” Cook said.

Learning the language was not one of the difficulties Cook faced, as English is taught in school in the Philippines. She began her nursing career upon arrival and stayed for 52 years, including 10 years working in clinics in Homewood. A Hoover resident since 1991, Cook said this area has been good for her and her family. Cook’s children went to Our Lady of Sorrows Catholic School and John Carroll Catholic High School.

“I like where I’m at,” Cook said. “Homewood is a great place.”

Cook has been able to go back to the Philippines and has built 26 duplexes and a library for the children in a rural area in their home city of Davao City, on the southern island of Mindanao.

While she misses her family and the country the most, including the food — “When I go home, I just eat to my delight,” she said — Cook said they have adjusted well to life in the United States.

“It is so hot over there,” Cook said, adding they have to get acclimated to the different climates when they go back and forth.

Meeting other Filipinos in Homewood and at UAB is a big help, Cook said.

“You just click right away,” Cook said. “The best thing is talking in our own dialect.”

Castor, who will soon live in Homewood with her soon-to-be husband, a teacher at Homewood High School, moved from the Philippines in 2001.

“I’m pretty excited to raise a family here,” Castor said. “This library was one of the first we went to growing up.”

Castor said as a child, she looked forward to coming to the Homewood library as it was the only library that had N64 games.

The adjustment period when she moved to the U.S. was “wild,” Castor said.

“It was hard for me because I’d left the comfort of my friends and childhood home,” Castor said.

Castor said she had people wonder “what,” not “who,” she was growing up.

“I’m not a fan of that,” Castor said.

Although she’s become an American citizen, Castor said she is “Filipino first.” Still, while she doesn’t like the term “Americanized,” she’s glad to be here.

“I feel home here,” Castor said. “The community is way more personable.”

Having her family and Filipino friends nearby helps, Castor said.

“It’s just great to have someone you’re familiar with,” Castor said. “I have a safe space.”

Navasca told her parents she wanted to go back during her first month here, she said. But over time, she learned to adjust. Teachers thought she needed an English as a second language class, but she just didn’t want to talk for a month. Once she did, she no longer needed the class.

When they moved to the U.S, Navasca said her parents had to work two jobs, despite being better off in the Philippines. It was a “transformation” to see that, she said.

“To see your parents go through that, it was tough,” Navasca said.

Her mother eventually taught at a Montessori school for 20 years in Santa Clara, she said. When Navasca married Starr, they got married at the hotel her mother once worked at and that her father ended up holding a steady job in, she said.

That example led Navasca to work hard and instilled a love of learning. She and Starr enjoy the diversity of students here and their politeness, she said.

They haven’t been able to go back to the Philippines, but her parents have gone back. The hope is that they will be able to go back with their daughter, Victoria.

Homewood has provided a great place for them, with events at the library and education at Creative Montessori School, Navasca said. Victoria fell in love with the library when she saw Castor over Zoom and told her mother, “She looks like me!”

There is a bigger sense of community in the Philippines, which is perhaps why Homewood has been such a good place for her family, Navasca said.

“You get that sense of security, community,” Navasca said. “It reminds you of what you had growing up.”

Nelia Stone moved to the U.S. in 1971 and moved in 2008 to Homewood, where her husband grew up.

“It was difficult,” Stone said.

Stone had to learn how to drive, since there is so much public transportation in the Philippines, she said. While she taught for 15 years in the Philippines, it was a different process here. She was able to spend a lot of time with her son as she worked part-time jobs, and eventually met other Filipinos.

“It’s very important because I’m a very sociable person,” Stone said.

Stone said she misses the tropical climate but loves the U.S. Being in Homewood is convenient, she said, and she feels welcomed by the community.

Hannah Rodgers lives in Homewood and teaches in Pelham City Schools.

“When I was 11 [years old], my dad worked for Voice of America,” Rodgers said.

The family traveled to Liberia and West Africa before coming to America, where he worked for EWTN in Irondale.

“It was quite a transition at 11 years old,” Rodgers said.

Rodgers taught in Japan and became a Homewood resident due to her husband living in the city. He also works for Pelham City Schools.

“We love it here,” Rodgers said. “When we were transitioning from his small house, … there was nothing that compared to the Homewood community.”

Rodgers said Filipinos are very tight with their families, so while she misses them, her family tries to go back as often as they can. Having the community helps too, she said.

“We’re pretty supportive of each other and it helps,” Rodgers said.

The immigrant experience has “defined” her, Rodgers said.

“The American experience is so important to me,” Rodgers said. “I’m grateful for what we have.”