Lourdes Lee Kong was born in the Philippines in 1953. Her family moved to the Philippines to avoid political strife in China. Lourdes was raised with 9 other siblings by her mother because her father died when he was 45. Her mother owned a small business in the Mindanao region and was very influential in their neighborhood. Lourdes did well in school, and learned 4 or 5 languages before attending college. Lourdes' mother encouraged her to pursue nursing like her older sister had rather than chemical engineering, dentistry, or an MD. So Lourdes attended University of Santo Tomas for a 5-year nursing program. She was a member of the ROTC, and very active on campus. After graduating, Lourdes moved to Houston, Texas and worked as a ward clerk in the Methodist hospital, despite her stellar scores in school. She was humbled by her position, and was a hard worker nonetheless. Lourdes was eventually able to work her way up in the hospital. She is currently retired.
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