My Autobiography: David Balleza K(C)atague: Musings of a Happy Father on Father's Day

Saturday, June 18, 2022

Musings of a Happy Father on Father's Day

My 4D's-From left to Right: Ditas, Dodie, ME, David E(RIP) and Dinah

The Katague clan is planning to celebrate Father's Day this year with just a simple lunch tomorrow (June 19). The event is a 3-Event Celebration, Father's Day, Ditas & Carenna Farewell and David's E 90-Day Death Anniversary.

https://theintellectualmigrants.blogspot.com/2022/04/the-posthumous-awards-for-david-e.html

On this occasion, allow me to talk again on the accomplishments of my three living children as well as David E ( RIP) whose 90-Day death anniversary we are celebrating also today. My apology to those who have already read on my previous postings on the subject of my children accomplishments.

https://theintellectualmigrants.blogspot.com/2021/09/my-four-children-accomplishments-in.html

1. Dodie-my oldest son

Dodie, my oldest son was born in the Philippines, but immigrated to US when he was only 18 months old. He has a law degree from University of California, Davis and had been a successful prosecuting attorney in Northern California for several years. He early retired last year to devote more time writing his 3rd novel. He is married to his former classmate, Ruth Carver, also a lawyer and they have 3 children, Philip, Alix and Marina.

Dodie Katague lived at Cloyne Court Coop from 1977-79 while he attended the University of California, Berkeley. He graduated in 1981 with a degree in Geography. He graduated from the University of California, Davis, King Hall School of Law in 1985. Since then, he is a prosecutor in Martinez, California. Dodie is working on his second novel, "Rock Star Planet", a Young Adult science fiction adventure. He is now retired and finishing his third novel, "Devil Mountain DA", a fictional account of life in a dysfunctional district attorney's office. He early retired to devote more time on his writing and travel with his wife Ruth( also a lawyer).

2. Dinah-my oldest daughter

Dinah started her career in BSA/AML in 2011 at Bank of the West. Within three years she was managing a team of 27 contractors to clear the FDIC items of the previous year’s audit. She was instrumental in growing the new department of 5 to 42. In 2017, Dinah joined Umpqua Bank as the CDD/EDD Manager. She managed two departments of EDD Analysts and CDD Specialists. Living in the “heart of cannabis growing country”, Dinah navigated her teams through the intricacies of the current political climate regarding marijuana, hemp and CBD, to become the subject matter experts for the bank. In June of 2020, Dinah joined Technology Credit Union as the Compliance Officer/Manager of the High Risk Member Unit. Her main responsibility is to help create, cultivate, develop, maintain and monitor the marijuana businesses direct and indirect program for the credit union. Dinah has been accused by some of creating a “Dynahsty” where ever she goes and they would be correct!

Experienced Financial Services Manager with a demonstrated history of working in the banking industry. Skilled in Analytical Skills, Software Documentation, Leadership, Financial Risk, and Risk Management. Strong finance professional with a Bachelor of Arts focused in Liberal Studies from California State University-Sacramento.

Through the course of my 15+ years’ experience, I’ve enjoyed the chance to manage and motivate teams toward consistent success. Colleagues will tell you I have a deep and intuitive grasp of business and team capabilities, and use this instinctive approach to expertly allocate staff and resources. A focus of my work has been employee engagement: by promoting an engaged and collaborative work culture, I’ve been able to develop staff members and deliver key gains to the bottom line. I also pride myself on adapting readily to new work challenges and environments.Compliance Manager, High Risk Member Unit at Technology Credit Union (Tech CU)

Technology Credit Union (Tech CU)

California State University-Sacramento

***

3. David E (RIP)- my youngest son

David is single and currently works for the Federal Government (TSA) in Sacramento. He has a Bachelor of Science degree in Agricultural Economics from UC Davis and a Masters of Science degree in Public Management and Policy with concentration on Information Systems from Carnegie Mellon University. He used to work for the Office of Management and Budget(OMB) in Washington DC during the Clinton and Gore Administration. During the time of his employment with OMB we received annual Christmas cards from the White House as well as special invitations to special events such as the Easter Egg Hunting in the lawn of the White House and Parties for OMB employees. David E is learning how to speak Tagalog. During our 50th wedding anniversary party in 2007, he addressed the guests in Tagalog and made a good impression. His Tagalog is improving but still has the American accent. Macrine and I are proud of his desire to learn the language of his ancestry. Without David's help, we will never be able to enjoy staying in our island paradise in the Philippines for as long as we desire. Today, he keeps me company in this big house and talks to me about his plans to retire in the Philippines. David E joined his creator March 17, 2022.

I received David's III life insurance proceeds the other day. Part of it will be allocated in establishing an endowment scholarship fund for deserving students at the University of the Philippines in Iloilo- my Alma Mater. This will be a good deed to honor David III memory. I have initiated contact in the Philippines Office of Alumni Relations UPV on the details of this donation.

4. Ditas- my youngest daughter

Associate Director for Communications, US Census Bureau *Civic Engagement & Community Outreach Expert * Chief of Staff * Energy, Water-Regulatory Advisor * 🧘🏾‍♀️Yoga/Meditation Teacher. For details visit her linkedin page as follows:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/ditas-katague/

This party is also a Farewell for Ditas and Carenna on their move to Washington DC soon. Ditas was appointed as Associate Director for Communications, Bureau of Census, Department of Commerce last April.

https://www.census.gov/newsroom/press-releases/2022/ditas-katague-appointed-associate-director-communications.html

Ditas and Carenna relocation to Alexandria, VA reminds me of our 12 moves in 42 years here in the US as follows:

https://livinginmarinduquephilippines.blogspot.com/2019/07/our-twelve-moves-in-forty-two-years-in.html

Meanwhile enjoy these 2 photos:

These red mangoes are huge, luscious but not too sweet compared to the Philippine Guimaras mangoes. However it is very juicy, I almost choked with delight. The brown fruit are the kiwis and looks like Philippine Chicos except it is hairy. There are two varieties of oranges in the bowl-Navel and Valencia. The small green apples are from my neighbor orchard.

Fried Pompano( cooked South Indian style), I ordered from Shef.com for Father's Day Lunch

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Highlights of My Professional Career

In my more than 40 years of professional career, I have experienced both working rank and file, as well as supervising the work of subordinates. I have worked in four private firms and the Federal Government, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), where I retired. I enjoyed the challenges and difficulties of both types of job situations. This is the highlights of my work experience story.

My first job after completing my doctorate degree was a Chemist for Chemagro Corporation in Kansas City, Missouri. It was a subsidiary of Bayer Corporation, a German conglomerate. I worked for the analytical chemistry department comprised of about fifty people; half that number was either chemists or biologists. My specific task was to develop analytical methods for the detection of pesticide residues in plant and animal tissues. I worked on my own, similar to six other bench chemists, and we all reported to the same supervisor.

The firm sponsored my visa conversion from a student to a permanent resident, and I was able to legally work and reside in the United States with my family. The company generously took care of its employees. At the end of each successful year, everyone received a 13th month salary bonus. The employees and their families celebrated wonderful annual Christmas parties in a downtown Kansas City hotel, with dancing and free drinks for the whole night.

Inasmuch as I enjoyed and loved working for Chemagro for five years, I found a new job which offered a substantially higher pay. Due to my exemplary work performance, my supervisor preferred and lobbied for me to stay with the company. I had to turn him down because they could not match the package presented by my new employer. It was also a chance for me and my family to move and live in the US west coast, where the mild winter climate is bearable compared to the Midwest.

My next job was at the agricultural research division of Shell Development Company in Modesto, California. I was a Research Chemist, and again I worked individually, same as five other chemists who all reported to a supervisor. My specific duty was similar to my previous job. I worked for them for five years, until the company decided to get out of the pesticide business. They closed their research facility affecting the jobs of more than 200 employees.

My third industrial job was with the agricultural research division of Stauffer chemical company, located in Richmond, California. I was a Senior Research Chemist doing the same project as my two previous jobs. I worked for twelve continuous years for the company, with outstanding annual job performance. I became a Principal Research Chemist, the highest attainable non-supervisory position.

One day in 1986, my supervisor informed me that my job had been eliminated, and I had one day to vacate the facility. It was the most dreadful lay off experience in my life. I felt anger, sadness and humiliation to be dismissed from work with one day notice, after all the years of hard work invested for the company. This was an unforgettable incident and was the gloomiest point in my professional career.
The company terminated sixty research employees, who were upset of the bad news.

One of the chemists was distressed and expressed his outrageous anger by threatening the company and its workers. He told his supervisor of his intention to bomb and burn down the laboratory. He was immediately escorted by the security staff out of the building and into his car. He was informed to leave behind his personal belongings; they will be mailed to his residence. He was warned never to show up again near the company premises or risk getting arrested.

My supervisor was kind and allowed me to take my time to pack up my belongings. It took me two days to clear up my workplace, after toiling for a long period in the same jobsite. We were provided clerical help and office space, in preparation to look for another job, such as updating our resumes, and using the computer and copy machine. We were given six weeks of separation pay plus benefits.

Fortunately, with the help of a friend who is a Church parishioner, I found another job thirty days after leaving Stauffer chemical company. He hired me as a senior research chemist and as a group leader with two technicians to supervise. It was in the same field as my expertise in my previous three jobs spanning the last twenty one years. My new employer was Chevron Chemical Company, and which was located in the same area as my former employer.

This job gave me the introduction and basic knowledge of managing the work of subordinates. I worked for Chevron Company for four and a half years. The company decided to consolidate their research facilities in Texas, and lay off all its research employees. This time I had enough distress and agony from working, and eventually getting laid off from several private companies. To avoid going through any more miserable layoffs, I made a vow that I would never again work for a private company.

In my work experiences, there were noticeable and unavoidable jobsite occurrences. One can never miss the office romantic relationships between co-workers, both illicit and permitted. Though it was frowned upon, there was a boss and staff relationship, which was used as a ploy to get ahead in the company. Some relationships had chemistry, no pun intended, but some never worked out. Oftentimes, there was a sense of distrust among bench chemists for some workers who unjustly obtained preferred work assignments.

Some employees resorted to bribing superiors to get special privileges, such as being able to attend choice conferences and meetings in exciting venues or locations. Likewise, politics was always present at the worksites. It was during an era when various forms of harassment, equal opportunity and discrimination laws were not yet enforced in the workplace. Occasionally, an unexpected chemical explosion happens in a laboratory setting, where luckily no one got seriously hurt.

In the three private companies I worked for, I was able to publish scientific journals for some of the research studies and analytical methods which I developed for the respective companies of Chemagro, Shell Development and Stauffer.

After deciding and making a vow to avoid working in the private sector, I made my new goal which was either to work for the state of California, or the Federal government in Washington, D.C. Four months after I lost my job in Chevron, I was lucky and joyful to be hired by the Food and Drug Administration as a review chemist in the fall of 1990.

In 1994 I was promoted as an Expert Research Chemist with a GS-14 rating. My expertise was on Anti-malarial and Anti-parasitic drug products. In 1997, I was again deservingly promoted to Chemistry team leader, supervising the work of six Chemistry reviewers including five with doctorate degrees.

As team leader, I was responsible for prioritizing, assigning, and assuring the technical accuracy of all chemistry, manufacturing and control issues for all new drug applications submitted to the Division of Anti-Infective Drug Products, Center of New Drugs.

It was part of my responsibility to give advice, instruct and promote high morale and teamwork in my group. My work in the FDA is confidential, until the drug patent on the products I worked on has expired. There are manufacturing supplements that I have approved that are now open for the public in the Internet.

In 1998, I won the Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) Award. The citation reads, “For outstanding accomplishments in fostering the objectives of the EEO Program by hiring minorities and encouraging their professional growth while providing excellent leadership.” I have received numerous certificates of appreciation, awards in leadership and communications, commendation for teamwork and excellence in the accomplishment of the FDA mission. I have also received several letters of appreciation from private industry for my review work.

There are many good things working as rank and file while enjoying doing one’s job individually. It is a humbling, satisfying and productive experience, if one can work in harmony with one’s immediate supervisor. Working individually develops one’s skills in goal setting and scheduling. But in general, the financial rewards are less than a person who has supervisory responsibilities.

Managing the work of others has its challenges. Moreover, it develops one’s skill in handling and developing people, and the compensation rewards and benefits are better. Due to additional duties, responsibilities and leadership, supervisory work can be more stressful than working as a subordinate. However, supervisory jobs give one more personal growth and satisfaction, based on my personal experience. My work in FDA as a team leader managing the work of six scientists had been the happiest and rewarding work experience in my career in Chemistry. You might also like:

Saturday, June 18, 2022

Musings of a Happy Father on Father's Day

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