Arlene Marie "Bambi" Antonio-Lorica

Arlene Marie “Bambi” Antonio-Lorica,
MD, FAAP

Arlene Marie "Bambi" Antonio-Lorica, MD, FAAP, is a holistic
pediatrician who is passionately committed to giving back to
the community. Having been a government science scholar
since high school, Dr. Lorica was raised by parents dedicated
to service. With a cardinal, bishops & nuns in the immediate
family, the desire to give back & serve was deeply instilled in
her. In college at the UP Diliman, Dr. Lorica participated in
local medical missions & nutritional programs for malnourished
children through the Sunshine City Lions Club. After
graduating from the UP College of Medicine in 1989, she
worked as a volunteer physician for a depressed area in
Paranaque serving a local orphanage. As a Pediatric Resident
at Georgetown, Dr. Lorica served as resource speaker at the
"Kapwa Ko Mahal Ko" public service broadcast.

In 1999, Dr. Lorica successfully spearheaded the Jubilee 2000 initiative at Our Lady of Mercy
Parish (OLOM) in Potomac, MD, working with parishioners as part of an international coalition.
By creating awareness, the group's efforts helped give rise to offshoot global Jubilee Debt
Campaigns, advocating forgiveness of third world debt and reform in the lending process to
corrupt governments. Dr. Lorica took on this project because of her interest in the Bataan
Nuclear Power Plant, which she followed closely during her high school years as managing editor
of the 'Science Scholar' at the Philippine Science High School. (Of note, the $2.3B dollar debt
incurred in 1977 for the construction of the plant was just paid off by Filipinos in April 2007, at a
cost of $155,000/day for 30 yrs!).

Dr. Lorica continues to undertake national advocacy work with the archdiocese of Washington,
and, with the FilAm Community in support of the recently passed Filipino Veteran's Equity Bill and
the recently reintroduced Family Reunification Act, HR 2412. In the past, Dr. Lorica has served as
a child advocate for the American Academy of Pediatrics & the Potomac chapter of National
Alliance for Autism Research (NAAR). In 1999, Dr. Lorica was one of the first volunteers who
helped start the Mercy Health (Free) Clinic. For her work with children, Dr. Lorica was appointed
to the Advisory Board of the Care for Kids Program in Montgomery County, MD in 2001.

When fighting broke out in Mindanao in mid August 2008, soon after the collapse of the peace
talks in Kuala Lumpur, Dr. Lorica served as medical adviser & accompanied Asia America Initiative
President Al Santoli to Manila on a humanitarian mission. Aside from packaging medicines and
relief items for the refugees, she also met with influential decision makers to advocate for wider
consultation with the people of Mindanao (as opposed to just negotiating with the MILF) and
continued support for the economic development of the barrios around the areas of conflict.

Al Santoli and his team later went on to the refugee centers to assist some of the 500,000
refugees, 300,000 of whom were children. Among the needs they identified, aside from basic
necessities like food, clean water & medical care, were trauma counseling & healing, especially
for children who were exposed to extreme violence, such as the killing of family members.

Soon after, in cooperation with the Embassy of the Philippines, Dr. Lorica helped organize a
Concert for Peace in an effort to start a campaign to create awareness among Filipinos and
Americans about the delicate and volatile situation in Mindanao, and, how we all can help in the
global war against terror. One of the goals of this initiative was to highlight the fact that peace
in Mindanao is possible through sustained economic development & education, by targeting the
poverty & hopelessness that lead to religious extremism, fanaticism & terrorism.

Dr. Lorica also participates annually in medical missions to the Philippines. As a board member of
the UPMASA-BW Chapter, she helps raise funds for the PGH-TB DOTS Program, providing medical
care to children afflicted with the burdensome but treatable condition of tuberculosis in children.
In 2001, Dr. Lorica helped initiate the formation (brainchild) of the Center for TB in Children,
Philippines (CTCP), Metro Washington, DC Chapter with Dr. Fe del Mundo, & was appointed as
the first PRO. CTCP is now the Alliance for the Control of TB in Children (ACTC). As medical
adviser for Asia America Initiative, Dr. Lorica assisted in developing the first Cancer Treatment for
the Poor Program in Asia. The Program brings together international organizations and
pharmaceutical corporations with cancer treatment centers to provide life saving medications for
cancer victims of all ages . Hundreds of cancer patients who otherwise would not have hope,
now have access to free treatment.

As an active advocate against violence, and, as a member of the board of the Filipina Women's
Network, Dr. Lorica recently performed in and helped produce Eve Ensler’s The Vagina
Monologues, and, A Memory, a Monologue, a Rant and a Prayer at the Kennedy Center. The
show aimed to increase awareness in an effort to help end violence against Filipina women and
girls.   As Overall CoChair of the successful 2006 Philippine Festival of Washington, DC, Dr. Lorica
raised the bar with the "100 years: Proud History, Lasting Legacy" celebration, dedicating the
festival to our FilAm children, who will shape our global society in the next 100 years.

A classically trained lyric soprano, Dr. Lorica has been privileged to perform for the last 3
Philippine Presidents. Among her performance venues include the Herbst Theater in San
Francisco, the Kennedy Center, the Warner Theater, DAR Constitution Hall, US Congress, and
Embassies in the Washington DC area. She has performed with Martin Nieverra, Pilita Corales
and Nonoy Zuniga, among others. For the community, she has conducted church based US
choirs, organized UPAA and PMA Choral groups and served as chair of fine and performing arts of
the Holton Arms Parent Association. She has also represented the Filipino community and
showcased Filipino culture through songs and ethnic dances like the tinikling and binasuan,
among others in numerous venues.

Happily married for 24 years to TOFA awardee, and ballroom dance and golf enthusiast, Dr.
Victor Lorica, they are blessed with 4 caring and loving children. When Typhoon Durian hit
Daraga, Albay in Dec of 2006, & mudslides engulfed entire villages, the "Lorica children, led by
the 2 younger children, Christine and Andrew, would not buckle to disaster. For their father's
43rd birthday, they, along with their older siblings organized a surprise birthday party & asked
the guests, in lieu of presents, for donations to the typhoon victims of Daraga, their
grandfather's hometown, which they channeled through Feed the Hungry, Inc".

The two older children are both currently working in New York.   Michelle, the eldest, graduated
from Georgetown with a degree in Biology and Science, Technology & International Affairs. Soon
after graduation, she taught biology to underprivileged teens in Brooklyn. She is currently
working as a consumer advocate on drugs and medical devices at Weitz & Luxumburg while
preparing to go to Med School. Leia, the second eldest, got her degree in Psychology from
Stanford in less than 3 years. She has been working in corporate communications at Ruder Finn,
an award winning public relations firm since finishing school. Her interest in high fashion has led
her to work with Vera Wang and Rheem Acra during her spare time. While at Stanford, she
served as regional director of Foundations for Education, a program for underprivileged children
in Palo Alto. She plans to attend Law School within the next year or so.

All accomplished performing artists, the Lorica children have performed for dignitaries including
Presidents Clinton and Bush, in venues like the Kennedy Center, the Folger Theater, the White
House, National Building museum and embassies in the area. The Lorica family believes that
"the family that sings together, stays together". As a family, their diverse repertoire ranges from
Kundiman to Broadway, to pop & classical music. Aside from singing, the Loricas, as a family also
enjoy playing golf, scuba diving, kayaking, dancing & traveling together.

Multi-talented and energetic, Dr. Bambi Lorica remains well-grounded through devotion to family
and deep religious faith.   One of the Filipina Women's Networks’ 100 Most Influential Filipina
Women in the US, she is passionately committed to effecting positive social change by helping
initiate and drive innovative solutions on globally-oriented issues, including health and
development. A Chicago FilAm Hall of Fame Awardee for Medical Diplomacy in 2008, she is
constantly pushing the envelope with innovative ideas & forward thinking, and, is truly a role
model for our youth. Her positive influence will continue to be felt for years to come.

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