Angel Garcia Abcede Jr. was born in Guam, a northern Pacific Island territory of the United States on November 25, 1963. When he was five, Angel Jr.’s family moved to Honolulu, Hawaii, where his father landed a job as an engineer in a local construction company. Angel Jr. graduated from Roosevelt High School and the left the islands for Northwestern University in a suburb just north of Chicago. He graduated in 1985 with a degree in journalism. He spent most of his professional career as a freelance writer but took a permanent job at a business magazine targeting owners and operators of convenience stores. As a reporter, he examined trends in packaged goods, foodservice and fuel. He has won several business press awards for his journalistic achievements.

In 2018, a visit to his ailing aunt led to a long discussion with his cousin, Elizabeth “Lilibet” Correos. about their family’s history. Angel Jr.’s mother was the younger half-sister of Lilibet’s mother, with the older sister helping the younger land her first U.S. job in Guam. An afternoon of looking at old photo albums led to the writing of House of Nurses, and a rediscovery of how Filipinos shaped today’s America.

https://houseofnurses.net/