Lodi Po President, ILAMID

By: Ryan Tejero

Year after year, this FilAm organization just keeps on bringing pride and raising the flag of the Philippines in Chicagoland. Since its inception in 2013, the group has been actively engaging its members and been visually active in Chicago’s Filipino American community. Iligan-Lanao Association of the Midwest, Inc. (ILAMID) is a not-for-profit organization in the State of Illinois. ILAMID is composed of Filipino migrants who originally came from Iligan City and Lanao del Norte from the island of Mindanao. They describe their membership as Filipino Americans who are blessed enough to get a job here in metropolitan Chicago. Founding members decided to form this organization to share voluntarily their spare time and blessings to benefit deserving students from the motherland.

For so many years, ILAMID had successfully organized events that raised funds to provide scholarship grants to deserving students from indigent families in Southern Mindanao. ILAMID’s mission is to send more scholars to college, and hopefully inspire their beneficiaries or recipients to pay forward or duplicate what ILAMID had done for them. The group also provides bereavement assistance to the surviving family of deceased members who are economically handicapped.

For the school year 2023-2024, the following are included in the list of scholarship recipients: John Fernan P. Sabanay (4th year year-BS Hospitality Management); Christine Mae P. (3rd year-Chemical Engineering); Rushelyn Mae M. Canete (2nd year-B of Technical Vocational Teacher Ed), and Maxene Angela Po Henoctan. Scholarship recipients who recently graduated include Trisha Mae Dimple Bacus (BS Information Technology, Magna Cum Laude-August 2023); Shaira Joy Amisola (BS Hospitality Management, Summa Cum Laude-School year 2021-2022); Edmarie Love Belhot (BS Hospitality Management, Magna Cum Laude-School year 2021-2022), and Leah May Castilla (BS Hospitality Management, Cum Laude-School year 2021-2022). Other scholarship recipients in the past were Lea C Lucot, Nahida Tiburon H. Ali, Ma. Luisa Rendado, and Janelle Grace E Yongco.

Currently leading ILAMID is Lodi Po. She is a registered nurse by profession. She is currently employed as Assistant Director of Nursing at Elevate Care North Branch. Being a nurse for more than 20 years, Lodi has been exposed to all departments in the field of nursing profession. Lodi graduated with her Associate Degree in Nursing at Elgin Community College in Elgin, IL. Born and raised in Iligan City, Philippines, Lodi migrated to the US in 1991.

Prior to migrating to the United States, Lodi worked as the Registrar at Systems Technology Institute in Makati, Philippines. She completed her bachelor’s degree in biology at the University of San Carlos in Cebu City, Philippines. Lodi is married to Juan N. Po, Jr, since 1999. Juan is a professional welder at Xylem/ITT Industries. Been married since 1999. Together, they have one daughter, Samantha Rae Po who is currently working as School Bus Driver for Special Ed children.

As an active community leader, Lodi is affiliated with the following FilAm organizations in Chicago including the ILAMID- President 2023-2025; Chicago Global Lions Club, President 2023; Philippine Nurses Association of Illinois, member; Philippine Independence Week Committee (PIWC), PRO 2024; PIWC Rigodon Chairman 2023; PIWC Bayle Co-chairman 2023; Mrs. PIWC 2022; PIWC Treasurer 2019-2021 and PIWC Kick-off committee member 2018.

As she begins her term this year, Lodi is reaching out to the community to support ILAMID in its fundraising events. If you are interested to join ILAMID, please reach out to Lodi Po at lodipo2016@gmail.com.