East In West End

Romeo Albornoz, Esther Bernal, and Aileen Lagman are among the Filipino registered nurses whose families took Faulkner up on his offer. In all, about 10 families of the foreign workers at Princeton live in the houses Dominick restored.

The three said they came to America looking for a chance to hone their patient-care skills as well as find better pay, better technology and better conditions, a place where they have greater security and greater freedoms.

Bernal adds, "The people here are all friendly and supportive. That's what we like about you Americans. It's not to flatter you. But I think it's your nature."

But more importantly, they have a chance to openly practice their Christianity in a hospital with a faith-based mission. Doing so was dangerous in Saudi Arabia where they'd worked for a time.

"It is very strict. You cannot profess your Christian faith, or they might cut your head off," Albornoz says. While he had relative ease of freedom going about in Saudi Arabia , his female colleagues did not.

"The males are very dominant, the women are very restricted," Lagman says. Like Muslim women, she had to cover herself completely, showing no skin, when she went outside. She could not eat in front of Muslims during Ramadan, their month of fasting.

The cultural differences meant that male doctors couldn't touch females in any way, unless a male guardian or family members were present. "That's a big thing for them. You could be called by the religious court," she says. "The restrictions made patient care very difficult."

But at Princeton , "in spiritual care and aspects of patient care, we can give our best here because we can give 100 percent total care to the patient, without suppression," she says.

She and the other nurses say they enjoy their freedoms here, and they like living in homes that are so close to their new jobs.

The Filipino nurses who came to Princeton didn't have to live in West End ; others of their colleagues moved to more affluent areas like Homewood and Crestwood.

But Albornoz said he and the nurses like Bernal and Lagman decided to stay "because of the vision that's being instilled in us by Mr. Faulkner and the hospital, that they were going to make this community a great community, together with Keith. Those initiatives are enough for us to live here in the community."

Next Page: Vision for New West End