Who is Diana J. Limjoco

Diana was born to the beautiful American, Helen Limjoco, and the dashing Filipino, Ramon Limjoco, afluent family in the Philippines with a long history of public service.

She was raised in her father's home town of Batangas. At at the age of 13, Diana was kidnapped and tortured by a powerful family in the Philippines. When she was released, the terms were that she tell no one, or a blood war between her vast clan and her abductors would ensue. Her personality changed from precocious, and happy to morose and moody. Her parents stood by her, even they though they could not understand the reason.

For many years Diana carried her silent burden, then in 1965 she fell in love for the first time. A wealthy, self made man, he helped reconstruct the many broken pieces of her soul. He listened to her ideas, and he didn't laugh or treat her like a child. Instead he showered her with jewelry from Fabergé and Bvlgari. She was his queen, his empress. If she wanted Chinese food, he would fly her to Hong Kong for the afternoon. Some might call it a fairy tale romance, but it was just another dream waiting to be shattered. She tells that story here: Never a Tomorrow.

Exhausted and heartbroken, Diana traveled to San Francisco at the flower power peak to study fashion design. In 1969 she moved in with her parents in Los Angeles.

Refusing to succumb to playing the victim for the rest of her life, she dedicated herself to philanthropy. Throughout the '70's Diana was a housewife and magazine photographer. In between mingling with the Hollywood elite, she engaged in a variety of charitable causes.

A natural in the kitchen, she learned from books and her mother's advice. She took joy and found inner peace growing her own vegetables and herbs in her West Hollywood garden to use in dishes for her friends .

In 1976 she worked closely with Jacques Cousteau for the Cousteau Society's First Involvement Day, which was one of the first events revealing we were polluting our oceans.

In 1977, tired of the Hollywood scene and in need of sanctuary, she moved to the sleepy, alpine community of McCloud in northern California. There she met ranchers,farmers, lumberjacks and learned to appreciate a quiet life. She spent years roaming the forests, discovered waterfalls, and learned all about the native plants and their various edible and medicinal properties, becoming an expert at identifying edible mushrooms from the locals.

In 1983 she went to work at a community college, there she met Tony Pollard. She proposed, and they married in 1984. They lived in the Mount Shasta area, bought a ranch and began focusing on their lives on the study and enjoyment of nature.

In 1987 her mother contracted advanced breast cancer, along with advanced Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma. Unwilling to accept the diagnosis, she learned about alternative medicine and herbs, asking her mother if she was willing to try them. She and Tony sold their ranch and moved into a large home with her parents in Carmichael, California. She became her mother's caregiver, administering alternative herbs, vitamins, and medicines. Her mother opted for a partial mastectomy on one side of her breast but refused to take Chemotherapy or radiation, though Diana encouraged her to do both. In March 1990, it was made known to Diana and her mother that her cancer had gone into remission. It has remained that way since then, and today her mother is hopeful and happy at 84 years of age.

Needing something to fill in her time productively, after having moved back to Mount Shata, in 1996 Diana involved herself in fund raising for the 45th annual Mount Shasta 4th of July Fireworks display tradition. With a single partner, and another resident named John Kennedy, they facilitated funding. With her marketing skills and Johns company connections, for the first time in 45 years the fund had enough money to pay for two years of fireworks displays. For this, Diana was awarded by the Mt. Shasta Chamber of Commerce for community vitality enhancement. In these days, Diana would often fly to the Vedanta Society Monastery to help create their first digital archives to preserve the relics, photos, handwritten letters, and movies from the 1920's. Her proposal was accepted by the Vedanta Society board so that funds were provided to provide permanet housing for the archives, and to hire an expert to maintain and supervise the handling of the new digital technology.

With the help of her 1st cousin Joel Pastor's web server, she continued to refine her web development skills; uploading as many sites as tickled her fancy. In a year Diana created over 15 websites, most of which are still active, managed by her growing staff.

The love and healing provided by the communities of Northern California inspired her to work towards preserving the traditional way of life in the mountain towns surrounding Mount Shasta, a place revered by many as holy.

In 1998 she left the Fireworks fund, creating MCTV-Channel 15 Public Access Television to serve all the mountain communities. Until 2002 she worked as volunteer Chairman, President and Executive Director, building MCTV15 with a contract with Mount Shasta City council. Diana created the website for MCTV-15 as a public service. She and her community volunteer board, created a non-profit 501-C3 organization so the station could legally receive government and private funding. She created, produced,hosted and funded a weekly show called MCTV15 REAL-TV, which remained a local TV staple for many years.

Later that year Diana and Tony discovered Tucson, Arizona, where they bought a second house, intending to split their time between their Mount Shasta and Tucson homes. Finding they preferred the warmer Tucson climate they moved their household and pets there, and used the Mt. Shasta home as their summer vacation hideaway. Unfortunately however, it was in these days that Diana and Tony were divorced, although they remain the best of friends.

In August of 2003 Diana and her friend Dave Dewbre ("dew-brae"), became business partners. They formed Digital Web group,Inc. She is president and C.F.O. of their Web Division.

Digital Web Group, Inc. still operates very successful retail stores, eBay auctions, wholesale division, web development services, and now have expanded into the sales of environment friendly electric vehicles.

Dave and Diana now live in the Philippines with a surrogate daughter, Alysha Ariela Ricaplaza they are raising for a financially underpriviledged family. At 61 years of age, Diana still shows no signs of slowing down.

Alysha Ariela Ricaplaza, was born the 7th child, on the 11th, the 11 day at 11 AM in 2007 to Pinky and Randy Ricaplaza in Lipa city, Batangas, Philippines.

I am raising Alysha in Subic bay with Dave Dewbre, and my parents in their 80's, because her parents wanted one of their children to have a better life. Her parents are poor. They don't have much money with 6 other children to feed, even so it was a big sacrifice for them to give her up to be raised by us,their extended family. They gave her to us when she was two days old. We have had her ever since. We have been designated as her legal guardians by the local Philippine courts.

She is now going to be 1 year old. We are having her baptized as per her parents wishes, and we chose the auspicious day she was born- 11-11 at 11am in 2008!

They let Dave and me name her. Dave gave her the name of Alysha, but I wanted to give her a second name, and I thought the name of an angel might be auspicious. I chose the Angel Ariel, knowing nothing about him. I thought I'd better look up more as I didn't want the angel to turn out to be the right hand of Satan, knowing nothing about angels! Turns out Ariel is an Archangel, given power over the earth, and his special day is Nov. 11! I think this child has a special destiny.

www.alysha711.multiply.com/ This is Alysha's site, where you can watch her grow into a hybrid new Filipina. Half in the world of the common people and half in a privileged one. We will raise her to bridge the social gap between the two worlds. We will raise her to have as deep a respect for our earth and all living things as we do.

When I was tortured at a young age it destroyed my ability to have children. Now at 60 years old, I have everything I need in life and I want to be able to pass on my skills, financial aid and love of our people and country on to this wonderful child named Alysha Ariela Ricaplaza. I believe she has a special destiny. Keep an eye out for this little gal!

Diana Limjoco Pollard founded Mountain Community TV-15, now known as MCTV 15 and funded most of the operations for the first 3 years.

Diana is proud that is her mixed Filipino-American upringing gave her the social skills and grace to succeed in aiding small northern California town and leaving a lasting legacy to the people who became her friends, their children and their children's children. Many of those friends children are now grown and continue to interact with Diana on the internet in social networking sites like www.facebook.com.

In the fall of 2002 Diana moved to Tucson, Arizona. The board she chose has grown and MCTV 15 now manages the public access stations for the cities of Mt. Shasta and Weed, Califonnia with the help of many new extraordinary volunteers.

Diana, a Filipino-American highly acknowledged by friends, colleagues and captains of business and communities to be ahead of her time in thought and accomplishments, is a triumphant, childhood kidnap survivor, a women's advocate, and a civic leader in communities on two sides of the ocean. Her mother and role model, Helen Limjoco, is a breast cancer survivor, who at 83 (in 2008) years of age is still in remission after 22 years, for the most part with the help of Diana's extensive research in alternative medicines and herbal therapies. Both of her parents are nationally recognized civic leaders in the Philippines.

In 2002, just before she left Mt. Shasta City, Diana was honored by the Mayor at that time, Marge Apperson, with an award for her exemplary community involvement. MCTV15 now broadcasts in 4 towns and operates out of nearby College of the Siskiyous, which was exactly what Diana had envisioned. Diana also created the Mt. Shasta City Website as a public service, thus putting the MCTV-15 on the worldwide web.

Diana was also given an award form the Mt. Shasta Chamber of Commerce for enhancing community vitality.

GO TO MCTV15 official website to make a donation!

Affiliations:

• Tucson Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce (2004-2005)


• Volunteer Exec. Director of the Mt. Shasta Fireworks fund (retired) (1998)


• Founding Chairman of the Board of Directors/President MCTV-Channel 15 (1998-2002)


• National Association of Women in Business-Tucson Chapter (2003)


• Founder digital Archives Vedanta Society Hollywood (2000)

 

Free yourself from your utility company, click here to learn about how to run your home off of solar and wind power!