With this year’s theme, “Advancing Leaders Through Opportunity,” Amylisa Myers, Registered Nurse assigned to Navy Medicine Readiness Training Command Bremerton, with a legacy in Navy Medicine which includes deploying as part of the Fleet Hospital 8 to Rota, Spain in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom, 2003, four years at Naval Hospital Bremerton and her final rank as lieutenant, notes that this year’s theme “creates avenues for all of us to find our inner leader and let them shine, in big or small ways. As a nurse, I see in today’s hospitals that there are inclusive, shared-governance leadership models giving opportunities for nurses and other non-providers to transform care at the bedside, rather than by just from top-down directives. These models embrace the diversity of voices and experience that enrich the care experience for both patients and clinicians.”

“We must remember that these avenues of opportunity weren’t always afforded to everybody, particularly to minorities. When my father was in the U.S. Coast Guard, Filipinos weren’t permitted to rate as anything other than a cook or steward “boy” until 1971. He spent more than half of his career in domestic roles. As soon as the opportunity opened to rate, he seized it and eventually retired as a chief warrant officer 3 in finance and supply, then as a lieutenant junior grade after joining the Coast Guard Auxiliary. Seeing a community need as an opportunity to highlight Filipino heritage, he chartered the Filipino Community of Sitka in 1981, serving as its president before passing the torch to the next leaders to let them shine. I’m proud of the opportunities he sought to advance as an individual and as a leader, serving as a shining example to me and my community.”

“The COVID-19 Pandemic hit Asian Americans particularly hard. Anti-Asian discrimination became violent. Despite this, there were opportunities for everyday people to shine through the darkness. Ever-changing circumstances often create new opportunities for leaders to emerge. Asian American healthcare workers and researchers persevered, made breakthroughs, and redefined the frontline hospital worker. Asian Activism and reporting of hate increased, which is notable from a community not usually associated with speaking up/out. Their experiences led to greater empathy with others who have experienced similar forms of racism. Through hope, commitment, and pride, they persevered…like my father before me, and all who continue to shine when opportunity knocks.