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 The
success of Nellie Vandt, president of
Adanac
Food Importer Ltd. and
Adanac
Phil/Cargo Express seems fresh from a story book. From a
sweet village lass in Cavite to a highly accomplished businesswoman
in one of the world's most beautiful cities, her rags-to-riches story
gives inspiration to many young women who aspire for a bright future
abroad and are determined to work hard to reach their goal.
From
being a caregiver in Singapore to serving and then marrying a millionaire
doctor in Canada and becoming the owner of grocery stores, food imports
and distribution, cargo business, restaurants, a beauty salon, and
impresario of shows and concerts is almost like a dream. But Nellie looks
at it as a gift from God that she must use as an instrument to help other
people.
She
was raised in Tanza,
Cavite
by her mother who tended a small clothing store in Baclaran. She finished
her secondary education at
Tanza
National
Comprehensive
High School
, and then studied at the
Trinity
College
in
Quezon City
where she graduated with a degree of Bachelor of Arts in Economics.
As a student, Nellie was active in Campus Crusade for Christ and
volunteered as a Sunday school teacher. She also attended bible studies to
learn more about her faith.
After
a year of teaching, Nellie planned to immigrate
to
Canada
and in 1986 she decided to work as caregiver in
Singapore
; a stepping-stone to pursue her dream of coming to this country. Four
years later, she was sponsored by a family in
Vancouver
to work as a caregiver. It did not take long before an optometrist and
confirmed bachelor, Dr.
David
Vandt hired her to look after his ailing mother. She did a good job as a
caregiver that when Mrs. Vandt passed away, Dr. Vandt asked Nellie to stay
and be his companion. Later, he proposed marriage but Nellie was concerned
about their age difference; she was 28 and he was 70. At that age,
Dr.Vandt was still actively practicing his profession although he owned
real estate properties worth millions. He was keeping his health in shape
by playing tennis.
They
soon got married and had two children: Solomon (12) and Fanifreda (10). In
September 1994, Nellie bought an existing Filipino store at
Fraser Street
and named it Aling Pining Foods, after her mother. Aling Pining joined her
daughter in
Canada
and managed the store. The grocery store branched out to include a video
rental shop, a restaurant and a beauty salon in adjoining store locations.
Then Nellie opened another Aling Pining grocery and restaurant at
88th Avenue
in
Surrey
.
When
Aling Pining passed away, Nellie decided to sell her business to former
Filipino caregiver friends from
Singapore
, agreeing to be paid in installments to help them start their own
business in
Canada
. Loyal to her friends, she helped many of them come to
Canada
in many ways, including hiring them as caregivers for her children. She
also helped many relatives in the
Philippines
financially to complete their education. Her old elementary school in
Tanza is a beneficiary of Nellie's generousity. She has provided funds for
equipment and for needed repairs to the school building and facilities.
Nellie
has expanded her
Adanac
wholesale food distribution business and now markets her products to as
far as
Victoria
,
Prince George
,
Calgary
,
Edmonton
,
Winnipeg
,
Northwest Territories
,
Yellowknife
and White Horse. She imports food products from the
Philippines
,
Taiwan
and
Thailand
and is making arrangements to buy goods directly from
China
. Her door-to-door freight cargo business which opened last year is doing
very well.
Nellie
has sponsored and produced local shows and concerts featuring popular
entertainment personalities like Sharon Cuneta, Pilita Corrales, Donna
Cruz, Judy
Ann
Santos, April Boy, Christina Paras (star of Miss Saigon) and local talents
such as
Ann
Fernando and Arnold Tongol. In 2003, she bought Saigon Fusion Restaurant
at 950 West Broadway with five other partners. It is fast becoming
Vancouver
’s “Superfun, Superfresh” cool and trendy family-oriented restaurant
offering great food, dancing and live entertainment. The restaurant will
soon be simply known as “SF.”
Dr.
Vandt passed away on March 30, 2005 but Nellie is confident that with
God’s help, she could face all the challenges of managing her various
enterprises and at the same time continue to serve the local Filipino
Community. - LBC
170-13751
Mayfield Place
Richmond, BC V6V 2G9
Adanac Food Importers Tel.: (604) 279-1582
Adanac/ Phil Cargo Express Tel.: (604) 279-0989
Fax: (604) 279-1584 Toll free: 1-877-912-9018
Email: info@adanacimports.com
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