Staff

Robert Friedlander, Executive Director

A Filipino American with 40 years Management and Marketing experience in the Philippines. He rose from a Product Manager’s Position to Marketing Manager before he became President of a Trading Company for ten years. The Company imported light industrial products from the USA, Europe and Asia to the Philippines.

4 years experience as President and 4 years as an adviser to a 5,000 strong Homeowners Association in the Philippines dealing with social and community affairs.

Graduated with a BSBA Management Degree and an MBA Degree both in the Jesuit ran University of the Ateneo de Manila.

Fluent in English, Spanish and Tagalog, speaks and understands the Ilocano dialect.

As Executive Director of PAEP since November 1999, he successfully led the Agency to an excellent performance resulting in renewal of the Senior Congregate Program, the Nutrition Transportation Program and recently awarded new grants from the state of Washington to empower all refugees. United Way's grant is to help seniors lead healthy, active and independent lives. Enhancement fitness program from the city of Seattle was initiated in late 2009.

A former refugee from Laos, he shares the same experiences that the communities he serves have gone through. He migrated to the USA in 1984 and is now an American Citizen.

He has 20 years work experience with PAEP. Started as an interpreter, then a counselor and now the project Coordinator for the Lao and the Hmongs for both the Nutrition and Natural Helpers Program.

Prior to his joining PAEP he was an Instructional Assistant at Seattle Public School.

He also had a second job for 11 years (4 hours job a day) in the afternoons as Nurse Assistant in the Dong Nai Clinic. He took care of making clients comfortable, get their blood pressure, weight, ask them about their complaints and refer them to the Doctor. As an Assistant Nurse he would draw blood when necessary, help the Doctor treat the patient and other nursing chores.

He has an Education Degree in Laos. In the USA he has earned a certificate as an Assistant Nurse and a diploma in Accounting.

A former refugee from Laos, he came in as a thirteen year old kid faced all kinds of adversities and yet he finished high school.

A product of the school of hard knocks, he speaks fluent English, Laotian and Hmong.

Started working as a volunteer with PAEP and then became a driver for two years. Due to his diligence and ability to learn fast, he took over as Outreach Coordinator of the Cultural Connections Program, and Family Enrichment Program, a three-year program for older refugee that ended in 2006. It was adjudged as model Older Refugee Program in King County by City Officials. The program had enrolled over 70 refugees to the Nutrition Program, developed an exercise and wellness program and conducted annually 12 workshops on health and nutrition subjects in partnership with the University of Washington, Senior Nursing students, and the Cross Cultural Health Care Program, and also held quarterly picnics and outings.

For six years, he has been helping PAEP in the Lao/Hmong Nutrition Program and with the elder refugee program.