Loida Nicolas Lewis | |
|---|---|
 Lewis in 2010 | |
| Born | Loida Mañalac Nicolas 1942 (age 80–81) |
| Nationality | Filipino American |
| Occupation(s) | Businesswoman, civic leader, motivational speaker, author, and lawyer |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 2, including Christina Lewis |
Loida Nicolas Lewis (born 1942) is a Filipino-born American businesswoman who is the widow of TLC Beatrice founder and CEO Reginald Lewis. She currently resides in New York City.
Lewis was born and raised in Sorsogon, Sorsogon, the daughter of Francisco Nicolas and Magdalena Mañalac. Her sister, Imelda, was the former Lead Convenor of the National Anti-Poverty Commission during the administration of Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo and Chairperson of the Commission on Filipinos Overseas during the administration of Benigno Aquino III.
She earned her B.A. in Humanities from St. Theresa's College Manila, and her Bachelor of Laws (LL. B.) from the University of the Philippines - Diliman. She placed 7th in her UP class 1967, passed the Bar Exams, and was admitted to practice in the Philippines in 1968.
In 1974, she became the first Asian woman to pass the New York State Bar, making her eligible to practice law in both the Philippines and in the United States.
Lewis began to work for the Law Students Civil Research Council in New York, and then as an attorney for the Immigration and Naturalization Service from 1979 until 1987. Lewis has had a major impact as an immigration lawyer, particularly when it comes to the rights of Filipino immigrants living in America. She co-wrote the book "How to Get a Green Card" with Ilona Bray JD, which is now on its 12th Edition and published by NOLO. [1]
Nicolas-Lewis met her husband-to-be Reginald F. Lewis on a blind date in New York City in 1968 and were then married a year later. It was in December 1987 when her husband Reginald acquired Beatrice International in a $985 million leveraged buyout, creating the largest African American-owned company in the United States. Reginald died from brain cancer in 1993. Lewis served as an informal adviser and confidant to her late husband. After a year of mourning, Loida N. Lewis served as CEO and Chair of TLC Beatrice International, the multinational food company that her husband entrusted to her. In an article written by Coco Marett entitled "How Loida Got Her Groove Back," the author states: "But despite her position and her wealth following her takeover of TLC Beatrice, Lewis remained far from flamboyant. In fact, the humble businesswoman's first move was to sell the company jet and limousines, and move her office from its top floor luxury suite in Manhattan to a more humble and inconspicuous space." This allowed her to maximize the profits of her late husband's company, which she sold in 1999. [2] [ citation needed ]
Lewis is Chair and CEO of TLC Beatrice, LLC, a family investment firm. [3]
In March 2023, Lewis published her memoir, "Why Should Guys Have All The Fun?" — a take off from her husband's best-selling autobiography, "Why Should White Guys Have All The Fun?" posthumously published in 1995.
Loida and Reginald were wed in Manila in 1969, and have two daughters, Leslie Malaika Lewis and Christina Lewis.
Lewis has spoken to audiences around the United States and the world to promote the biography of her late husband, "Why Should White Guys Have All the Fun? How Reginald Lewis Created a Billion Dollar Business Empire."
After her husband's death, Lewis also became active in political causes, co-founding the National Federation of Filipino-American Associations (NaFFAA) in 1997, alongside publisher Alex Esclamado, lawyer Rodel Rodis, and recognized civic leader Gloria Caoile, with the goal to empower Filipino-Americans. Their founding conference in Washington D.C. was a historical first, with over 1,000 community leaders, high school and college students, young professionals, civil rights activists, and Filipino World War II Veterans in attendance. As Lewis spoke in front of the White House, she emphasized the importance of justice for veterans, encouraged the youth to fight for their 'lolos' and 'lolas' and to keep their legacy of heroism alive.
In 2000, Lewis succeeded Esclamado as the National Chair of NaFFAA, where she played a crucial role in bringing Hillary Clinton, who was First Lady at that time, to the Federation's third conference in New York. Lewis also advocated for dual citizenship and overseas voting during Philippine national elections, stating that Filipino-Americans have "an important role to play in making sure that elected officials are accountable to the Filipino people."
Shortly before his death in 1993, Reginald F. Lewis gave Harvard Law School the largest grant by an individual, up to that time, in the school’s history. The Law School’s International Law Center was renamed in his honor. Among other programs, the Foundation grant supports fellowships that teach minority lawyers to be law professors. [4]
The RFL International Law Center is home to the International Legal Studies Library and contains one third of the Law Library’s international law collection. It also houses the Graduate Program where approximately 150 lawyers and scholars from around the world come to pursue LL.M or S.J.D. degrees, or to conduct research and write. The Reginald F. Lewis International Law Center is the first major facility at Harvard named in honor of an African American.
Loida Lewis currently Chairs the Reginald F. Lewis (RFL) Foundation, which also supports the Reginald F. Lewis College of Business at Virginia State University.
Abigail Pierrepont Johnson is an American billionaire businesswoman, and the granddaughter of late Edward C. Johnson II, the founder of Fidelity Investments. Since 2014, Johnson has been president and chief executive officer (CEO) of American investment firm Fidelity Investments (FMR), and chair of its former sister company Fidelity International (FIL). Fidelity was founded by her grandfather Edward C. Johnson II. Her father, Edward C. "Ned" Johnson III, remained chair emeritus of FMR until his death in March 2022. As of March 2013, the Johnson family owned a 49% stake in the privately-held company, with Johnson herself holding an estimated 24.5%. She is a board member of Breakthrough Energy Ventures.
Sorsogon City, officially the City of Sorsogon, is a 3rd class component city and capital of the province of Sorsogon, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 182,237 people.
Ida Rosenthal was a Belarusian-born American dressmaker and businesswoman who co-founded Maidenform. Ida is considered to be the creator of the modern bra and her company Maidenform went on to become the most successful bra manufacturer in the world.
Reginald F. Lewis, was an American businessman. He was one of the richest Black American men in the 1980s, and the first African-American to build a billion-dollar company: TLC Beatrice International Holdings Inc.
Sadie Tanner Mossell Alexander was a pioneering Black professional and civil rights activist of the early-to-mid-20th century. In 1921, Mossell Alexander was the second African-American woman to receive a Ph.D. and the first one to receive one in economics in the United States. In 1927, she was first Black woman to receive a law degree from the University of Pennsylvania Law School and went on to become the first Black woman to practice law in the state. She was also the first national president of Delta Sigma Theta sorority, serving from 1919 to 1923.
Zia Mody is an Indian corporate lawyer and businesswoman. Zia is the daughter of Soli Sorabjee, a former Attorney General of India.
Francis Joseph "Chiz" Guevara Escudero is a Filipino lawyer and politician serving as a Senator since 2022, and previously from 2007 to 2019. He recently served as governor of Sorsogon from 2019 to 2022, and was the representative for Sorsogon's 1st district from 1998 to 2007, as well as House Minority Leader from 2004 to 2007. He unsuccessfully ran for vice president of the Philippines in the 2016 elections as the running mate of Grace Poe.
Silda Alice Wall Spitzer is an American businesswoman and lawyer who was the First Lady of New York from January 2007 until March 2008, when her then husband, Eliot Spitzer, was governor. She has worked in the private, nonprofit, and public sectors in the areas of green/sustainability issues, youth service/education, and human rights and women's financial and other empowerment.
Jean Schloss Fugett, Jr. is an American former professional football player who was a tight end in the National Football League (NFL) for the Dallas Cowboys and Washington Redskins. He played college football at Amherst College. After his NFL career, he became a lawyer and businessman.
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Barbara McConnell Barrett is an American businesswoman, attorney and diplomat who served as the United States secretary of the Air Force from 2019 to 2021. She is also an instrument-rated pilot, and cattle and bison rancher.
The Reginald F. Lewis Museum of Maryland African American History & Culture is a resource for information about the lives and history of African American Marylanders. The Lewis Museum's mission is to collect, preserve, interpret, document, and exhibit the contributions of African American Marylanders using its collection of over 11,000 documents and objects and resources drawn from across the country.
Corazon Victoria "Dinky" Nerves Juliano-Soliman was a Filipina politician, activist and social worker who served as Secretary of Social Welfare and Development twice, under President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo from 2001 to 2005, and President Benigno Aquino III from 2010 to 2016.
Alex Esclamado was a Filipino-born American newspaper publisher, lawyer and journalist. In 1961, Esclamado founded the Philippine News out of his home in the Sunset District of San Francisco, California. Esclamado became a vocal opponent of former Philippines President Ferdinand Marcos after his government declared martial law in 1972.
Loida Garcia-Febo is a Puerto Rican American librarian and library consultant. Garcia-Febo served on the Governing Board of the International Federation of Library Associations (IFLA) 2013-2015 and 2015-2017 and she was a member of the executive board of the American Library Association 2015-2020 serving as a board member and president. She was president of the National Association to Promote Library and Information Services to Latinos and the Spanish Speaking (REFORMA) from 2009 to 2010.
Ayesha Mary Barbara Vardag is an English solicitor and divorce lawyer.
Beatrice Trussardi is an Italian businesswoman and Founder and President of the Beatrice Trussardi Foundation. Since 1999 she has been President of the Fondazione Nicola Trussardi. Since 2009 she has been on the executive committee of Aspen Institute Italy and President of the Friends of Aspen.
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Christina Lewis Halpern is an American social entrepreneur and journalist. She has founded two organizations: All Star Code, a non-profit education organization that attracts, prepares, and places young men of color in the branch of technology, and Give Blck, a comprehensive database of Black-founded non-profit organizations.
Gertrude Geraldine Michelson, also known as G.G. Michelson, was an American businesswoman. She was the first woman to head the board of trustees of an Ivy League university (Columbia), and the first woman to sit on the board of directors of Macy's and General Electric. She served as an executive of multiple Fortune 500 companies.
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