Being the best is bittersweet for Richard Azucenas Rabara.

Honored as he is to snag top honors in the nursing and local influencer categories, Rabara wishes his parents were alive to see it.

“I said, ‘If I win, this would be an honor for my dad and mom, who recently passed away,’” Rabara said, wiping away tears. “I am just so grateful.”

Rabara’s mother died in August 2023 and his father in late 2010, but their influence remains strong. After all, much of what Rabara does is in service to them.

A nurse in the step-down neurology unit at St. Joseph’s Hospital, Rabara also pursued a cardiac specialty because of his father, who suffered a heart attack and stroke in the Philippines and then died of heat stroke shortly after his son arrived in the US in 2010.

“I could not save my father, so at least I could save other people’s lives,” Rabara said. “Since I moved from the Philippines all the way to the US, I always remind myself that the reason and the purpose why I’m doing it is for my dad. My mom also passed away recently, which helped me better understand that my purpose is to give back.”

And that he has done in spades.

He has sent three of his siblings to college; moved from Columbia, Mo., to Savannah to help his sister with a difficult pregnancy; and serves as a nursing preceptor for countless nursing students in Savannah and beyond.

He always dreamed of being a nurse. Becoming an influencer was a more organic effort. But Rabara has blended the two pursuits into one massive undertaking. He’s launched multiple social media accounts, from YouTube and Instagram to TikTok, but it’s his professional influence that he believes earned him the win.

“I think what set me apart for being the local influencer was cultivating nurses, because I’m also an educator and preceptor for Emory University students in Atlanta and new [registered nursing] students at Georgia Southern University,” Rabara said. “I have a lot of nursing students that are working now in different hospitals all over the US. I have become an influence to them to be able to be that nurse, to have a real calling. It’s not just for the money. It’s not just for being famous or getting your RN degree. It’s more about living your purpose and being able to save lives.”

One life Rabara saved was his own. Growing up in the Philippines, he saw the life his parents lived: a father who only finished third grade and a mother who was an educator, both working “hard and smart” so Rabara could go to college. After earning his nursing degree from Our Lady of Fatima University in the Philippines, Rabara moved to San Jose, Calif., and then Los Angeles with his sister, passed the nursing boards and started working as a nurse. It was a dream come true.

After about four years, he left L.A, to pursue a different dream, a cardiology specialty in Columbia, Mo. Through it all, Rabara felt the calling of his family, both literally and figuratively. When his sister was struggling with a challenging pregnancy, Rabara moved to Savannah to be closer to her, clinching his role as a “great uncle” to two “miracle nieces.”

That’s the story his social accounts convey.

“With my social media, you will see the story of someone from a different country who doubts himself so much, but with perseverance, sacrifice and hard work will be able to do great things,” he said. “When I was younger, I wanted to be able to be that person or an uncle or a brother or a son who gives back. That is the reason it feels so grateful to be able to be recognized as the best nurse and best local influencer. I asked myself why me? But I know my mom and my dad would say, ‘Because you’re my son.’”

And so, so much more.

Limited amount of event tickets available for the Best of Savannah Awards
https://events.connectsavannah.com/event/best-of-savannah-2024/

This article appears in Connect Savannah I April 2024.