Biography:

Rica came to Philadelphia with a one-way ticket in 1966 at the age of 17. She came with the intention to work, go to school, save money, and return to Peru. She said it was emotionally difficult to leave beacuse it was just she and her mother. Her aunt, who was already in Philadelphia, found her a job as a nanny. She worked to support herself, her mother, and to put herself through college. She has lived in Olney, Logan, Cheltenham, and Northeast Philadelphia. Now she works as the office manager for the University of Pennsylvania Center for the Treatment and Study of Anxiety and promotes Peruvian culture in Philly.