The daughter of a nurse and a Navy petty officer, I grew up in Pensacola, Florida. Both of my parents were born and raised in the Philippines. My siblings and I were born and raised in the United States.  I started acting as a background actor in commercials in New Orleans. Since then I have been in independent short films and appeared on TV in shows such as "Homicide Hunter" and "Murder By Numbers" as well as a Lifetime movie called "Dream House Nightmare." I had a principal role in the upcoming feature film "The Map of Tiny Perfect Things" starring Kathryn Newton and I had a recurring co-star role in Tyler Perry's "The Oval."   I am also a voiceover artist who has narrated over 15 audio books, both fiction and nonfiction. I made my stage debut in Pensacola Little Theatre's production of the musical "The Wedding Singer," appearing as the Imelda Marcos impersonator and as part of the ensemble cast. I am also a musician and music composer and released a collection of instrumental music on iTunes called "I Need You" under the name V Padla Gootee.  I graduated from George Washington University, served in the Navy for almost ten years, and then decided to leave the Navy to raise my children. I did my voiceover training through the NOLA Voice Talent Foundation in New Orleans and my acting coaches are veteran film and TV actors Gary Grubbs and James DuMont.  I'm excited to be in this stage of my life - having the opportunity to be a working, performing artist and helping writers bring their characters to life.