Josefina Pascual Yasto (born June 22, 1968), known professionally as Rita Ávila, is a Filipino actress and author.Ávila is married to director, Erick Reyes, she had a premature baby who they named Elia Jesú E.
Reyes.
The baby died three weeks after being born.
She also wrote an inspirational booklet called, 8 Ways to Comfort with Grace, centering on her sad moments when she and her husband lost their three-week-old son; Si Erik Tutpik at si Ana Taba, a book for children who experienced bullying; and The Invisible Wings, a fable that lets us see our world, our time as a likely place for angels.
She later received a letter from Monsignor Peter B.
Wells, an official of the Vatican Secretariat of State, expressing the Pope's gratitude for the books titled The Invisible Wings and 8 Ways to Comfort with Grace.
The Invisible Wings 2 has been released together with her first novel, Wanna Bet on Love.
She is a critically acclaimed Film Actress whose movies such as “Stella Magtanggol” (1992)and “Tatlo,Magkasalo” (1998) and The Flor Contemplacion Story (1995) have been looked over as historically recognizable in Philippine Cinema.
In the late 90s she ventured more into Television dramas and anthology’s as a supporting character or main protagonist or antagonist.