The Filipino community is thriving in Central Alberta. Filipinos are now, more than ever, present in community-building locally, as well as maintaining deep connections from the motherland.
The Filipino community is thriving in Central Alberta. Filipinos are now, more than ever, present in community-building locally, as well as maintaining deep connections from the motherland.
Proof of this is Grace Gresos, chair of the Phil-Can Neighbourhood Association of Innisfail, who was the recipient of the Community Cultural Award from the Town of Innisfail on Oct. 12. Heartfelt congratulations to you Grace, on this award. Well deserved! And to the Filipino community in Innisfail, may you all continue to inspire everyone in your efforts.
The Philippines is a beautiful country. Filipinos are the most welcoming, fun-loving, industrious, generous and resilient people you can meet and have in your life. The country is not only blessed with great people but also blessed in natural resources with a strategic location nestled in the Pacific.
I had a recent trip to the Philippines. What I had hoped to be a joyous reunion with friends and family turned into one of the most painful experiences I have ever encountered. It was a gruesome realization of social injustice and inequity, and how it tramples upon your dignity and humanity.
The health-care system, and its inaccessibility, is one of the biggest challenges its citizens face. Access to health care requires money. If you do not have money, you just have to suffer or simply choose to die. It is painful to know that dying is even in the roster of options. Many of us here in Canada, who may not have any experience in the private health-care system, may find it hard to fathom.
My father was rushed to a private hospital in the Philippines and has since been in the intensive care unit since Sept. 14. He had swelling in the brain due to impact, and has been in and out of consciousness. His other organs, such as the heart, kidneys and lungs are also malfunctioning.
As I spent two weeks in the Philippines scrambling for support in the same manner as I held my father's hand through this ordeal, I literally felt helpless and hopeless.
As I walked through the hallway, and through the billing department of the hospital, I saw despair and agony in the faces of people, because aside from the fact that you or a loved one are not in the best of health, citizens also worry about how they will be able to pay the bill.
Needless to say, my father's medical bills and medical expenses have been stratospheric and are way beyond my means to support. It has reached almost $80,000. I am pleading for your support.
We have created a crowd-funding site for anyone who may wish to help. The site can be accessed at: https://www.youcaring.com/manny-bugayong-kristine-bugayong-s-father-664061.
Kristine Bugayong works in the non-profit sector in Central Alberta.
