Thursday, September 8, 2011

AT BATTISPUTALI, OR THIRTY-TWO BUTTERFLIES

My first assignment in Kathmandu was to assess the information structure of the Industrial Services Centre at Balaju, for a UNDP-funded project of UNIDO. One of my recommendations was to send my counterpart, Prabha Thacker, to a library school for an MSLS - she did go, to Pratt Institute. Another recommendation was to send a Librarian to set up the ISC Library together with Prabha. The one chosen was Josie Dimatulac, Librarian of the Board of Investment of the Philippines. She boarded with Prabha at her home in Battisputali, between Pashupatinath and Dwarika Hotel.


Photo shows Josie and I, and two Filipinos I guess from Philrock, playing card games on a Saturday afternoon. (We worked on Sundays in the Hindu Kingdom).


As Ching would say, "Hoy, mga donya Kathmanduettes!!" - do send in your stories, brief or long, with or without photos to SHARE! Thanks. E.

Monday, August 29, 2011

Ching's nomination for CNN HEROES: Dr. Fil Olegario


Ching is truly a unique person. Her selflessness, humor, and determination has led to the nomination for CNN HEROES of a Filipino eye doctor who has retired from his lucrative practice in South Dakota, to work with our poverty-stricken and elderly folk in Pangasinan. These are some photos and a write-up as instigated by Ching. Our hats off to you, Madame Van der Veen!

Dr. Olegario

Eye Doctor Extraordinaire: Dr. Filemon Olegario


Nana Nita (“Nana” is a title of respect used for addressing older women) was orphaned at an early age. As far as anyone could tell in the small rural village in Mangatarem, Pangasinan (some 110 miles north of Manila), she had no living relatives – a highly unusual situation in a country whose culture is famous for having “extended families”. She makes her living by cultivating a small vegetable and herb patch whose produce she sells at the local weekly market.

She was getting older and her sight was slowly leaving her until she could no longer see what was in front of her. Eventually, she spends her time begging as she could no longer tend her patch or make her way along the rural road from her shack to the market which is a kilometer away. Her cataract was getting the better of her and her health was failing because she eats only during the few times her kind neighbors give her food. She insists she could still tend her garden only if she could get her vision back.

One summertime, a Filipino medical couple has arrived in town from the USA. Nana Nita learned that the couple were Dr. Filemon Olegario (nicknamed “Fil”), an eye doctor from South Dakota and Josie, his wife. She further learned that the Olegario(s) were going to conduct a mission in her village. On the date of the mission, Nana Nita asked her neighbors that she be helped to be brought to Fil at the mission site. When Dr. Olegario saw Nana Nita’s condition, he lost no time in subjecting her to eye examination. Having found her to have cataract in her eyes, he scheduled her immediately for operation at the Mangatarem District Hospital.

According to SEE International of which Fil is a member, cataract surgery “is one of the most cost-effective of all health interventions. Cataract blindness is readily curable. A volunteer SEE International surgeon can restore the sight of a person who has been blind with cataracts for 5, 10, or even 20 years with a local anesthetic and a 30-minute surgery. (http://www.seeintl.org/aboutus/default.asp).

The Mangatarem High School Class of 1959 Eye Medical Mission of which Fil is a member coordinates and seeks out the most needy villages (barangays) to be visited. Invitations are also received from the nuns at a nearby monastery, rural health workers, and barangay officials. For a “fee” consisting of simple lunch, the mission team goes into full swing and sets up make-shift eye examination rooms seeing about 180 patients a day. Those screened for surgery are scheduled for operation by a surgical partner, also a medical volunteer, Dr. Monina Posadas, at the town’s hospital. Dr. Posadas, who with her staff stay at Fil’s house in Mangatarem during the missions, takes over in making post-op follow ups upon Fil and Josie’s return to the USA.

The yearly missions which usually involve visiting seven villages (barangays) are not only confined to saving sights; while conducting them or after the team is done with them, Fil and Jose take time out to distribute clothes and canned goods donated by charitable groups in the USA and Canada. The beneficiaries are screened by them to be only those who are truly deserving to receive.

Fil and his team has been conducting free clinics to poor and needy people in the Philippines since the second half of 1980 decade. It all started when, as a resident in EENT at a hospital in Manila, he joined multi-specialty medical teams to different parts of the country. His exposure to the crying medical needs of the disadvantaged and impoverished villagers without access to vision care has moved him to organize the missions as a way of paying back the people and relatives from his town who nurtured him as a growing up kid. His effort deserves special recognition as so many have benefited from his services which he donates voluntarily.

Whatever Fil derives from his mission work, he doesn’t seem to get enough of it as he keeps coming back each year. Nobody knows how soon he tires of doing it but one thing is sure --- the opportunity is always there for him to get his satisfaction as there are always many Nana Nitas waiting for his return.

Wednesday, June 22, 2011

Mila!


One fine Nepali morning, it was around 1984, as I sat at my desk to start planning the day at the office, Trade Promotion Center (TPC) near the Yak and Yeti Hotel, one of the trade officers, Megha Shakya, introduced his bride of a few days: she was Armila Cristobal, known as Mila. She was working in Manila at the Board of Investment Institute's Export Development. They had met at an ITC-sponsored meeting in Hong Kong and this blossomed into romance and marriage.

We were to leave in a few days’ time for home leave in Seattle. Mila mentioned her mother and brothers live in Seattle. We were staying with my sister at Carnation Farm in Carnation, Washington, so her mom and brothers made the long drive of around an hour from Seattle, to visit us and exchange news about Nepal, and about Mila.

After Pema was born in 1985, Mila had a job close to our residence at Dilli Bazar. As I was on maternity leave I spent a lot of time at home: she often came to visit, a short walk from and to her office. As I recall the last time I saw Mila and Megha was at Pema’s christening in March 1986.

Fast forward to 2011: In Bangkok, I was surfing the net sometime last week: I typed in the Google search box for “Armila Shakya”. One website looked interesting, and found a newsletter containing her photo and some details.

http://www.tras.ca/newsletters/2010spring.pdf

So here we are, it was great to be in touch after all these years! The Shakyas immigrated to Vancouver, Canada in 2009, with their 14-year old son, Milind.

Wednesday, January 26, 2011

Ching and Estrella in Florida

The Chauls' trusty RV reached Florida this month. (Photo from Estrella's FB page)

Ching, Cecilia, Jama in Swiss Land

(From Cecilia's FB photos)