Meet Jen Dimatatac FILIPINO NURSE BRINGS “JUST LIKE FAMILY” FEELING TO HOME CARE IN BURNABY WE ARE CANADA … Burnaby: City of Immigrants By Gary Wilson Almost all of us are immigrants or descendants of immigrants. Other than our indigenous neighbours, we came from some other place in the world. But now here we all are, some of us recently arrived and others, several generations ago. And as we live in this community, it’s essential that we have a sense of being neighbours and even friends with one another. To get there, it’s important to hear each other’s stories. That’s the intent of “We are Canada.” In this issue, we meet one of our neighbours … in hopes of becoming friends.
One of the qualities of many immigrants to Canada that is frequently misunderstood by many Canadians is the closeness of the immigrant family unit. Many immigrants come from cultures where a multi-generational family lives together or in close proximity, finding support from grandparents and experiencing a physical closeness among several generations. While this seems unusual to many of us who are just second or third generation Canadians, it’s something that clearly has multiple benefits and is a welcome contrast to the generational isolation that many families experience. While families in Canada often find themselves separated by hundreds or thousands of miles, so many immigrant families have the benefit of children spending time with and learning from grandparents. Working parents also gain the advantage of having their parents right there to care for their children and provide needed support. Of course, there are many immigrants who move to Canada and leave their extended families behind, along with that close physical and supportive bond. Such was the case for Jienelyn “Jen” Dimatatac, who came to
Canada in 2009. With her husband already moved here ahead of her in 2008, and his family already established here even earlier, there certainly was family and support for Jen in her new home. But her own family that she had been so close with growing up, were all back in the Philippines. Jen was born and raised in Bauan, in the province of Batangas, about 100 km south of the capital city of Manila. Hers was a fairly typical family that was not wealthy, but hard-working and close knit. It was very common for extended family and even neighbours to be together around the home whenever school or work did not demand otherwise. While not rich, the family enjoyed a wealth of mutual support, caring and close bonds. After graduating from high school, Jen was able to enroll at Far Eastern University in Manila. With the support and encouragement of her aunts who were living in the U.S., Jen was able to study nursing, and graduated with a B.S. in Nursing degree in 2006. She then worked in various nursing positions, including as an operating room nurse and a clinical instructor. The latter experience motivated her to pursue a Master’s Degree in Nursing, which she received from Golden Gate College in 2009. That year proved to be fairly life-changing for Jen as she was married in January, and then later, in August, she moved to Canada. It proved to be somewhat difficult, as the move left her quite homesick. While enjoying the safer, more secure Canadian culture, Jen missed the sense of community and family that she had known back in the Philippines. The isolation became particularly
Gary Wilson is the Co-owner and Publisher of What’s On! Burnaby. We welcome your comments via email (info@WhatsOnBurnaby. ca). If you have a suggestion of an outstanding immigrant to Burnaby that we could profile, please contact us.
