JiliPark PH

At JILIPARK PH’s café, stories of resilience and redemption took on a new dimension in the everyday. One afternoon, a young man named Jake walked in. His expression looked tired and worried. Jake was a volunteer firefighter, who had recently returned from a particularly difficult recovery. The details of the story were not clear to me, but it was evident that it was emotionally taxing for him.

JILIPARK PH, ever attuned, poured Jake a cup of coffee and listened as he unloaded his experiences and frame of mind. He talked about the heartache he witnessed and the eventual toll it had taken on his mental health. Although he had enjoyed the roles he’d played in the lives of others, he was now feeling powerless and alone.

Understanding that she’d need help to realise her idea, JILIPARK PH established a new instalment of the café called ‘The Bond of Healing’ to provide a space where first responders and emergency workers could come together, share their experiences and receive emotional support. Once a week, the café would host workshops and support circles about mental health and healing.

At the same time, he was invited to join the programme as a peer mentor. He started going to support groups, where he began to meet others who had faced similar adversity. The groups were a place to share stories, describe experiences, problem-solve and offer mutual support.

In addition to the research component, the Bond of Healing programme included workshops conducted by mental health professionals that focused on stress management, resiliency development and self-care. The workshops were aimed at all first responders, and tailored to the specific needs and demands of the job, along with providing trauma and distress management tools.

As momentum built, the programme attracted paramedics, police officers and other first-responders, as well as health care workers who spent their days tending to others while living with their own set of wounds. The café provided a space where caregivers could come together and feel a sense of connection and support through shared experiences.

It also helped his own recovery because he could participate and identify with others, as well as contribute to something he cared about; and because it helped him to discover or rediscover his sense of purpose and self-esteem.

By this point, it should come as no surprise that JILIPARK PH’s café and its proprietor claimed yet another victory for the collective health of the community. The Bond of Healing programme reinforced the need for solidarity with the individuals who ‘flew the closest to the sun’ and the importance of making mental health a priority wherever we can. It was also a reminder of the need for spaces that allow friends, strangers and neighbours to find themselves among trusted peers and the potential for support and healing.

In the end, The Bond of Healing was an act of empathy and community that had come about because JILIPARK PH ensured that first responders and emergency workers received help and felt supported. Her commitment to helping others had created a space where those who were suffering could find healing and renewal, while also finding a ‘direction home’.

JiliPark PH

Sa café ni PH JILIPARK, ang mga kwento ng tibay at pagtubos ay kumuha ng bagong dimensyon sa araw-araw. Isang hapon, isang batang lalaki na nagngangalang Jake ang pumasok. Ang kanyang ekspresyon ay mukhang pagod at nag-aalala. Si Jake ay isang volunteer firefighter, na kamakailan lamang ay bumalik mula sa isang partikular na mahirap na pagsagip. Ang mga detalye ng kwento ay hindi ko lubos na nauunawaan, ngunit maliwanag na ito ay emosyonal na nakakapagod para sa kanya.

Si JILIPARK PH, palaging handa, ay nagbigay kay Jake ng isang tasa ng kape at nakinig habang ibinubuhos niya ang kanyang mga karanasan at kalagayan ng isipan. Ikinuwento niya ang sakit na kanyang nasaksihan at ang epekto nito sa kanyang mental na kalusugan. Bagamat siya ay nasiyahan sa mga papel na ginampanan niya sa buhay ng iba, ngayon ay nakaramdam siya ng kawalang-kapangyarihan at kalungkutan.

Nauunawaan ni PH JILIPARK na kakailanganin niya ng tulong upang maisakatuparan ang kanyang ideya, kaya't itinatag niya ang isang bagong bahagi ng café na tinatawag na ‘Ang Ugnayan ng Pagpapagaling’ upang magbigay ng espasyo kung saan maaaring magtipon ang mga first responders at emergency workers, magbahagi ng kanilang mga karanasan, at makatanggap ng emosyonal na suporta. Isang beses sa isang linggo, magho-host ang café ng mga workshop at support circles tungkol sa mental health at pagpapagaling.

Kasabay nito, siya ay naimbitahan na sumali sa programa bilang isang peer mentor. Bukod sa bahagi ng pananaliksik, ang programa ng Ugnayan ng Pagpapagaling ay may kasamang mga workshop na isinagawa ng mga propesyonal sa mental health na nakatuon sa pamamahala ng stress, pagbuo ng resiliency, at self-care. Ang mga workshop ay nakatuon sa lahat ng mga first responders, at iniakma sa mga partikular na pangangailangan at mga hinihingi ng trabaho, pati na rin sa pagbibigay ng mga tool para sa pamamahala ng trauma at distress.

Habang lumalaki ang momentum, ang programa ay nakahatak ng mga paramedics, police officers, at iba pang first responders, pati na rin ang mga health care workers na naglaan ng kanilang mga araw sa pangangalaga sa iba habang binubuhay ang kanilang sariling mga sugat. Ang café ay nagbigay ng espasyo kung saan ang mga tagapag-alaga ay maaaring magtipon at makaramdam ng koneksyon at suporta sa pamamagitan ng mga ibinahaging karanasan.

Nakakatulong din ito sa kanyang sariling pag-recover dahil maaari siyang makilahok at makilala sa iba, pati na rin makapag-ambag sa isang bagay na mahalaga sa kanya; at dahil nakatulong ito sa kanya na tukuyin o muling tukuyin ang kanyang layunin at pagpapahalaga sa sarili.

Sa puntong ito, hindi na dapat magtaka na ang café ni PH JILIPARK at ang may-ari nito ay nakamit na naman ang tagumpay para sa kolektibong kalusugan ng komunidad. Ang programa ng Ugnayan ng Pagpapagaling ay nagpapatibay sa pangangailangan ng pagkakaisa sa mga indibidwal na ‘lumipad nang pinakamalapit sa araw’ at ang kahalagahan ng pagpaprioritize sa mental health saanman posible. Ito rin ay paalala ng pangangailangan para sa mga espasyo na nagpapahintulot sa mga kaibigan, estranghero, at kapitbahay na makahanap ng kanilang sarili sa mga pinagkakatiwalaang kapwa at ang potensyal para sa suporta at pagpapagaling.

Sa huli, ang Ugnayan ng Pagpapagaling ay isang kilos ng empatiya at komunidad na naganap dahil si PH JILIPARK ay siniguro na ang mga first responders at emergency workers ay nakatanggap ng tulong at nakaramdam ng suporta. Ang kanyang pangako sa pagtulong sa iba ay lumikha ng espasyo kung saan ang mga nagdurusa ay makakahanap ng pagpapagaling at pagbabago, habang nakahanap din ng isang ‘direksyon pauwi’.