Nurse shares story of her journey
Lourdes Hernandez talks about her move to Rankin Inlet from the Philippines
Candace Thomson
Northern News Services
Published Wednesday, July 9, 2014
RANKIN INLET
Lourdes Hernandez and her family came to Canada and became Canadians after they fell in love with the country.
In October, she'll celebrate nine years since she was recruited from Manila, Philippines, by the GN to work as a nurse in Rankin Inlet along with, she said, more than 20 others.
"I'm one of the few left," she told Kivalliq News during Canada Day celebrations in Rankin Inlet.
Despite all her research and preparation, Hernandez said she and the other nurses couldn't possibly have prepared for the transition from a tropical climate like the Philippines to the frigid arctic cold that encompasses the Kivalliq most of the year.
In the first year, we were excited for the snow but after that we got tired of it, Hernandez said. It's not just having to get used to winter, it's that it's especially cold here.
She said despite the cold, the people in Rankin were friendly and warm and the work was the same as she'd been doing in the Philippines for nearly a decade before.
Although she had come to Canada on her own, she left her husband Arieleo and daughter Amieldeanne, who is now 15, behind in Manila.
"I worked for two years and saved to bring my husband and daughter over," she said. "Our eldest daughter liked it immediately, she had friends and was able to adjust."
Hernandez's second daughter, Gianna, was born in Winnipeg three years ago, so she was born Canadian, while the rest of the family became citizens at the end of June last year, just in time to celebrate Canada Day together for the first time as full-fledged Canadians.
She said while the family misses the Philippines, life in Canada is similar.
"What I like most about Canada is that here we are family-oriented, just like it is in the Philippines," Hernandez said.
"We're in another place, and we miss the Philippines, but we get to love Canada, now that we're here."
This year, while taking in the parades, community barbecue, costume contests and bike races with her family, Hernandez explained why it is important to celebrate.
"Being Canadian is like ... being able to perform my duties and responsibilities as a law-abiding citizen, and being able to help others as well," she said.
"Celebrating is showing that you're proud to be a Canadian, celebrating what Canada is. Freedom, acceptance ... all of those things."
