A Vancouver Filipino chef is throwing his kitchen behind efforts to assist the victims of the car-ramming assault on the Lapu Lapu Festival on Saturday.
“Filipino meals and Filipino tradition is all about consolation, all about supplying you with, like, what did mother used to feed you,” stated TJ Conwi, proprietor of Ono Vancouver.
“So that you get messages like hey, I’ve meals nevertheless it’s largely Caucasian meals. However now we’re sending them adobo … issues that will at the very least remind them of fine occasions and the sense that any individual on the market cares for them.”
Conwi was truly on the Filipino pageant in South Vancouver the day of the assault, however left hours earlier than a person drove an SUV into the crowds killing 11 and injuring dozens of others.
The tragedy, he stated, touched him personally.
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Like him, many members of the Filipino neighborhood attending the pageant had come to Canada searching for a greater life — solely to have the promise of security and alternative ripped away.
Conwi, who already produces as much as 1,200 neighborhood meals per week by means of his catering enterprise for charities, together with these on the Downtown Eastside, determined he wanted to assist.
That’s when he started speaking with different members of the native chef neighborhood about how they may coordinate a meals supply and meal pickup.
“You consider the son who simply went there for breakdancing and as an alternative of fascinated by faculty on Monday, is within the ICU, the son that stayed dwelling to do his homework is now with out household, proper?” Conwi stated, combating again tears.
“It actually hits you exhausting. You get near them. And the one factor that brings you up is like, hey, I can contribute meals for you. Like mother might be among the finest cooks, cooks Filipino meals, possibly we are able to do this.”
The message has resonated with Conwi’s workers, who’ve thrown themselves into the initiative.
“It simply shook me to my core as quickly as I heard the information,” Ono sous chef Janice Quinto stated.
“We’re all one huge pleased neighborhood that bought hit so exhausting by one thing so near dwelling and it’s so wonderful to see all the nations actually coming collectively,” she added.
“We now have this saying, like we assist one another,r they name it Bayanihan, so each time that one thing occurs, we ensure that to assist one another,” added prepare dinner Jim Renz De Guzman.
“We will prepare dinner, that’s our expertise.”
The suspect within the killings, 30-year-old Kai-Ji Adam Lo, has been charged with eight counts of second-degree homicide, although police say extra prices might nonetheless be authorised.
Vancouver Mayor Ken Sim has since confirmed Lo was beneath the care of a psychological well being care staff however he was on prolonged depart on the time.
As of Wednesday, 16 folks remained in hospital from the assault, 5 of them in vital situation.
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