"It's not for me in a million years; but, one way of coping through these hard times is...Tiktok."
Kahit nakakaranas ng pampinansyal na hirap ngayon si Chef Enrique Raposa III dahil sa COVID-19 pandemic, patuloy ang kanyang pagiging masayahin, pagluluto ng pagkain at pagtulong sa mga taong nangangailangan.
Chef Enrique Raposa III continues to crack jokes, cook food and help others how he can with what little he has. Source: Enrique Raposa III
17 na taon
Pagkatapos mag-drop out ng culinary school sa Pilipinas dahil sa kakulangan sa pera, karanasan lamang sa kusina ang nabaon ng Sydneysider na si Enrique pagpunta niya ng Australya.
"I arrived in Australia in 2003. I had no qualifications. I had to start from the bottom and work my way up. I started as a kitchen hand, then a dishwasher.
"During that time, it was hard to move up the ranks because chefs were predominantly of European descent. I was a dishwasher for three years."
Pagkatapos ng tatlong taon, nabigyan din siya ng training ng mga chefs na katrabaho niya upang gumaan ang trabaho sa kusina.
"I wasn't formally trained in school at that time. I just learned as much as I could from one place and when I felt that I did, I moved on to another restaurant to learn a different system and cuisine."
"I just learned as much as I could from one place and when I felt that I did, I moved on to another restaurant to learn a different system and cuisine." Source: Enrique Raposa III
Nadiskubre ni Enrique na kahit nakikilala na siya sa fine dining, naging masyadong masalimuot ang mundong ito.
"I wanted to lay low from fine dining, but I wanted to still do something related to food. I took a job at a burger place in Bankstown that was more focused on management instead of the day-to-day grind. I wasn't a chef then, but a venue manager."
Nagtrabaho siya bilang venue manager sa restawran mula Setyembre noong nakalipas na taon hanggang Enero.
"I lost my job but I took it as time to rest and reassess if I wanted to go back to fine dining or something else." Source: Enrique Raposa III
"Our branch in the city was busy, but that didn't carry over to Bankstown. Mid-January hit and COVID-19 cases started getting more press. We were forced to close end of January. I lost my job but I took it as time to rest and reassess if I wanted to go back to fine dining or something else."
Habang nagpapahinga, nag-apply siya sa mga ibang restawran. Nabigyan siya ng trial shifts at nagkaroon din siya ng mga job offers.
"Then the pandemic blew up. My offers got cancelled because places stopped their hiring processes. I was stuck pretty much."
Hindi ako nag-iisa
Nawalan ng trabaho si Enrique, ngunit patuloy pa rin ang kanyang mga responsibilidad.
"I'm the breadwinner of the family. My mum is incapacitated and can't work. My sister only works as a casual in the post office. I have twin boys in the Philippines that I'm also supporting."
"People would say before that I earned a lot as a head chef and manager; but I was living week-by-week even then. I have minimal savings; and now, I'm out of a job. I'm depleting whatever I did save."
Three of the people Enrique supports are his mum and twin boys. Source: Enrique Raposa III
Ngunit kahit ganito ang kanyang sitwasyon ngayon, hindi siya naaawa sa kanyang sarili.
"Mine is not an isolated case. It's difficult for everyone. I wake up everyday and I'm healthy. I'm grateful and that thought is how I cope."
Nakakayanan din niya ang kanyang sitwasyon kasi naka-pokus pa rin siya sa pagluluto.
"We Filipinos are resilient. We look for ways on how we can earn. When I worked in fine dining, I used to make my own packed meals and bring them to work. My chefs were interested and I began making these for them as well."
Mula sa mga kasamahan niya sa trabaho, gumagawa siya ng mga meals para sa iba pa niyang mga kaibigan.
"Now that I'm out of a job, I would call out to people what my menu for the week was and whomever was interested, I would cook for them. It's more of a hobby at the moment. Although it doesn't come close to what I used to earn, it at least is substantial to earn me extra income."
"I hear of people complaining about how their salaries have been reduced to 20-30%; but they fail to realise how lucky they are to still be in the workforce. Times are hard."
Mahirap ang mga panahong ito, ngunit ayon sa kanya, mas may nahihirapan pa sa kanya. Kasama na rito ang mga international students.
"Now that I'm out of a job, I would call out to people what my menu for the week was and whomever was interested, I would cook for them." Source: Enrique Raposa III
"They pay so much for school. A lot of them have no savings. Now, they're stuck too."
"In the past two weeks, people have been buying more packed meals from me; so, I started using what little profit I have to create meals to give to international students for free. It's my attempt to do good and somehow share what I have to those in need."
Habang tumutulong si Enrique sa mga nangangailangan, masaya siyang maging bahagi ng Filipino at Australian communities.
"Filipinos and Australians take on the same spirit - the spirit of mateship, of bayanihan. We shouldn't take advantage of each other. Let's support one another."
"Filipinos and Australians take on the same spirit - the spirit of mateship, of bayanihan. Let's support one another." Source: Enrique Raposa III
BASAHIN / PAKINGGAN DIN
