Honouring Our Tŷ Hafan Nurses From The Philippines

Seven nurses from the Philippines who have been members of the care team at Tŷ Hafan, the children’s hospice for Wales, for over twenty years have been honored by the hospice for their exemplary service and dedication.

Senior Management paid tribute to the dedication, personal sacrifice and hard work of Livet Eyao, Emee Miller, Mai Mai Mallari, Myra Belonio, Gigi Ricaforte, Leila Gariando and Anne Alog, all children’s palliative care nurses, who were gathered together in the grounds of the hospice in Sully, near Cardiff.

Speaking in front of socially-distanced hospice staff, Beth Morgan, Head of Hospice Services, said: “We’re here today to acknowledge two decades of service from this dedicated group of nurses from the Philippines.

“Twenty years of children’s palliative care nursing is a mammoth achievement in its own right, but the immense pressure of the pandemic was on another level.

“Everybody has struggled throughout the past 15 months, but this group of Tŷ Hafan nurses have also had to deal with being thousands of miles away from their families and loved ones, during one of the scariest times which I think we can all remember, when their own community was particularly hard hit by Covid.

“Despite this, they have been here, day in and day out, in PPE, supporting the children and families we work with.

“There is no other way of putting it – I am in awe of them all. They are wonderful, wonderful people, caring, dedicated and ultra-professional.

“Their work ethic is second to none and they are all about family. Individually, and as a team, they have always been there for Tŷ Hafan, so on behalf of all of our colleagues I just want say thank you, because I am not only very grateful for all that they do, but I am also very grateful for all that they are.”

Gigi Ricaforte, Deputy Lead Nurse, said: “When we left our homes in the Philippines to come to work for Tŷ Hafan we were given the opportunity to have a better life. We came here for the jobs. We did not then realise that it was about so much more than work and while we had left our own families behind at home, we were coming into the Tŷ Hafan family.

“We have always been so grateful for this. We love what we do, and we do it from the bottom of our hearts.”

Anne Alog, Lead Nurse, who has been working for Tŷ Hafan since 2001, said: “When we first arrived we did not know what to expect but we have had the opportunity to grow and develop our skills. It is a privilege to work for Tŷ Hafan.”

Chief Executive Maria Timon Samra said: “You have given twenty years of your professional lives to our charity. What you have done for the children with a life-limiting condition and their families whom we look after, is extraordinary.

“We have invited you here today to say thank you from the bottom of our hearts.”

As a thank you for their years of dedicated service, Maria Timon Samra and Beth Morgan also presented each of the nurses with a luxury hamper generously donated by our supporters, Hampers.com.

Amelia Fletcher, Marketing Director of Hampers.com, said: “At hampers.com, we believe in bringing joy to gifting. Tŷ Hafan’s Filipino nurse team has touched the lives of so many children and families in Wales, so we were more than delighted to support this very special charity in recognising their contributions