In the three years that she has worked for Sierra\u2019s Pearl Shake, food attendant Cora Quiachon has learned by heart the faces of customers who frequent her kiosk at the ground floor of Joeten Dandan building.<\/p>\n
\u201cGood morning, ate,\u201d says a local male patron as he approached the store and greeted Quiachon on Tuesday. \u201cWhat do you have for today?\u201d<\/p>\n
Quiachon replies, \u201cI reserved two bags of granny\u2019s cookies for you. I hid them from others because I know you like them. Papalatong, no?\u201d<\/p>\n
The two shared a hearty chuckle. According to Quiachon, the man works for a tour company and buys snacks whenever he\u2019s in the area.<\/p>\n
Quiachon, 48, said that life as a food attendant is far more relaxed and simpler than working as a live-in houseworker and caregiver.<\/p>\n
\u201cFor one, I have free time after work so I can go wherever I want,\u201d she said. \u201cBut I do miss my old work from time to time because I have been lucky with my employers, both past and present.\u201d<\/p>\n
A native of Cebu City, Quiachon said her first experience as a houseworker began in the Philippines when she worked for a female Chinese employer while attending school. <\/p>\n
Pressed by her desire to help provide for her family, Quiachon dropped out of her secretarial course at the University of San Jose and work full time for her boss. Besides helping out in the household, she was also entrusted with money collection duties for her employer\u2019s wholesaling business. <\/p>\n
It was in 1991 when Quiachon moved to Saipan. The third of seven children, Quiachon disclosed how she asked her religious mother to pray for her and help her get a job to better their lives. Her cousin, who was already on island, found her a job as a caregiver.<\/p>\n
\u201cThank God I\u2019ve only served as caregiver for three local employers in the 20 years I\u2019ve been on Saipan,\u201d she told Saipan Tribune. \u201cAll of them were related and I\u2019m lucky that they have all been very kind to me.\u201d<\/p>\n
Quiachon said Filipinos in general are very caring when it comes to senior citizens, \u201cwhich is why being a caregiver came naturally to me.\u201d<\/p>\n
Patience and understanding top her list of the qualities needed to become a good caregiver. \u201cWe should try to identify with the elderly and try to understand their situation because they\u2019re already old,\u201d she added.<\/p>\n
Among her previous employers, Quiachon said, was the family of the late Estefania Sablan San Nicolas, whom she took care of until she passed away. She continues to visit her former charge\u2019s grave on her birthday and All Soul\u2019s Day.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s my way of letting them know how much I appreciate them,\u201d Quiachon said. \u201cThe family has been very kind to me, even to the point of paying for my vacation in 2008 and giving me a netbook as a gift in 2009.\u201d <\/p>\n
Quiachon\u2019s earnings as a caregiver enabled her to support the education of one of her siblings, who is now a teacher. These days, her earnings support the schooling of her nieces and nephews.<\/p>\n
\u201cI help them because I know the value of education. I want them to study hard. As long as I have work, I will help them so they can graduate and find better jobs,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
Quiachon admits learning to love her new job. \u201cI get to meet a lot of people. I enjoy that. Also, you have to have a smile on your face to welcome customers. Smile, even though you have problems in life.\u201d<\/p>\n
Given the choice, Quiachon would like to stay on Saipan permanently. \u201cI\u2019ve been here for 20 years. I\u2019ve been lucky with my employers, I was able to support my family, I enjoy the island very much.\u201d<\/p>\n
Since uncertainties linger, Quiachon said she will start saving up so she\u2019s prepared whatever happens. \u201cI\u2019ll be eternally grateful for all the good things that Saipan has given to me and my family,\u201d she concluded.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
In the three years that she has worked for Sierra\u2019s Pearl Shake, food attendant Cora Quiachon has learned by heart the faces of customers who frequent her kiosk at the ground floor of Joeten Dandan building.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-156288","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-local-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/156288","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=156288"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/156288\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=156288"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=156288"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=156288"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}