A caregiver in Canada is now the owner of condo units and rental properties – and she was able to build this business and become a permanent resident even before she met her husband.
Pinay Caregiver Finds Success in Canada
A lot of people might say that Racz Kelly got lucky in Canada because she married a foreigner. That’s how plenty of Pinays found success and went from rags to riches, after all.
But while she started out as a poor girl from the Philippines, she found success on her own – long before she met her husband.
According to Racz, she went to Canada in search of greener pastures in 2010. Getting out of poverty was her motivation.
“Lumaki ako sa bundok doon sa amin, sa Capiz. And then walang kuryente, walang tubig,” she explained.
From nanny and caregiver, she eventually became an office worker and vlogger. She became a permanent resident in Chilliwack, Canada, even before meeting her husband. People thought she had it easy because of him.
“A lot of people think na kapag nakapag-asawa ka ng foreigner nakadepende ka sa kanya, or you reached that kind of life because of him,” Racz explained.
“But I’m really thankful for what we have. Pero masasabi ko na we really started from the scratch. We really started from the bottom.”
Photo credit: Racz Kelly / PEP
Because she was a Math teacher back in the Philippines, Racz is good in numbers. So, she handled their budget so that she and her husband can start investing on properties to rent out while also still having enough money to meet their needs and send to her family in the Philippines.
But that also meant she had to work two jobs!
“I had two jobs that time, kasi nakadepende sa akin kung gaano kalaki yung masi-save namin. So, I had two jobs that time. So, nag-office ako saka nag-casino,” she said.
She also began to learn about property investment – and used her knowledge to earn as much as $253,000 (around Php9.8 million) on a unit that they bought and lived in for 3 years.
The family now owns a 6-bedroom house and also has another condo unit for rental. Her mom had also visited Canada three times.
“Hindi ko rin naisip talaga na darating ako sa punto na ganito,” she said.
“Naniniwala din ako na if you love your parents, parang bine-bless ka rin. Kasi, sabi ko nga, hindi ako nag-asawa hangga’t hindi ko nabibigyan ng magandang buhay ang nanay ko.”
How to Become a Caregiver
Requirements for becoming a caregiver may differ, depending on the job you’re applying for. But you need to at least have a basic training on being a caregiver.
Many agencies in the Philippines offer in-house training. TESDA also offers free caregiver courses and training in the Philippines.
