North Van donations save Filipina barista’s life
For Janette Camba, coffee turned out to be very, very good for her health.
The former North Vancouver barista can thank that morning cup of java — or more precisely, those of her former customers at the Tim Hortons on West Queen’s Road — for playing a significant part in saving her life.
Camba, who was a familiar face at the coffee shop for more than three years, is now back at her home in the Philippines, recovering from a life- saving kidney transplant, paid for by almost $ 30,000 in donations raised in North Vancouver.
“The story has a happy ending,” said Robert Naughton, Camba’s former boss and owner of three Tim Hortons coffee shops in North Vancouver. “I feel very thankful for that.”
That wasn’t the way Camba’s saga was heading. When Camba arrived in Canada in July 2008, she was in good health, having passed the medical exam required as part of her visa application. She went to work right away at Tim Hortons, which had sponsored her temporary foreign worker visa.
But within six months, Camba’s health deteriorated and she was diagnosed with rapidly progressing kidney disease, with her organs quickly losing function.
She was soon undergoing hemodialysis at St. Paul’s Hospital three times a week. Although Camba could no longer work throughout the ordeal, Naughton continued to apply for permit extensions, knowing that if Camba was forced out of the country, she could die. But eventually, Camba’s illness prompted the Canadian government to cancel her visa, forcing her to return to the Philippines.
“I got a phone call from the hospital,” recalled Naughton. “They said, ‘ You realize if Janette goes home, if she doesn’t receive treatment within 10 days, she will die’.”
Naughton knew that Camba had no medical coverage and no way to pay for a transplant or hemodialysis. With the date of Camba’s departure looming, Naughton sought the permission of Tim Hortons and launched a desperate last- ditch fundraising effort to save her life.
The response, he said, was overwhelming.
“She was very well- liked and quite loved actually,” he said. “People were very generous.”
The campaign managed to raise $ 29,000 in about six weeks last fall.
Camba’s younger sister was a perfect match, and the transplant was done in January.
A fellow Tim Hortons employee recently went back to the Philippines for a visit, and stopped in to see Camba while he was there.
“He came back and told us she looked great and was doing well,” said Naughton.