The inspiration behind Zambawood
My good friend Rachel Harrison keeps her hands busy each time she visits the country, and for good reason. Based in Singapore, she regularly flies to Manila to visit her son Julyan, who for the past six years has become a regular fixture at Zambawood, an idyllic 24hectare property located in Zambales.
Julyan, who is a special child, has been a resident of Zambawood for the past six years where he maintains Julyan’s Pine Beach Farm.
Rachel was in town to host a fund-raising event for Zambawood.
“We are raising funds to build an Arts and Skills Training Center in Zambawood. Our goal is to help people with autism and other disabilities learn skills that will enable them to find jobs, be purposeful and sustainable in their adult life,” explains Rachel.
She continues, “The phase one of the project (comprising of three phases) is the culinary wing, the arts wing with an open pavilion in the middle, plus an outhouse kitchen and restrooms. We need P10M for this phase.”
Her son Julyan is a constant inspiration. “The inspiration behind Zambawood is my son Julyan. We decided to open our home to paying guests to help us sustain him and his farm. It developed into a social enterprise with the aim of helping people with disabilities practice the skills they’ve learned and give them employment.
“Having a resort is a dream come true for me. My passion is entertaining and home designing. Without me knowing it, Julyan paved the way for my dream to come true. God works in mysterious ways.”
Zambawood going on three come July is a modern beach resort, with an open plan living areas, a view of the forest, the lake and the sea beyond. “The beauty of our location is the raw appeal and the tranquil surrounding. We are bounded by the pine forest, the sea, the lake and the mountain ranges. It’s picturesque, hence our tagline ‘There’s a reason movies are made here...’”. And Zambawood has attracted photographers and filmmakers who use the location as a natural backdrop.
Inside the sprawling resort is a boutique house that has eclectic pieces of furniture and accessories. The pieces of furniture are made of old wood from Bali, India, China and the Philippines. “The colors of the accessories and linens are vibrant and cheerful, reflective of our past travels and homes in different countries for the past 30 years. It says a lot about us as a family: Relaxed, fun and comfortable. It is a house made for lounging and chilling,” offers Rachel.
Julyan’s Pine Beach Farm is an organic farm where Julyan spends most of his time tending to his plants and animals. “It was created for Julyan to give him activities and establish a routine. Farming is very therapeutic. A farm near the beach where you hear the waves is quite unique and amazing.”
Aside from Julyan, Rachel has two other sons.
“Our eldest is Alexander, 27. He is an auditor working for KPMG in Singapore. Our youngest is Jonathan, now 17. He is finishing high school this July. They are both in Singapore. Julyan moved to the Philippines when he was 16,” shares Rachel.
For guests interested in visiting Zambawood, the arrangement is to rent the entire house. Rachel explains, “We normally rent out per house. Only one group can stay in the house to give them the privacy. The idea is, it becomes their ‘private’ home for their family or company for a minimum of one-night stay.”
Peak/high season for the farm/resort is from October to June and the low season is from July to September. Zambawood offers an affordable package for guests/visitors. “It includes full board meals, two meriendas and a beach setup for enjoying the sunset. We are known for our impeccable service provided by our warm and friendly service team.”
Zambawood GM Jennifer Kaur from Malaysia is a Cordon Bleu Chef. And she will happily create a sumptuous meal when requested, according to Rachel.
Rachel says of Zambawood, “the awareness that our business is here to help people with disabilities through employment is slowly but surely gaining attention. It’s been a lot of hard work but amazingly rewarding. We absolutely and passionately believe that people with disabilities are capable of being employed if we teach them skills, give them the chance to work with people who accept them, people who have the patience, the commitment, the faith that they can do it.”
Zambawood works with Rotary Housekeeping Academy for the training of staff and people while Zambawood provides the internship. “We are on our sixth batch of students training deaf mutes and autistic interns.”
As a mother whose son has special needs, Rachel offers this
advice to mothers, “It can be extremely stressful to have a special-needs person in your life. When you take care of yourself, you are more relaxed. You are happy with people around you. You see the good side of most things. You are easy, you are more accepting and understanding. You have no expectation. You celebrate the small triumphs. You become happier with yourself and with the people around you. It is imperative that you first take care of yourself before you can effectively care for other people. You can clearly think of a plan on how to help your child find possibilities. Discover the strength and passion of your child and nurture that. It might take a long time to find out but try many activities that interest him and don’t give up. Persevere and be committed. It takes time to master a task. The most important goal is to find what makes your child happy.”
Rachel, a working mom, has been married for 28 years. “I would say I spend 40 percent of my time in the Philippines and 60 percent in Singapore. We raise our children with both Filipino and western culture. The boys are very close to both my side and my husband’s side of the family. The Filipino traits of being easy, fun loving and being caring are great. The British culture from my husband gives them balance and a more global and interesting outlook and feel. It is fantastic though that they feel very much Filipino because from birth, we made sure they spend a lot of time in the country.”
Julyan is one of the participating artists whose work will be on exhibit at the SDA Campus De La Salle College of Saint Benilde on June 15.
Happy Mother’s Day, Rachel!