The Philippine-Canadian Centre of Manitoba is held a vigil Tuesday honouring the victims of Saturday’s tragedy in Vancouver, in which a man drove into a crowd with an SUV, killing 11 people.
It’s one of many ways Manitoba’s Filipino community has supported each other since the events at the Lapu Lapu Day Block Party in Vancouver, a celebration of Filipino culture in its second year.
“It’s been heartbreaking. It’s been devastating for our community,” said Manitoba Filipino Business Council president Jackie Wild.
Wild and the council hosted online support circles Sunday and Tuesday, open to the public.
“As soon as the news hit, the community was coming together on Sunday as quickly as they could to be able to create both online and in-person gathering spaces, safe spaces where people could grieve and heal together,” she said.
“It’s been a really inspiring few days in many ways because we’ve actually seen the community come together and rally all of our efforts to ensure that we are taking care of one another and holding one another in this time of need.”
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It’s a sentiment echoed by Philippine Heritage Council of Manitoba Inc. President Perla Javate.
“We unite in an instant, when something, an incident like this happens… In the Philippines, when there are calamities, we just band ourselves together and do whatever we can,” she said.
Javate said the council is planning an ecumenical service to honour the victims in the coming weeks. She said the incident will inform how the council plans its events during Filipino Heritage Month in June.
The tragedy is also on Ley Navarro’s mind. As chairman of the Manitoba Filipino Street Festival, it’s moved him to look at the events scheduled for this year’s festival. He’s made the decision to hold the parade indoors at the Maples Multiplex instead of outside as in previous years.
“It doesn’t happen every day, but you never know, right?” he said. “As chairman, I think I would like to put safety first.”
The B.C. Ministry of Health confirmed the suspect, who is in police custody, was under the care of Vancouver Coastal Health’s mental health team at the time of the incident. He has been charged with eight counts of second-degree murder.
“We understand that it’s random, and we’re just hoping for the best, but it shouldn’t keep us from doing what we need to do as a community,” Javate said.
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