A caring mission

The first thing that Lovelee Manalo, 30, noticed when she arrived in Malta was the weather. “In the Philippines, it’s summer all year round. We do have rain – but when it rains, the temperatures are hotter. In Malta, however, it gets cold in winter and I wasn’t used to that.” Lovelee comes from a big family – she has three brothers and two sisters. Her father’s side of the family mostly live in Manila, while her other relatives live in the provinces, where she was born and raised. Her mother used to teach at the same primary school that Lovelee attended. When she was 18 years old, Lovelee went to study business management for four years at a college in Manila. “Then after two years, I decided to change job and started looking for other opportunities. A friend of my aunt, who lives in Malta, told me of an opportunity here and I packed my bags and bought a ticket to Malta.” For Lovelee, her journey to Malta was the first time she had boarded a plane and travelled outside the Philippines. “I was a bit nervous, but I’m not one to be discouraged easily. God is with me so I never give up.” Lovelee has now been living in Malta for six years and takes care of Rita and Kevin Vella, who are...