Hermie Jamer’s legacy reaches far beyond Highview Residences
Hermie Jamer is known for a lot of things.
From the time she started working as a personal support worker (PSW) at Highview Residences London in 2014, she’s been a tireless worker who provides excellent care.
She’s also been an important mentor to countless staff and students working there.
At the same time, she’s helped improve the lives of numerous people in and around her small village in the Philippines.
Hermie the caregiver
“I get a lot of fulfillment and inner joy from working at Highview,” Hermie says.
She enjoys the chance to provide truly personalized care.
“She does things for residents exactly the way they would want them done,” says Jessica Ross, who used to work alongside Hermie as a PSW before taking on a role in administration. “She wants to make sure that residents look good every single day. She’s very caring about their dignity.”
She’s also dedicated.
“If we’re short-staffed,” Jessica adds, “if the housekeeper doesn’t show up, Hermie will come and serve breakfast. She’ll help in any area of the home. So, even if it’s not her job, she’ll jump in and give a hand when you need her.”
And she’s also well-known for working extra shifts when needed.
“It was a very tough time at the beginning of the pandemic,” says Narizza Daquioag, a fellow PSW at Highview. “Not only were there restrictions but we were sometimes short-staffed and that meant lots of extra shifts. Hermie picked up any shift she could.”
Hermie continues to take extra shifts, so many in fact that a care coordinator once jokingly suggested setting up a bunk bed for her at Highview.
Hermie the mentor
Narizza began working at Highview in 2021. “Hermie was the first PSW I worked with,” Narizza says. “She trained me on my first day. And since then we’ve worked a lot of shifts together.”
In fact, many new PSWs get paired with Hermie on their first day at Highview. She plays a key role in helping the organization grow and develop its people.
She also helps to train students.
“We take a lot of students,” says Jessica. “We take PSW students, activation students, culinary, retirement residence management, many different departments. When we have PSW students, quite often we partner them with Hermie so that they can learn through her example. But she’ll help other students as well.”
And because of her strong presence in the local Filipino community, Hermie has recruited a lot of newcomers for Highview.
“We’ve hired tons of staff that we got from Hermie’s referral,” Jessica says. “Nursing staff, PSWs, housekeeping staff. She knows a lot of people, does a lot of networking.”
Two of her daughters even worked at Highview briefly, one as a nurse and one as a PSW.
“She makes you laugh,” says Narizza, “even when the job is difficult.”
Hermie the fundraiser
Since arriving in Canada, Hermie has made a point of supporting people back home in the Philippines. “I came from a poor family,” she explains. “I may not be well-off here, but I have a little bit of something.”
She sent people in her small village Christmas dinner. With the help of a bed-and-breakfast owner she worked for part-time, she sent home linens, towels, and other “pre-loved” items.
Then in 2020, a Category 5 typhoon with 320 km/h winds flattened her village.
In a Facebook post, she pleaded for help to rebuild her village. And remarkably, she got people to answer her call to action.
The B&B owner tapped into her network to help Hermie raise funds. Before long, a local group formed called the Super Seven.
Since then, donations have helped rebuild Hermie’s village, and soon they’ll help rebuild three others. Funds have gone toward creating safe water supplies, building homes, and installing solar street lights.
“The typhoon was the turning point to do more,” Hermie says, looking back on it now.
Her fundraising wasn’t restricted to reconstruction, though. To date, donations have also paid for scholarships, meals, lodging, uniforms, and laptops for 58 young scholars back home.
Hermie goes to the Philippines to visit the project every year. When she’s not there, she meets online with housing recipients (many were living in shanties) and scholars.
“It’s stressful,” Hermie admits. “But it’s worth it when you see the 180-degree turnaround in people’s lives.”
Her contributions haven’t gone unnoticed. Hermie is particularly proud of receiving the Most Outstanding Alumni for Public Service Award from her old school on the occasion of their fiftieth anniversary.
The path wasn’t easy
Hermie is thankful that all her family is with her now, educated with jobs in Canada. But when she first came to this country to work as a live-in caregiver, she had to leave her young children in the Philippines. It was the price she had to pay to pave the way for them to join her in Canada.
Now she arranges her work hours at Highview so that she can babysit her three granddaughters whenever necessary. She’s even managed to purchase a rental property because of all the extra shifts she’s worked.
At the time of writing this article, Hermie was on the verge of retirement and contemplating how she’s going to stay busy in the future. Because, in case you haven’t already figured this out, Hermie is not someone who stays in one spot for very long.
“I’d keep working at Highview if I were a little younger,” she says.
She thinks she’ll probably spend more time on her charity work.
But whatever she decides to do, one thing is certain. Hermie will leave a huge legacy at Highview.
“We will miss her for sure,” says Narizza.
“As an update, in February, 2025 Hermie kind-of retired…” laughs Joy Birch, COO of Highview Residences. “ She has retired from her regular position but is now back in the home part-time. And we are thankful that she just can’t seem to stay away”.
Every Moment. By Design. With Love.
That’s Highview’s motto.
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