Help for Jessica & Jade's Family After Another Loss

Hello, we are friends, colleagues, and community of Jessica and Jade, hoping to raise funds to support them and their family in the Philippines during this difficult time.

A few months ago, Jessica and Jade worked to raise funds to support Jade's brother Geovanni in his fight against an aggressive cancer.

For those who are unaware, the Philippine medical system is even more cruel than that in the U.S. While we rack up medical debt trying to survive, patients seeking care are not served until they can pay for treatment upfront often having to supply their own medical equipment for necessary surgeries and procedures due to the lack of industrialization in the country. Choosing between life and debt is a daily reality for working class or single income families.

The health system moved too slowly for the pace of Geovanni’s cancer, and he tragically passed away late January. His family never had the opportunity to see how much more time he may have been given if he had received immediate, intensive treatment.

And just weeks later, Geovanni and Jade’s mother passed away from heart failure. Unfortunately, she was also not able to receive the treatment she had long deserved because of how broken the Philippine healthcare system is.

All the medical costs have completely depleted the family’s savings, and now they need to raise enough money to have their mother's body released from the hospital and pay for her burial.

However when systems fail to provide for its people, communities come together to support those who need it. We do know that the outpouring of support from friends, family, acquaintances, and even strangers for Geovanni’s fight against cancer gave him hope. In his last days, family shared that he had started smiling again for the first time since his health rapidly declined in October. The burden of thinking about where the money would come from for his care and treatment was lifted, and he could enjoy moments with his loved ones again.

We call on friends, acquaintances and community to please come together again to express our love and support for Jade, Jessica, and their family during this incredibly difficult time. Jessica is a community and faith-based organizer who pours so much love into her work as a Philippine human rights activist and does so much for her community, fellow organizers, and loved ones. Her determination and selflessness radiates in her community work, and so we hope people can support in easing the burden that has been put on her and Jade, and their whole family by a system that continues to fail us in the worst ways. Let us express the power of solidarity and community.