Photography ARTU NEPOMUCENO
Videography LUCAS DAVID
Make Up JORENCE DE LIMOS
Hair RON ROS
Fashion Styling JOHN LOZANO
By: Sherry Tenorio
Coming up with an apropos introduction for a woman who does not really need one is quite challenging. Her surname, first of all, is that of a prominent political and show business family in the Philippines. But, Jerika Ejercito has proven that she is her own woman – an individual who avoids politics and shies away from showbiz, but adores public service.
We met her at 81 Xavier Residences, a young towering skyscraper across an exclusive school in Greenhills. Thinking she would arrive with an army of bodyguards was wrong. Her entourage included her executive assistant, a fashion stylist-slash-best friend, a nanny and her two-year old son. Clad in a loose white sweater and tight black leggings, Jerika warmly greeted and went straight to the makeup chair, ready to do business.
In a Happy State
Warming up to Metro Manila’s sweetheart was easy, for she appeared chirpy, especially when she made a strong claim to happiness: “I’m in a good place. My son is okay. I’m doing okay. I’m happy working with my father. I love what I’m doing and I’m really passionate about it.”
At 30 years old, Jerika is delighted with her roles. A doting hands-on single mother, she makes sure that her schedule, like the interview and shoot we had with her, would always permit time spent with her son Isaiah. A public servant who works side-by-side with her father – she recently took over responsibilities of Initiatives for Life and Actions of Women (Ilaw) ng Maynila, a program that supports mothers in the slum areas, working on such issues as drug abuse and violence against women. Also, she continues to manage her ‘baby,’ Be Healed Foundation, an organization that helps women deal with depression.
But Jerika’s journey to the ‘good place,’ as she puts it, was not as smooth as she wished it would be. It was a terrible, bumpy ride that required her to accept her condition, honestly search her soul for the solution and to cautiously but decisively fight her demons. Jerika chose healing.
Young and Troubled
It was difficult to admit, but she went through depression when she was sixteen years old. Daughter to the former Philippine president and now mayor of Manila, Joseph Ejercito Estrada, and the former actress Laarni Enriquez, this ‘morena’ beauty has had a life under constant public scrutiny. Her family was under fire when her father was convicted and impeached in the year 2000. Bullied for her father’s actions, she and her younger brothers (Jake, 10, and Jacob, 4,) had to skip school to avoid people’s harsh judgments.
“It’s no secret what happened to my dad. It was very hard for us since the country ostracized us. So, we were not surprised that the family had to send me to the UK, and my brothers to the US,” she shared with somewhat nervous alacrity, seemingly wanting to hastily finish this discussion about that portion in her life when she suffered undiagnosed post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
The then seventeen-year old Jerika began a new life abroad. She completed her high school in Cobham Hall Boarding School in Kent, and then she moved to London to study Business Administration at the American Intercontinental University and her master’s degree in Marketing at Westminster University. She told Calyxta, “I never looked back to the Philippines. I built a completely different life outside the country. I even worked as a waitress when I was in college. So, I was remorseful when I was asked to return home. It was the worst time of my life since I was still angry at what they did to us.”
Bottled Up
It was back in 2011 when she felt a strong resentment against the idea of coming back to the Philippines. “I hated them. I hated what they did to my family. They apologized, and my father forgave them, but I couldn’t. In my mind, their apologies would not give back the years that my father was gone.”
Again, the hate ate her up. It took one year after coming home to admit that she was not okay. “When you’re going through it, you think you’re normal. You don’t really recognize that there’s something wrong. Especially in my case, I was considered a high-functioning depressed person. I was always out. I socialized a lot. I was in the cover of magazines. I was not the usual stay-in-the-room type of depressed person. No one knew that I was depressed,” she explained.
She reached her limit in 2012. She said, “I woke up one morning, and I realized I was so tired. I reached out to friends and did my own research. Then, I finally found a psychiatrist to help me. I was on medication for two years. I made sure not to miss my meds. I really wanted to get better and to be well.”
Be Healed
To fully heal herself, she decided to also help heal women who were battling similar concerns. She formed the Be Healed Foundation, a dedicated organization for marginalized people who suffer from depression. “Right now, we are planting our roots in Manila. The plan is to do it countrywide but our initial satellite office is being built in the metro. What we want to achieve is to create a home for young, depressed girls. We want to provide a halfway home for the teens who are vulnerable to oppression and bullying.”
Aside from the activities of the foundation, Jerika has been publicly active (along with Senator Risa Hontiveros and former Senator Leticia Ramos Shahani) in pushing for the passing of the country’s Mental Health Bill. She pointed out, “The medication I took was very expensive. So, I am hopeful that this bill would help in integrating the mental health in our primary health care.”
Proud and pleased, the jubilation that Jerika feels inside resonated throughout our day with her. Her profound passion for healing ebulliently shines through in everything she does and all the lives she touches. It is obvious that Jerika has found true beauty in healing. And, she has found her power in love – a mother’s love that we are to explore in the second part of her interview for this month’s edition of Calyxta Girl.
