Filipinos in the US are taking better chances amid a severe coronavirus pandemic

NEW YORK – When nurse Erwin Lambrento succumbed to COVID-19 on the frontline last May, nurse Ernesto Ebuen not only lost an uncle to the pandemic, he also lost the person who brought him a step closer to making his American dream come true. . reality.

Ebuen would have been a nurse, but his uncle gave him an even greater chance to pursue his dream career in table tennis.

After winning the Philippine National Table Tennis Championship six times and coaching the 2012 U.S. Olympic champions and 2009 U.S. champion Ebuen, an American national-level coach decided to open his own table tennis company in New York called Pingpod.

Ebuen, Pingpod’s co-founder and Chief Product Officer (CPO), said Pingpod is the world’s first network of standalone table tennis pods.

“Small in size but many locations, think of it as a Starbucks in every neighborhood in every block,” he said.

Each fully automated “pod” is managed by the latest technology. Customers use an app to make reservations, make in-store purchases and enter pods with smartphones – no human interaction required from start to finish of each transaction and use of the facility.

“Compared to the traditional table tennis clubs, where they have 8, 10 or more tables, Pingpod only has 3 or 4 in each location,” said Ebuen.

Pingpod opened just before the pandemic was ordered on the ground in March.

“We would have a grand opening if all this happened,” Ebuen said.

Like many businesses in the Tristate area affected by the pandemic closings, Pingpod suffered income losses even before it opened completely.

But the good news is that the company survived the pandemic and recently reopened its doors to customers, still in view of the safety of COVID-19.

Today, reservations at Pingpod are limited to a maximum of 3 people per table. Disinfectant wipes, hand sanitizers and rubber gloves are available to customers. Each table is cleaned after use and players receive clean sets of UV-purified balls every time.

Social distance is perceived at all times and customers can even play with a robot called Robopong for the ultimate physical distance experience.

PARALYMPIC TRAINING AT PINGPOD

Paralympic gold medalist, inductee table tennis Hall of Fame in the US and 50-time para-champion Tahl Leibovitz would participate in the Tokyo Paralympics in 2020, but the coronavirus pandemic postponed the games.

Leibovitz not only made Pingpod his home to train for the 2021 Paralympic Games in Tokyo, but he is also one of the coaches at Pingpod.

“I have something called osteochondroma that really limits my movement and I have a lot of physical pain. I really like table tennis because it is very difficult to sustain an injury.”

He said Pingpod is the perfect sports game for those who want to keep fit during the pandemic – getting injured while playing table tennis is quite rare.

“It’s like running, chess and boxing at the same time. You have to use your mind and body a little bit together and once you understand that, you can move a lot, ”Leibovitz said.

Pingpod was invented before the pandemic happened, but it turns out even for spectators a sport that can be put at a physical distance.

While the main hall has a mini stadium built for the public … spectators are not yet allowed inside, but the building’s all-glass facade allows sports fans to watch the games from the outside. Cameras are also set up for live streaming for those who want to watch even in the comfort of their own homes.

Erwin Lambrento did not see his cousin realize his American dream, but one thing was certain: Ernesto Ebuen would not have made it, if not for Lambrento’s generosity and inspiration.

CHICKEN INTERVIEW

In New Jersey, Cecil Delgado, Michael Aznar, and Michael Baclay found their dream job in an exclusive New Jersey airport lounge years after leaving their abusive employer in Florida in 2011.

But when the coronavirus health crisis hit the U.S. last March, the pandemic blockades sent them all on leave.

“We didn’t do anything for two months. The lounge was close by, so we just sat here doing nothing, chilling. So once we did the trick, that’s my favorite, so we posted on Facebook,” Delgado said.

They didn’t know that a Facebook post that went viral could change their pandemic life with a little help from Uncle Sam.

“I said to Mike, why don’t we do business tomorrow, next weekend,” I said. While we’re not doing anything, and you’re getting all this money from the government, I said why it wouldn’t invest in something that will control the money, ”Delgado said.

So, with their combined federal government stimulus money and unemployment controls, the entrepreneurial friends started their own food delivery company called Inasal Central in Jersey City, serving the popular Filipino grilled chicken.

Aznar made sure to make the perfect grilled chicken inasal and Philippine pork barbecues every weekend, while Delgado took on the role of making java rice and packing every meal ready for delivery.

To complete every meal, Baclay adds ice cold gulaman and sago for delivery.

“At the closing, I think that apart from doing business, we also help the community because they are also locked, we only have the delivery service, the restaurants are picked up on the outskirts,” said Aznar.

In their first work weekend alone, Inasal Central sold over 80 orders of chicken inasal meals. The following weekend, the team added another Filipino favorite – pork ish and pork barbecue – and their catering business grew and sold over 100 orders every weekend.

“Sometimes people think there’s no hope during COVID. There’s really hope that no matter what happens if you get hired, or if you’re good, you have to make money, you will and will give way to even a pandemic,” Aznar said.