Laling Lim: Definitely abled, but differently

The return of her childhood polio syndrome six years ago may have dealt Eulalia "Laling" Lim, the first woman chair of De La Salle University’s Board of Trustees, what may well be one of the biggest blows of her life, but the indomitable Laling hasn’t taken her situation sitting down–literally and figuratively.

Laling deftly moves about in a battery-operated scooter, whose bright red color reflects her vibrant disposition and boundless optimism. But this scooter is just an introduction of sorts to this lady’s tenacity. To discover exactly how Laling has persevered to be the mistress of her circumstances, visiting her Malate home will provide a most telling picture.

There are actually two structures standing on the Lims’ 1,200-square meter property. Fronting P. Ocampo St. is the 70-year-old house which the late National Artist Juan Nakpil designed. This house, with its narra walls and ipil floors, its antiques, aparadors, wrought-iron grills and a 1930s painting on the living room ceiling featuring nymphs floating on clouds, is decidedly Old Manila–historic (the Japanese had conscripted this house, one of the fortunate ones they spared when they later burned every other house along the street) and dignified, yet warm and charming.

There’s a certain glow to Laling when she’s in this house, where portraits of her late parents–military hero Gen. Vicente Lim (whose face, if you still don’t know, graces our P1,000 bills) and Girl Scouts of the Philippines founder Pilar Hidalgo Lim–dominate the living room as much as their memories motivate their daughter to throw herself a hundred percent into anything she does.

Laling, the gracious hostess, thrives in this house. Here she regales her guests as much with her anecdotes and her hearty laughter as with the delicious food she serves after carefully noting a guest’s preferences. And mind you–Laling has a wealth of anecdotes to share, culled from an amazing lifetime that has seen her finish college at the Philippine Women’s University and masteral studies at Cornell University, plus doctoral work at the University of California.

Laling later taught courses and did scientific research in the aforementioned schools as she did at Mapua, aside from completing 30 fulfilling years at Mondragon Industries where, as executive vice president, she was second in command to Antonio Gonzales (who later became Tourism Secretary).

After Mondragon, Laling became evp of Concepcion Industries for two years, then followed this up with a five-year stint as president of Global Teleprocessing Services, Inc. Apparently oblivious to the word "exhaustion", Laling became a trustee of dlsu from 1997 to 2000.

"My father told my mother," recalls Laling, "‘You have to learn how to work because my profession is (such that) I may die anytime. You have to know how to work to raise the children.’ I guess it has come down to all of us."

Living up to the challenge of a new millennium, Laling has come up with an altogether novel–and beneficial–enterprise for the handicapped and senior citizens: the one-of-a-kind store, Total Loving Care. A tour of Laling’s home proves invaluable to understanding what this store is all about.

The other half of Laling’s home is the newly-built, three-storey house, an impressive showcase of Laling’s labor of love. Every detail was executed with the help of architect Dave Rivera with meticulous consideration for Laling’s special needs and that of her brother Fr. Pat Lim who will soon retire as priest of the Parish of Santa Maria de la Estrada.

Laling easily moves ("zooms" is a more appropriate word) between houses with the aid of ramps. "My grand-nephew and I often race around this area, " Laling shares, "he on his bike and me on my scooter."

Laling says about her scooter, "A person must realize that when you become handicapped, you can try to be as normal as possible. But because you’re handicapped, you can never be normal again."

"So what are you going to do? Wait until you die? I have a friend who doesn’t agree with using the scooter. ‘No, no, no!’ she said. ‘You mustn’t give the handicapped anything like that because they’ll get lazy and they’ll never walk!’ But I said, ‘In the meantime, what are we going to do, sit down? You’re expect-ing us to walk but we cannot anymore.’

"Another handi-capped friend once told me, ‘People will look at me if I use that scooter.’ And I looked at him and said, ‘But people are already looking at you!’"

Fr. Pat’s room features a sturdy, four-poster bed in the sleeping area, as well as a prayer room and a closet for chasubles. Like Laling’s room, soft American cherry wood line the walls, the better to showcase paintings that will adorn them in the future.

"This was during the canonization of San Lorenzo in Rome," Laling relates as she shows off a picture of a beaming Fr. Pat with the Pope in St. Peter’s Square. "We were in a special place for the handicapped and the Pope came to bless us. Our niece said, ‘Oh look at Fr. Pat as he meets the President of his company! I wonder how he’ll react when he meets the ceo!" Upon which Laling lets out her signature laughter that reverberates throughout the room.

Nothing has been left to chance in Fr. Pat’s bathroom, just like Laling’s. "Do you know," Laling asks, "that the bathroom is where the most number of accidents occur among the elderly and the handicapped?" This is why Laling has strategically installed grab handles on the bathroom walls at varying heights.

In her own bathroom, the toilet bowl has been positioned exactly beneath the shower, so Laling may sit comfortably while bathing. "A toilet seat hugs your bottom," she explains, "and it is easier for an older person who cannot get up to rise this way."

Laling’s office may be described as being ergonomic as ergonomic can be: For each of her physical needs, Laling has ably sought a solution. Her custom-built compactor filing cabinets, which one may mistake for gigantic vaults at first glance, feature steering wheel-like handles that allow each cabinet to roll sideways. "It was built in such a way that I can go in (while riding the scooter) between the cabinets," Laling elaborates as she demonstrates the feat.

Laling also has a crafts corner where her tools are all organized within easy reach, just like her adjustable writing area which features detachable desks. "The long desk is so that I will not need to put things away when I’m done with one thing and move on to another," Laling explains.

Laling’s treasure trove of gadgets range from the simple to the decidedly high tech. For picking up items dropped on the floor, there is a grabber, which works like tongs on a stick. A state-of-the-art magnifier projects a printed page onto a television screen, enlarged for easy reading. For those chilly nights, forget that hospital-looking hot water bottle. Laling has a teddy bear you can microwave (yes, Virginia, you read that right – microwave) for two minutes that will provide two solid hours of soothing heat. The therapeutic toy is named Toasty Teddy, but there are equally huggable tigers, walruses, pigs and hippos available at Laling’s Total Loving Care store at the corner of Leon Guinto and Quirino Ave.

A special LaZy Boy armchair is ultra-comfortable and more–a remote control makes the chair go up, down or position itself at any angle necessary to help its user sit, recline or even stand.

Total Loving Care, managed by Laling’s niece Ayet Ayuyao, has most of the gadgets Laling has, such as the LaZy Boy, scooter, grabber, as well as an assortment of other helpful paraphernalia: a Rally Motorized wheelchair which can transport its passenger up and down a flight of stairs; magnifying glasses of all types; flexi-furniture items such as a "homier" version of a hospital bed; specially-designed toilet seats and bathroom aids; even plaque removers and disposable diapers.

In this sense, Total Loving Care is considered an extension of Laling’s remarkable will to maximize adjusting to her environment, and her desire to share this with her fellow-handicapped. Doing so is–if you boil down to it–her own special apostolate.

"Yes," Laling agrees, "Total Loving Care is mostly an apostolate and not too much about profit. In the first place, anything that is made for the handicapped is not made in great quantities. They are expensive primarily because they are custom-built. For the handicapped, items are produced for a better lifestyle. Therefore the cost of a product is dependent upon one’s needs."

On a lighter note, Laling relates with a laugh, "One of my friends told me, ‘I hear you have a store for senior citizens. Be sure to carry Viagra!’"

Since it opened in March of this year, Laling says Total Loving Care has elicited "very good" response. "The Rally Motorized Wheelchair is a bestseller," she says, "because people become mobile again. We’ve had a parent buy it for his 11-year-old child who hasn’t been able to walk. Recently we sold one to a grandfather in his 80s. He was completely thrilled that he was able to get around."

As Laling winds up our tour of her home, she zooms around the garden, maneuvering her scooter like a real pro. Fate may have sapped the strength from Laling’s legs, but it hasn’t taken the spirit from an amazing woman.