Natural wellness

Heru Holligan is the owner of the Good Life Café and Healing Earth Incorporated. The father of five and Chairman of the United Progressive Party sat down with Positive Vibes to discuss his role as a businessman and his deep love for his family.

Q: What is your mantra for life?

A:  My mantra for life is to stay happy. Life will always bring challenges, essentially that is what life is. The best way to continue the journey called life and to win is to stay happy regardless of the challenges up ahead. Of course, sometimes you are faced with unpredictable issues that can stimulate a stress response. However, at the moment, remember it is temporary and use stress wisely to help you return to a state of happiness.

Q: What is one thing the public would not know about Heru Holligan?

A: I delivered all five of my children at home during their home births. My hands were the first hands that touched them. Of course, this is with the support of capable midwives.

Q: As a father of five, how important is it that you teach your children good teachings so they become honourable citizens of Barbados?

A: It is important to be focused as a father and parent because we are preparing the next generation to solve problems that the current and previous generations were unable to solve and to advance those things needing to be improved upon in our community.

Q: Last elections, you ran under the United Progressive Party (UPP) and was very passionate about restructuring the parish of St George. Since the elections have you still been fighting to ensure that poor people in that area are taken care of by the Government?

A: When one decides to run for elections, the structure dictates you run as a candidate representing a parish. I choose St George North but would have preferred St George South. It took [me] almost two years [to canvass] the neighbourhood. Much time was taken away from family and businesses to do this. As I canvassed, I helped where I could, providing health tips and support, employment where possible and wrote government agencies on behalf of the constituents. I maintain contact with many of them. However, since elections, I have returned to fill voids in family and business to ensure I can continue to help those in need. We recently have been working on a petition to advocate for restoring a bus service in Workman’s, St George.

Q: As a Pan-Africanist, do you think more should be done to ensure the Day of National Significance and Emancipation Day are celebrated by all Barbadians?

A:  While I understand the importance of emancipation and other days of national significance, my focus wouldn’t be on the celebration of those events above ensuring that the significance of these events is institutionalized and communicated in our day-to-day realities starting first with the civil service. The delivery of services, education, health care and otherwise must come from an understanding of the significance of these events, more so than a celebration. This way, these events will be celebrated every minute of every day. When health care is provided with exceptional delivery, many would consider there was a time when we as a people did not have access.

Q: As the owner of Healing Earth Incorporated and Good Life Café, how important is it that Barbadians ensure their bodies are healthy?

A: As the owner of two establishments that focus on health and wellness I know and understand the importance of empowering all citizens from early with the understanding of how the amazing machine called the human body works and how it should be protected and defended. It is important to do this despite commerce and industry.

Q: What is the process of making the products of your Healing Earth Life Incorporated?

A: We are the distributor of prime food-based vitamins, and supplements. We also produce herbal formulas by drying, grinding and combining herbs to produce herbal formulas void of fillets and synthetic additives used in commercial herbal products for machine lubrication. Our products are manufactured locally and we use manual production to maintain the authenticity of the plants and formula.

Q: How important is it to use only natural products in one’s body?

A: Using natural products is very important to me. The less processed foods and chemicals we place on and in our bodies, the healthier our civilization would be. This also includes the reduced use of medications as the population is over medicated and under-educated to foster economic activity.

Q: Is it important that Barbadians learn that they can be healed by natural remedies more so than Western medicine?

A: It is important that we recognize and acknowledge our historical legacy in dealing with the healing arts. African people and their descendants have always practiced healing modalities and used herbs and natural remedies. Western medicine is quite recent in the grand scheme of our historical significance on the planet. Western medicine, however, is good at diagnosing and dealing with traumatic incidents and emergencies. However, for managing the day-to-day wellness, with proper education one would live relatively long and healthy lives without visiting a doctor. Unless, of course, there is an accident.

Q: How can people reach you?

A: You can telephone us at 271-5368 or find us online on Facebook @ Healing Earth Barbados and @The Good Life Barbados. (LG)