Hello, my name is Helga Babushka, and I am here to inspire many souls on earth. I came to Canada with my family when I was 17 years old. My first job was working at Tim Hortons, then at Walmart. While working at Walmart, I decided to take a caregiving course, which took me six months to finish.
I worked as a Care Aide for ten years and part-time cleaning houses to earn extra income. In 2020, I lost my job as a Care Aide and was devastated. I started vlogging on YouTube, but my content could have been better. I always wanted to vlog about the Philippines, but travelling during the pandemic was not an option.
A friend recommended starting a TikTok account, which I was skeptical about because I heard that being on TikTok required creating constant videos, and I was not ready for it. Eventually, I created a TikTok account and made some videos while inviting three family members to follow me.
During the pandemic, I asked my partner if I could start gardening in his backyard, and he made me a planter box. While gardening, I asked him to take a video of me, but I didn’t realize he was joking, saying, “Hello, everybody, this is my Filipina Gardener, and her name is Helga or Babushka.” I ended up posting it on TikTok, and it went viral.
I started gaining many followers, but haters commented, “Helga Babushka is not even a Filipino name.” From there, I ended up using H.B. as my name on TikTok. The more people followed me, the more haters I got. Many haters gave me ideas for what content I should create. Eventually, I started making skits, and more people followed and bashed me.
I used my haters’ comments to give me ideas and become creative. I created a lot of content about the Philippines and shared advice on the pros and cons of dating a Filipina, which led to many foreigners asking me to start a dating website. At first, I was skeptical since I had no idea where to start. My purpose then was to travel to the Philippines and help kids and the less fortunate. However, many of my followers convinced me to start a dating service, so I started a matchmaking service instead.
While helping men find traditional Filipina matches, I also worked on the charity I started years ago, “Project Helga,” which primarily helps kids and unfortunate people in the Philippines.
