Storm hits home but hope swells with fundraising relief efforts
Storm hits home but hope swells with fundraising relief efforts
By Rachelle Cruz
TORONTO–Evelyn learned that it took her niece, Malou, and her husband, 12 hours to ride the motor bike and pass through the rubble, layers of debris and pulverized roads to reach the storm-ravaged Tacloban City from Borongan, Eastern Samar. The trip alone, under normal conditions would be half that time. When Malou managed to get there, it was only to find that Jojo, her brother had died. Washed up somewhere, his family found him two days after the typhoon swept him away. They laid his body on top of a tomb in a cemetery because there was no place to bury him and their survival through this ordeal took precedence.
Edgar “Jojo” Zolo Mondonedo
Evelyn Calugay of PINAY, a member group of Migrante International, shared her story of how she lost her nephew Edgar “Jojo” Zolo Mondonedo over a telephone interview from Montreal. Jojo was only 45 years old, and leaves his wife and two children. Evelyn made rounds of calls to get an update, anticipating the news she’s been monitoring since Friday (Nov. 8).
“Hinanap nila yung pamilya ng asawa niya. Kasi nung bumabagyo bumaba yata pagkatapos may surge ng wave na pumasok sa building. (They looked for the family of his spouse. At the time of the typhoon, they went down and a surge of wave went inside the building.) They went to evacuate at a government building. And they were staying on the second floor. They went to higher ground just in case. But there was a surge of wave that went in the house and he drowned from there,” she recounted.
It was clear that she is frustrated by the slow reaction and response from the Philippine government.
“The government should have been prepared for before the storm, during the storm and after the storm. But they are not prepared for disaster response. Can you imagine four days after before they mobilized the military? What were they waiting for?” she cried out.
This past Monday (Nov. 11) was the last time Evelyn had heard any news from them.
As death toll rises to 2,357 and counting, with more than 600,000 people displaced, authorities are still struggling to send relief and aid to affected areas since the super typhoon made landfall. Relief efforts are being hampered down with looting and anarchy spreading throughout the city. Like Evelyn, many other Filipino-Canadians are still waiting news on their families and relatives affected by the storm that ravaged the eastern Philippines.
Karl Crisostomo Mijares, working and living overseas, is feeling helpless as he tries to get news from his relatives,
“I still haven’t spoken to my family in my hometown since Friday but some reports came to us saying that they are safe. We received reports that relief goods aren’t reaching some parts of Leyte including our town and this worries me so much…madaming (lots of) kids and elderly pa naman doon,” he said.
But as these tragic stories trickled in, help and donations from this side of the world poured out. And it’s a rainfall.
Migrante Canada launched the “Sagip-Migrante Fund Drive” to garner financial support for victims of Typhoon Yolanda,
“Donations will go to our team led by Migrante International that is now deployed to assist in the affected areas bringing with them essential needs such as rice, canned goods and bottled water and setting up soup kitchens,” Tess Agustin, chairperson of Migrante Canada explained.
Aside from sending relief goods, Migrante is also providing assistance in finding relatives. Agustin added that there will be a film screening of Busong-Palawan Fate, at Cuisine de Manille restaurant in Montreal this Friday from 6-8 p.m. and proceeds will benefit the flood victims.
Church groups and other organizations have also cobbled up their efforts. The United Church of Canada launched church-wide appeal for funds and support to the Haiyan/Yolanda typhoon victims. Even before the storm struck, they have alerted church members about this possibility of severe crisis,
“ We were in a waiting, watching, standing, ready-mode on Friday before the storm struck,” Patti Talbot, Team Lead – Church in Partnership Cluster and Asia Partnerships said.
“The United Church works closely with a number of partner organizations in the Philippines and will be working very closely with two key partners, United Church of Christ and the National Council of Churches in the Philippines. We know that they are in communities on the ground and they have already begun assessment of the needs and we know that they’ll be able to deliver,” she added.
Much like other agencies on the ground, they are struggling to respond to the peoples’ needs when the services are down. The Bishop of United Church of Christ east Visayas Jurisdictional area visited Tacloban this past weekend and saw that not all affected areas have been reached. Her heart sank when she saw dead bodies piled under planks of houses and buildings, as she witnessed the faces of people drowning in despair and suffering.
But hope swells and Talbot has been receiving many calls, not just from members of the church, but from others who are ready to help,
“I can tell you that we have been really overwhelmed by the immediate support that United Church (has received from) people. Our phones have been off the hook since yesterday and people have been asking how they can respond,” she said.
Caroline Mangosing, executive-director of Kapisanan Philippine Centre for Arts and Culture echoed those sentiments,
“True bayanihan spirit has come out in the young Filipino community of KAPISANAN and Carlos Bulosan Theatre. The response from individuals have been nothing short of inspiring. We are getting messages and calls and people coming to the centre wanting to help with the relief fundraising that we are spearheading. It’s been amazing,” she said.
KAPISANAN is teaming up with Carlos Bulosan Theatre for a fundraising event called #ProjectLiftPH on Dec. 4 at The Great Hall, 1087 Queen St W, Toronto. There will be music performances and a silent auction.
Across all borders, Filipinos unite. Back in Manila, the Local Government Academy (LGA) are ramping up their efforts to assist the flood victims,
“Everything in Leyte is in chaos,” David Joy Semilla, project officer at LGA said.
“But we at LGA have been collecting used clothes and canned food items and would be sending them as soon as possible. Our people need used clothes, food and medicines. I am asking the Filipino-Canadian community to help our kababayans back home,” he pleaded.
For more and partial listing of upcoming fundraising events or how you can help, see below:
• Tacos for Tacloban at Playa Cabana Hacienda on 14 Dupont St. 6 pm on November 25
• Canada for Philippines Benefit Concert, in partnership with Kol Hope Foundation for Children, in support of World Vision’s Philippine Disaster Relief Fund on November 24th, 2013, Toronto ON; http://www.eventbrite.com/e/canada-for-philippines-benefit-concert-tickets-9291329617?aff=eorg
• HELP PHILIPPINES! YOLANDA (HAIYAN) FUNDRAISER
Filipino-Canadian leaders from various organizations across the Greater Toronto Area have responded and called its members and the community as a whole to join in a multi-site HELP PHILIPPINES! YOLANDA (HAIYAN) FUNDRAISER on Sunday, November 17 from 1 pm to 6 pm. The fundraiser will take place on the following venues:
MISSISSAUGA – GATEWAY CENTRE FOR NEW CANADIANS – 3450 Wolfedale Road, Mississauga, ON L5C 2V6
NORTH YORK – PRESTIGE RESTAURANT 4544 Dufferin St. North York, ON M3H 5X2
SCARBOROUGH – LPJ FAMILY LIFE CENTRE, 132 Railside Road, Unit 15 Toronto, ON M3A 1A3
To donate call our Toll Free line 1 866-828-9259.
• Special screening of award-winning documentary “Bolinao 52” from the Vietnamese Association of Toronto (VAT) Time: 1:00 pm and 4:00 pm Sunday December 1, 2013 Location: VAT Activity Room – 3585 Keele St, North York
• Sagip Migrante is a joint program of Migrante International and Migrante Sectoral Party of Overseas Filipinos and their Families since Typhoon Ondoy in September 2009. For enquiry, please contact the National Office at telephone no: 63-2-9114910 or migrante2007@yahoo.com.ph.
For any cash donation, please remit it to:
Migrante International
Bank of the Philippine Islands
Kalayaan Branch
Peso Account No. 1993-0859-16
Dollar Account N0: 001994-0628-04
Swift Code: BOPIPHMM.
• Launch of Donation Drive for Typhoon Haiyan Relief
Mark Adler, Member of Parliament for York Centre, to Launch Donation Drive for Typhoon Haiyan Relief Efforts
Date: November 13, 2013
Time: 1 p.m. ET
Location: Yummy Market, 4400 Dufferin Street, North York, ON M3H 6A8
For more information, please contact:
Marnie MacDougall
Executive Assistant
Office of Mark Adler, M.P.
416-638-3700
mark.adler.c1@parl.gc.ca
• Alay Concert 2 Rise Up
Our Lady of Assumption Church – concert
December 7, 2013, Saturday, 7:00 p.m. at
Tickets are $15.00 for the general admission.
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