It took a super typhoon Haiyan to witness the tremendous outpouring of helps and assistance from the millions of Filipinos abroad, Canadians from all walks of lives, from more than 43 countries including our adopted country Canada where our current government has donated $20 million and additional millions of dollars donation as matching dollar for dollar on the amount donated by Canadians between November 8 and December 23, 2013.
The reported billions of pesos of damage on properties and more than 5,000 lost of lives had moved the people in the global village to mobilize their organizations, business enterprises, churches, agencies, governments and millions of individuals to donate millions of hard cash, relief goods, basic needs, hospital teams and infrastructure groups and most specially millions of volunteers to help the typhoon victims:11.9 million Filipinos are affected; over 5,780 deaths, 26,233 injured; and 1,700 missing; estimated 4 million people remain displaced with over 3.9 million living outside evacuation centres; 2.4 million people need of food relief; 2,200 health facilities damaged across the affected areas; and 5.6 million in livelihoods have been completely destroyed, lost or disrupted.
And there are many poignant ways of raising funds for the typhoon victims:
1) A niece of Gale Asper, a young girl requested that the money to buy the gifts for Hanukah would be donated to the Philippine typhoon victims.
2) An obit of a deceased woman has the request from the survivors that the money intended to be given in honor of the deceased would be donated to the victims of the Haiyan typhoon in the Philippines.
3) And this is an amazing feat for the organizers of the “Show For the Philippines” at Burton Cummings Theatre last December 6. Note this: the group consists of the Filipino Journal, 103.1 Virgin Radio, SHAW and POP Sports and Entertainment took almost two days- planned on Nov.20 and announced the show on November 22 with a venue, performers, and sponsors! And tremendously successful with more $100,000 raised for typhoon victims.
4.) And many more heart warming stories chronicling how people opened their hearts and wallets. And myself, answering the phone calls from donors and mostly, I told them to go direct to the Red Cross by giving the Red Cross number and website.
Never in my experience to help the victims of typhoons, earthquake, floods and landslide in the Philippines and other countries like Haite, what Haiyan or Yolanda had the universal chains of helping others by opening our hearts and minds to help our kababayans and thus, this super typhoon had created heroes in our midst. I won’t forget how every associations and groups in the Filipino communities in Canada and in the USA answered the call for help and assistance.
UPDATE given by the Red Cross, thru Tami Kjerulf, Red Cross volunteer who helped recognizing volunteers of MaCCFA and FCTPAM. A joint initiative to raise fund for the typhoon victims:
1. $29 millions raised in Canada as of last Friday;
2. Philippine National Red Cross (PRC) has distributed over 1,790,000 liters of water, as well as 157,000 food packages which have reached over a million people;
3.The Red Cross with the support from the Government of Canada, has deployed a mobile field hospital to provide critical life-saving health services to hard-hit communities: a) The operating and delivery rooms moved from the ERU tents back into the Ormoc District Hospital’s facilities; b) carried out 157 baby deliveries and performed 51 surgeries; c) the Operating Theatre and delivery space have been converted into additional post-partum and pediatric wards; d) in the pediatric ward, the most common diagnose are acute respiratory infections and gastroenteritis.
4) 350 evacuation centres are providing temporary shelter to 94,310 individuals.
More update are to be published in the future issue. And if you have a story about a poignant and amazing fundraising initiative please email to: info@filipinojournal.com or rod.cantiveros@gmail.com.Red Cross on-line donation:www.redcross.ca or 1-800-418-1111
