Typhoon Ondoy (Ketsana) disaster relief efforts in San Francisco, CA
Please watch out for updates in this posting.
Please see October 2-5, 2009 updates here.
Updates from the 12 regions of NaFFAA will soon be found at our national website, http://NaFFAA.org.
Posted in Facebook, from Joy Martinez:
“Something inspiring: Caught on TV- Man rescued in a rubberboat asked, “28 na ba ngayon?” Cameraman: “Opo, 28.” Man somberly replied, “Bday ko na pala.” Rescuers who were paddling hard turned to him in surprise before slowly singing, …”happy birthday to you…” Even in the midst of devastation the Filipino spirit never ceases to acknowledge and celebrate the gift of life.”
Posted in Facebook, from Mary Anne Alcordo-Solomon:
“To the dollar earners, your $1=PHP48 can buy 4 cans of sardines or 3 cans of corned beef or 12 packs of noodles or 3 kilos of rice.”
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From Lorna Dietz, Regional Vice Chair of NaFFAA R8 / NaFFAA Online Coordinator, regarding monetary donations:
We’ve received several inquiries on how everyone can help if they reside outside the Philippines. I collected some information from my Facebook account. The information will most likely be expanded soon after our coordinating meeting on Tuesday, Sept. 29, especially regarding donation centers for goods. Please check in often.
Philippine National Red Cross - http://www.redcross.org.ph/Site/PNRC/wtd.aspx
9/30/2009 - Update from Bing Branigin, NaFFAA Region 2, thru Louie Pawid & Dennis Mendiola. “Fil-Am donations for Typhoon Ondoy effort now possible through PAYPAL at give@redcross.org.ph.”
Most urgent needs
Food items: Rice, noodles, canned goods, sugar, iodized salt, cooking oil, monggo beans and potable water
Medicines: Paracetamol, antibiotics, analgesic, oral rehydration salts, multivitamins and medications to treat diarrheal diseases
Non-food items: Bath soaps, face towels, shampoo, toothbrush, toothpaste, plastic mats, blankets, mosquito nets, jerry cans, water containers, water purification tablets, plastic sheetings, and Laundry soap
Rehabilitation Programs: Shelter materials for house repair
American Red Cross - 1-800-435-7669 (posted by Joseph Francia, GMA Pinoy TV)
http://newsroom.redcross.org/2009/09/28/typhoon-ketsana-ondoy-in-philippines-and-vietnam/
Quoted - The American Red Cross is monitoring the situation and remains in communication with our Red Cross partners in the area. Although there hasn’t been an appeal for international assistance, the American Red Cross is prepared to mobilize support, including relief supplies, trained personnel or financial assistance if necessary.
Ayala Foundation USA - http://www.af-usa.org/donate_now.aspa>
GMA Kapuso Foundation - http://www.kapusofoundation.com/donate
(credit card donations)
ABS-CBN Foundation - www.abscbnfoundation.org
From Keesa Ocampo, ABS-CBNi - US donations can be sent to: ABS-CBN Foundation,150 Shoreline Dr.Redwood City, CA 94065
Heartbridge International Foundation’s List of Contact Persons (for information) in the USA - http://02c3ec5.netsolhost.com/breakingnews.html
Xoom.com is offering fee-free money transfers to the Philippine National Red Cross (PNRC)
- You can donate to the relief efforts by visiting Xoom.com and entering the coupon code “HELPONDOY” to make a fee-free money transfer donation to the Philippine National Red Cross. This special coupon code is valid until Friday October 9, 2009. Source: http://rfonline.holy-order.org/guild-news/119-operation-ketsana-xoom-free-transfer-to-philppine-national-red-cross
- From Yvette Tan, via Twitter on 9/30/09: RT @wwwgmanewstv: Breaking News : iRemit waives remittance fees for Ondoy victims: Starting October 1, Wednesday.
http://bit.ly/18cvu7
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Please go ahead and forward, download, print, or embed this important letter from the Philippine Consulate General’s office in San Francisco. The contact information re: donations to the Philippine Red Cross and donations-in-kind is also found here.
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FILIPINO AMERICAN COMMUNITY COORDINATING MEETINGS:
If you are from the San Francisco Bay Area, the National Federation of Filipino American Associations (NaFFAA), Region 8-Northern CA, will be co-coordinating a meeting with other Fil-Am organizations & healthcare professionals — to discuss the aid/assistance process on Tuesday, Sept. 29, 2009 at 7:30pm at the 5th floor Social Hall, Philippine Center Building (where the Philippine Consulate is located), 447 Sutter Street, San Francisco, CA 94108. Your contact persons will be Viki Bamba (former NaFFAA R8 Regional Chair) & Dr. Carmelo Roco & Bernadette Roco.
PLEASE COME!
Thank you.
Lorna Dietz
NaFFAA R8 Vice Chair
on behalf of Jose Pecho, NaFFAA R8 Chair
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From: Greg B. Macabenta
Date: Sun, Sep 27, 2009 at 11:32 AM
Subject: TYPHOON ONDOY DEVASTATION
All NaFFAA Officers and Members,
The devastation in Metro Manila caused by Typhoon Ondoy - which brought one month’s worth of rain in only 12 hours - calls for a humanitarian response from all of us in the US. The devastation is severe. While the hardest hit are the areas of Quezon City, Pasig and Rizal, the water rose as high as 7 feet in the Sukat Area in Paranaque where I have a home. Mercifully, everyone in the house is safe. But the casualties and fatalities in Metro Manila continue to rise.
We urge everyone to help and to pass on this appeal to your respective networks.
To those who would like to donate cash or goods, our suggestions are as follows:
1. Work closely with your local Philippine consulates which are coordinating relief operatiions.
2. Or course your donations through Ayala Foundation USA or the Philippine National Red Cross.
Those of you who have homes or relatives in the affected areas may, of course, find alternative means to help.
We do not advise that NaFFAA itself should receive donations for this calamity. We do not have the resources and the infrastructure for delivering these to the victims. However, we urge every city, state and regional chapter to get organized so that they can efffectively urge donations and channel these to the proper relief agencies.
We will keep you posted on developments as they come, including contact numbers of the proper relief agencies.
Thank you very much. Let us pray for the victims and generously help.
Greg B. Macabenta
National Chair, NaFFAA
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From Lorna Dietz:
HERE IS A YOUTUBE VIDEO HIGHLIGHTING THE DEVASTATION. TAKEN FROM MANOLO QUEZON’S BLOG, The Daily Dose.
FROM THE BLOG, PEDESTRIAN OBSERVER.
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FROM SAN FRANCISCO BAY AREA
MESSAGE FROM RUDY ASERCION, WEST BAY PILIPINO MULTI-SERVICE CENTER (and NaFFAA Region 8’s City & County of San Francisco Chair):
WEST BAY CHILDREN AND THEIR FAMILIES TO KEEP CENTER OPEN TILL 10PM DAILY TO COLLECT DONATIONS. VOLUNTEERS WELCOME. DONORS MAY DEDUCT CONTRIBUTIONS EXEMPT FROM FEDERAL INCOME… TAX UNDER SECTION 501 (c) 3. FILAM COMMUNITY INVITED TO DROP OFF FOOD, CLOTHING OR CHECKS AT 175-7TH STREET SAN FRANCISCO, CA.CALL 415 431-6266 FOR INFORMATION.
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PLACES TO VOLUNTEER
Charisse Aquino, a San Francisco and Manila-based FilAm anthropologist & adventure tourism entrepreneur, updated her Facebook with some vital comments:
9/30/09, evening in Manila - Eusebio Gym in Pasig needs volunteers. Imagine, 3 volunteers for 300 evacuees. 1:100. Kawawa.
9/30/09 evening in Manila - Evacuation centers need Portalets, please pass! And more kids getting sick, please ask all your doctor friends to volunteer their time, and ask the pharmacies to donate more medicines
Charisse asked for an updated listing of places to volunteer in Manila (Facebook). Here are some of the responses.
9/30/09 - From Izah Morales: Here’s the website of DSWD. Department of Social Welfare & Development, http://vrplus.dswd.gov.ph/
9/30/09 - From Izah Morales: Evacuation Centers, list of verified relief centers
http://www.gmanews.tv/story/173288/list-of-verified-relief-centers-for-ondoy-victims
But re: Pasig, you can go there in the Municipal Hall of Pasig. The evacuation center is right beside the Municipal Hall.
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UPDATES FROM JOY MARTINEZ (CEBU), ONE OF THE PHILIPPINES’ FOREMOST ENVIRONMENTAL PLANNERS & GREEN ARCHITECTURE ADVOCATES:
9/29/09, Cebu - Dear friends from New York - NEW YORK: Disaster Relief drop off center @ Pandayan Center, 406 W40th St. Between 9th and 10th Aves. New York, NY 10018 or call 212.564.6057. CALIFORNIA: donate at branches of Island Pacific Supermarket, and they’ll ship it to the Philippines.
9/29/09, Cebu - With more than 100K people in shelters, stagnant water, I’m fearing an outbreak of disease that we need to address NOW! My brother in Philhealth is willing to provide coverage for affected families and medicines but needs sponsor partners. Sample: Sponsor gives P60k, Philhealth gives coverage to 200 families and P30K worth of meds. Please call Jam @687-4956 or email mwbacareza@philhealth.gov.ph.
9/29/09, Cebu - For friends abroad, here’s another way to help…thank you for your kindness to our kapwa Pilipino. The World Food Programme at https://www.wfp.org/donate/ondoy
QUOTED:
A donation of:
- $18 provides a family with rice for 2 weeks
- $90 feeds 5 families for 2 weeks
- $180 feeds 10 families for 2 weeks
And if you are capable of going that extra mile, $18,000 will provide 1000 families with rice for 2 weeks.
Joy Martinez is sending updates from Cebu via Facebook, where the first container of donated goods has been loaded on an Aboitiz shipping vessel tonight (September 29 in Manila at 10:30pm), bound for Manila. Please email Lorna Dietz at NaFFAANorcal@gmail.com if you want to be connected to Cebu-based volunteer efforts.
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UPDATES FROM YVETTE TAN, GlossMania of Twitter
9/29/09, Manila - RT @ageofbrillig: RT @giboteodoro For those who can’t get through NDCC Rescue Hotlines. They now have a text/call line: 0917 733 4256
or from the US, 0-11-63-917-733-4256
National Disaster Coordinating Council’s website: http://ndcc.gov.ph/home/
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OTHER LINKS WITH VALUABLE INFORMATION (DONATIONS TO MANILA FROM OVERSEAS):
MoonGirl - http://moongirl.wordpress.com/2009/09/28/donating-to-manila-from-abroad/
MoonGirl has collected a lot of information — from Australia, Europe, to the US, where citizen volunteers have made their homes “temporary donation centers.” Thank you to Joey Alarilla for informing Luna about our website’s updates from San Francisco, CA.
Click on LINKS at the Comments section below.
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UPDATES FROM USA-BASED FRIENDS: Please contact them directly and let them know that NaFFAA Region 8 referred you to them. Thanks!
Southern California
From: Bisaya Bulletin
Date: Tue, Sep 29, 2009 at 10:27 PM
Subject: Relief Convergence for Typhoon “Ondoy”
Let’s all converge in helping our brothers and sisters in Northern Philippines affected by typhoon “Ondoy”. BisayaBulletin.com invites everyone to join in our collective effort to donate relief goods and bring them to a designated place in Los Angeles, CA (specific location to be determined in separate email).
Join us in packing and sorting your donations on October 10, 2009, Saturday between 9am - 3pm. We have arranged a Manila forwarder offering free freight for your donations and goods bound for Manila. Items will be picked up by 3pm so please plan to come early. Let us all collaborate and be instruments in helping our country in dire need. Please forward this information to all.
Suggestions for donations:
Sack of rice
Balikbayan Boxes
Rubber Slippers
Alcohol
Soap and Toiletries
Medicine
Cotton
Bandages
Noodles
Canned Goods (ready to eat)
Clothes, Towels and Blankets
Note: Details on Venue will be emailed upon determination***
Regards,
www.bisayabulletin.com
“from our little visayan corner to the global community”
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Charina Vergara Carrera, through Facebook
Contact: Cha.Carrera@gmail.com
9/30/09 - REPOSTING FROM PETE AVENDANO: We’re doing a fundraising concert on Sunday at St. Genevieve Church in Panorama City for the benefit of the victims of Typhoon Ondoy. The concert is going to be free but we would like to ask for donations. All monetary donations will go to help our kababayans who were affected by this calamity.
9/30/09 - Relief goods (clothing, beddings, blankets, and canned goods are accepted at ANY ATLAS cargo location (including Atlas outlets with Seafood City, http://www.seafoodcity.com)
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Prosy DeLaCruz, through Facebook
Contact: DeLaCruz.Prosy@gmail.com
9/30/09 - Your donations will be matched dollar for dollar up to $100,000 until October 6, 2009, if we succeed, we will have donated Php 10 million to the Typhoon Ondoy families and directly to the children through UNICEF. I donated $150 and it was doubled. If you donate, send an email to TyphoonOndoyDonationAcctg@gmail.com — report the amount and organization you donated to. I volunteer to tally every night.
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USEFUL INFORMATION
HOW TO DISINFECT WATER:
Source - From Clorox FAQ.
You can copy and paste this section and send it to your relatives and friends in the Philippines.
Q. Can Clorox® Regular-Bleach be used to disinfect water?
(Remember, 1 quart is equal to 4 cups.)
A. Yes. When boiling of water for 1 minute is not possible in an emergency situation, you can disinfect your drinking water with Clorox® Regular-Bleach as follows:
1. Remove suspended particles by filtering or letting particles settle to the bottom.
2. Pour off clear water into a clean container.
3. Add 8 drops of Clorox® Regular-Bleach (not scented or color-safe) to one gallon of water (2 drops to 1 quart). For cloudy water, use 16 drops per gallon of water (4 drops to 1 quart).
4. Allow the treated water to stand for 30 minutes. Water should have a slight bleach odor. If not, repeat and wait another 15 minutes. The treated water can then be made palatable by pouring it between clean containers several times.
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FROM YVETTE TAN, VIA FACEBOOK (Via Joelle Jacinto and Oli Reyes)
Reposting: Message from a doctor - For people whose houses have been submerged:
1. Make sure you use CLOROX for dirt and not just Lysol to kill molds.
Then 2. Spray/Fumigate against mosquitos, otherwise there will be an outbreak of dengue & cholera may follow. Please pass.
(Note: Earth-friendly MESSY BESSY or PLANTEX is better than Clorox.)