From Lorna Dietz - Editor’s Note:I just received a re-tweet (Twitter.com) from my sister, Noemi Dado, that Manolo Quezon (or Manuel Quezon III) had tweeted about the THE PHILIPPINE DISASTER MANAGEMENT STORY: ISSUES AND CHALLENGES. Published October 2001 by Asian Disaster Preparedness Center.
For the newly-formed San Francisco-based Philippine Disaster Relief Coalition, this is very timely information.
To read Oct. 2-5 updates, click here.
To read September 30 updates, click here.
This posting is updated as fast as we can humanly possible. Thank you for your patience.
IN THE NEWS
MEDIA ADVISORY / OCT. 9 BENEFIT FOR VICTIMS OF TYPHOON KETSANA
Updates from Keith Kamisugi (through Odette Keeley of New America Media):
The highlights:
Tonight, Friday, October 9, 2009 - 6 p.m. to 10 p.m. Program starts at 7 p.m.
* Senator Leland Yee, Assemblymember Jerry Hill, S.F. Board of Supervisors President David Chiu, AC Transit Board Member Joel Young, S.F. City College Board Member Steve Ngo and Philippine Consul General to San Francisco Marciano Paynor, Jr. are expected to attend.
* Proceeds will be donated to ABS-CBN Foundation for the typhoon victims.
* Event chair Keesa Ocampo will be available on-site for interviews.
Sen. Dianne Feinstein, Assemblymember Fiona Ma, S.F. Dist. Attorney Kamala Harris, S.F. Board of Supervisors President David Chiu Serve as Honorary Co-Hosts of Oct. 9 Benefit for Victims of Typhoon Ketsana. Honorary co-hosts also include S.F. Assessor Phil Ting, S.F. school board vice-president Jane Kim and member Hydra Mendoza; more than 20 community organizations part of event coalition.
SAN FRANCISCO (Revised Oct. 9, 2009) - A coalition of community leaders and organizations in the San Francisco Bay Area have teamed up to help raise awareness and funds on behalf of more than 700,000 people displaced as a result of the floods that inundated 80 percent of Metro Manila in the Philippines last week. Typhoon Ketsana (known in the Philippines as Ondoy) claimed the lives of hundreds of Filipinos in the worst such calamity in the region’s history.
WHAT: Benefit for Victims of Typhoon Ketsana (Ondoy)
WHEN: Friday, October 9, 2009 - 6 p.m. to 10 p.m. Program at 7 p.m.
WHERE: Lot 46, 46 Geary Avenue, San Francisco, Calif.
WEB: http://hapihour.org/ondoy - for radio/audio, BayAreaBenefit.org should be used.
EDITORS: Event chair Keesa Ocampo and other organizers are available for interviews.
The event will be hosted by Aimee Allison, host of KPFA’s Morning Show with featured DJs Chief Xcel of Blackalicious, DJ Big Rich, DJ Romeo and peformances by Kristine Sinajon, Gabe Bondoc and Patrick Landeza.
The “Benefit for Victims of Typhoon Ketsana (Ondoy)” is supported by a number of elected officials serving as honorary co-hosts, including U.S. Senator Dianne Feinstein, Congresswoman Jackie Speier, Board of Equalization Chair Betty Yee, Senator Leland Yee, Assemblymember Fiona Ma, Assemblymember Jerry Hill, SF. Mayor Gavin Newsom, S.F. District Attorney Kamala Harris, S.F. Assessor Phil Ting, S.F. Board of Supervisors President David Chiu, S.F. Board of Education Vice-President Jane Kim, S.F. Board of Education Member Hydra Mendoza, AC Transit Board Member Joel Young and S.F. City College Board Member Steve Ngo. Philippine Consul General to San Francisco Marciano Paynor, Jr. is also an honorary co-host.
Community organization partners for the event include: ABS-CBN Foundation-USA, Asian American Bar Association, Asian American Journalists Association, SF Chapter, Asian Business League, Bay Area Asian Pacific American Legislative Staffers, Bliss Entertainment, Chinese for Affirmative Action, Citizen Hope, Clubworks, DineForChange, Drink for a Cause, Fil-Am Chamber of Commerce Santa Clara, Filipina Women’s Network, Filipino American Arts Exposition, Filipino American Chamber of Commerce of San Francisco, Filipino Bar Association of Northern California, hapihour.org, Inspire Hope Institute, Kaya: Filipino Americans for Progress, Manilatown Heritage Foundation, National Federation of Filipino-American Associations, Philippine American Press Club USA, Philippine Consulate General - San Francisco, San Francisco Fil-Am Jazz Festival Community, San Francisco-Manila Sister City Committee, Soulciety.org and Young Filipino Professionals Association.
Organizers are requesting a $20 donation at the door. Proceeds will be donated to the ABS-CBN Foundation, which has served over 100,000 families to date. Advance tickets available, as well as complete event and contact information, at http://hapihour.org/ondoy.
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Version 10/09/09
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From: Jacqui Conclara
Date: Fri, Oct 9, 2009 at 2:02 PM
Subject: URGENT: FOR IMMEDIATE PRESS RELEASE:
Dear Friends in the Fil-Am Media,
Please find attached the latest press release on LBC’s Typhoon Ondoy Project. Starting October 8, LBC can no longer accept donations containing used clothing in behalf of the Typhoon Ondoy victims.
Sincerely, Jacqui
Jacqueline P. Conclara
Coordinator, Marketing Dept.
LBC Mundial Corporation/LBC Foundation
363 East Grand Avenue
South San Francisco, CA 94080
Tel. No. (800) 338-5424, ext. 3040
Fax No. (866) 647-3561
www.teamlbc.com
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Patricia G. Garcia/Jacqueline P. Conclara
Tel. No. (650) 876-0410; 1-800-338-5424, ext. 3024/ext. 3040
Email: tricia@teamlbc.com; jacqui@teamlbc.com
HANDS TIED BY A PHILIPPINE LAW, LBC CAN NO LONGER
ACCEPT DONATIONS OF USED CLOTHING FOR ONDOY VICTIMS
South San Francisco, Calif. – By virtue of Republic Act (RA) 4653, which was passed in 1966, LBC Mundial Corporation (LBC USA) can no longer accept donations of used clothing in behalf of the victims of Typhoon Ondoy (international name: Ketsana) beginning October 8.
LBC was informed of this directive from the Philippine government only last October 7 at a community meeting at the Philippine Consulate General (PCG) in San Francisco.
The meeting, organized by local Filipino community leaders, was held to discuss fundraising activities for the families affected by typhoon Ondoy.
“Used clothing as donations is prohibited under Republic Act No. 4653, thus the Bureau of Customs can seize/apprehend said importation,” stated a letter to the community from Consul General Marciano A. Paynor, Jr.
The letter further explained that “donations in kind (except used clothing) shall be exempted from custom duties and taxes provided that these are directly addressed to the Department of Social Welfare and Development.”
LBC wants to apologize to all individuals and Fil-Am organizations that have shown their solidarity to their “kababayans” affected by the flood.
“We understand and appreciate how much time and effort were spent by Filipinos in the U.S. to gather these donations of used clothing. We are all heroes to Ondoy’s victims. Unfortunately, we need to follow the law and the directive from Malacañang,” said Hugo Bonilla, LBC USA’s president and CEO.
Alternatives
Meanwhile, LBC will still continue to provide free sea cargo and money remittance services to other in-kind and cash donations to the typhoon victims.
Cash donations sent through LBC USA will still be remitted to the Sagip Kapamilya project of ABS-CBN Foundation, Inc.
According to the PCG in San Francisco (PCGSF), the Department of Social Welfare and Development has released a list of priority relief items for the typhoon victims.
These includes: food, non-food, mats, blankets, flashlights, emergency lamps, tents, generators, water container, hygiene kits (bath soap, toothbrush, toothpaste, laundry soap, feminine napkins) baby diapers, and slippers.
The PCGSF also released a separate list of priority relief needs from the Department of Health.
These includes medicines for wounds, the common colds, skin diseases, diarrhea, typhoid fever and cholera as well as intravenous supplies, and other medical supplies and equipment.
Philippine Consulate General
447 Sutter St., San Francisco, CA 94108
415-433-6666 ext. 313 (public information section)
*www.philippineconsulate-sf.org
San Francisco, 07 October 2009 – The San Francisco Police Department (SFPD) donated several boxes of canned goods, noodles, candies, and other food items as part of their humanitarian assistance to victims of Typhoon Ondoy in the Philippines.
SFPD Captain Eric Quema, a Filipino American and one of the ranking police officers in the Bay Area, handed over the donations to Philippine Consul General to San Francisco Marciano A. Paynor, Jr. today at the consulate.
The donations from the SFPD included food items given by Captain Quema, Inspector Milanda Moore and other personnel of the Special Investigations Division as well as those collected from Lt. Louis Espinda, Sgt. Ray Cruz, Officers Dizon and Gummo and police personnel from the Bayview Police Station.
Consul General Paynor, Jr. welcomed the donations from the San Francisco police force as “indicative of their concern for the situation in the Philippines.”
“We have a number of Filipino Americans in the San Francisco Police Department who still have families and relatives in the Philippines. Their and their colleagues’ immediate response to the call for humanitarian assistance for the flood victims will add to the on-going relief effort being undertaken by the Bay Area Filipino American community,” he said.
Captain Quema is one of the founding members of the SFPD Police Exchange Training Program (PET) with the Philippine National Police (PNP). The program, conceptualized nine years ago by SFPD officers with Filipino ethnicity, has now expanded to include other police officers from San Francisco’s culturally diverse communities. Under the exchange program, the SFPD and their PNP counterparts share best practices on key areas as counter-terrorism, defense and security, and law enforcement. END
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FROM THE AYALA FOUNDATION USA’S E-BULLETIN
October 6, 2009
Announcement!
AF-USA is waiving its 5% service fee on all donations for Typhoon Ondoy until the end of October 2009!
AF-USA Partners with Companies for their Employee giving program
10/5/2009
Ayala Foundation USA
Some of the biggest and most prestigious names in the world of business are listing Ayala Foundation USA in their employee giving and corporate matching programs. Chevron, AmGen, Microsoft and PG&E are just some of the companies that have listed AF-USA as another vehicle by which their employees can spread the fire of volunteerism.
From: FILIPINA WOMEN’S NETWORK
FWN 100 Selection and Gala Awards Host Committees
Date: Wed, Oct 7, 2009 at 1:40 PM
Subject: Invitation to the Awards Gala (Oct 30) honoring The 100 Most Influential Filipina Women in the U.S.
Greetings!
URGENT APPEAL: Women and girls in the Philippines need your support - many of them single mothers and shelters for domestic violence, rape victims and survivors - affected by the typhoons that recently hit the Philippines - the worst in 40 years.
Filipina Women’s Network has collaborated with Feed the Hungry to ensure women, girls and the shelters are not neglected. To donate, please go to http://feedthehungryphil.org and indicate on your donation “FWN Women & Children Fund Disaster Relief”.
See September 30, 2009 updates here.
October 2, 2009
We are documenting the latest information that we received from our reliable sources and contacts. Please confirm whatever you get here. We do our fact-checking as quickly and humanly possible. We have also been advised that as a 501 (c) (3) non-profit organization, there are certain words and actions we cannot use/do, such as “lobbying,” “political,” “political endorsements” and “political fundraising.” Thank you. - Lorna Dietz, NaFFAA Region 8 Vice Chair
* * *
From: Jose Pecho
Date: Sun, Oct 4, 2009 at 10:51 AM
Subject: Only $100,000 from US Government for Victims of Typhoon Ondoy
Dear Friends:
NaFFAA in conjunction with other community organizations will seek the support of US Senate and Congressional leaders to provide the Philippines, Asia’s oldest democracy, more emergency and humanitarian aid.
An amazing $100,000 has been provided the Philippines by the US government. In comparison the European Commission in the Philippines has provided over $2 Million in assistance. Below my signature line, is an article providing assistance information from countries who have pledged or donated to help the typhoon ravaged portion of Manila.
There are 4 million Filipinos residing in the US. If each of us pledged $10 each, it would raise a whopping $40,000,000! This amount would make a bigger impact than any government or country could do and would go a long way toward helping the 800,000 families displaced by this catastrophe.
We hope to provide further information in the days ahead on how you personally can help. Please go to http://naffaar8.com for further details.
Sincerely,
Jose Pecho, Chair
Region 8, Northern California
National Federation of Filipino
American Associations (NaFFAA)
http://naffaar8.com
By Kristine L. Alave
Philippine Daily Inquirer First Posted 21:33:00 10/02/2009
Filed Under: Foreign Aid, Foreign affairs & international relations, Ondoy, Weather
MANILA, Philippines—Donations for the relief and recovery assistance in the aftermath of Tropical Storm Ondoy” from the international community has reached over half a billion pesos, the Department of Foreign Affairs said.
Foreign Affairs Secretary Alberto Romulo reported to President Macapagal-Arroyo that donations from various governments have reached P566 million as of Oct. 2. The National Disaster Coordinating Council, Department of Social Welfare and Development, Philippine National Red Cross and other agencies have been authorized to receive the donations, which will greatly complement the government’s efforts.
“The Philippine Government is deeply appreciative of our international partners’ swift response to our call for aid. The DFA will work with the NDCC, DSWD, PNRC and other agencies to ensure that these donations reach our distressed kababayans as soon as possible,” Secretary Romulo said.
Ondoy, which whipped Manila Saturday, caused severe flooding in the metropolis and nearby provinces.
The government said nearly 300 people died from the disaster, which also displaced hundreds of thousands of Filipinos.
The European Commission in the Philippines has allotted 2 million euros (P138 million) in urgent relief funding, the DFA reported. The Embassy of Spain in the Philippines has ordered the release of 150,000 euros (approximately P10 million) for food aid, while Spanish organization Accion Contra el Hambre donated 250,000 euros (approximately P17 million).
The Swiss government also issued CHF250,000 (approximately P11 million) to support emergency related operation which will be funded by the Swiss Red Cross to the Philippine National Red Cross. The French Foreign Ministry has earmarked initial 10,000 euros (P690,000) to the Philippine National Red Cross as its initial contribution.
Germany is providing 500,000 euros (roughly P35 million) in emergency humanitarian aid for the victims, which will be placed at the disposal of German humanitarian aid organizations The combined European aid reached P254 million.
Aside from the European partners, other countries like the US and Canada sent financial assistance to the victims. The US government donated US$100,000 for relief efforts, while Canada pledged Canadian $5 million (approximately US$4.7 million).
China pitched in US$100,000 check donation; US$10,000 to the PNRC; while Chinese firm Huawei donated US$30,000. Singapore raised US$30,000 and a further US$20,000 in seed money to jumpstart a donations drive by the Singapore Red Cross.
The Republic of Korea has donated emergency relief assistance in the form of rice, tents, medical supplies and other essential items worth $300,000 coursed through the Department of Social Welfare and Development. A Korean company, OCI Company Ltd., also donated $50,000 through the Philippine National Red Cross.
The Japanese government is sending $220,000 worth of relief goods to the Philippines. Australia pledged Australian $1 million (approximately US$879,000) to support response and recovery activities.
The UN World Health Organization has launched earlier a $42,000 relief fund. The UN World Food Programme has also stepped up its efforts to provide immediate relief to the typhoon victims.
Basic necessities such as food, clean water, shelter, clothes, and medicines were in short supply in many communities and evacuation center.
A delegation of UN workers is set to arrive in Manila on Saturday to help in the relief and rehabilitation operations. UN WFP executive director Josette Sheeran said the organization will have a three-month emergency operation to bring food and other assistance to people affected by Ondoy.
Hello all — Thank you all so much for taking the time to meet last Tuesday evening at the Philippine Consulate. It was truly a strong showing of unity, compassion, and generosity. Many of us are involved in a myriad of relief efforts and the consensus of the meeting was that we, as well as the flood victims, will benefit from consolidating and streamlining our charitable efforts. This will save us valuable time/resources, avoid re-inventing the wheel, and duplication of efforts. Also, all agreed that this tragedy/disaster was an opportunity for our community to unify and harness our talents/skills to assist the flood victims. Moreover, we hope to create a formalized emergency response system and infrastructure to address future disasters, emergencies, and calamaties.
In an effort to move forward with such objectives, discrete tasks were discussed and division of labor identified.
There may be more steering Committees that will be formed along the way so stay tuned.
Overall Coordination: Marivic Bamba
Co-Coordinator: Bernadette Roco
Everyone is encouraged to participate, all your ideas are welcome…so please don’t be shy. Many of the members are already working hard at their respective tasks. Mark Grafilo of KAYA, Chair of Political Committee, has sent out notices on advocating support from USAID.
By the way, we urge all members to join Facebook as it is an effective media tool to publicize our activities and notify all of upcoming activities.
As we resolved at the meeting, we will be meeting EVERY Wednesday at 7pm at the Philippine Consulate, 5th floor Social Hall.
See you all next Wednesday, October 7, at 7pm. Please check with the Reception Area since the meeting venue might change. It might take place in the first floor, 447 Sutter Street.
