Immediate Responses & Temporary Solutions to Long-Term Problem

When I was in the Philippines a month ago, most of the Metro and the areas that I have went to look back to normal. The billboards are all up again on EdSA, everyone is back to work/school and there are not a lot of volunteer locations anymore since people have to go back to regular programming.

Ondoy was not in the news anymore or as much. Elections are coming up and so campaigning has begun and people are talking about political moves/hopes/worries. But from what I have seen, most things are back to normal again and I am actually hearing more news abroad about people helping than from people back at home.

So what now, Filipinos? Are we just going to provide temporary solutions to long-term problems? What can we do in order to be better prepared in the future?

Colored Pencils Fundraiser for Survivors of Asian Diasaters

OCTOBER 30, 2009    

6-8PM 

at PORTLAND STATE UNIVERSITY - SMSU BUILDING

come and join poets, artists, dancers, singers from the Asian region share the names, lives and stories of the affected and help raise funds that will support the long-term recovery of our peoples

Past Event Updates

The Filipino-American Association of Portland hosted a dinner-dance event last Sunday, October 11, 2009 to raise awareness and funds towards the Ondoy victims in the Philippines. Attendees of the event raised $3,200 that night and chose ABS-CBN Foundation as the receipient of the funds.

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LBC is proud to inform all our kababayans that LBC is now accepting USED CLOTHES relief items. This is after our office found a memo that allows donations of clothing to calamity affected areas. The deadline of sending in-kinds relief goods is on October 31, 2009. Please make sure to use LBC box 24x18x18 and place the following consignee in the relief boxes to ship the box for free:


Mr. Jose Garcia
LBC HARI NG PADALA FOUNDATION
LBC Hanger, General Aviation Center,
Domestic Airport Compound, Pasay City, Philippines

Donate Now!

Greater Salem Filipino American Association Charity Bingo Night

NAME OF EVENT: GSFAA Charity Bingo Night

DATE/TIME: November 14, 2009 / 6:00pm

SPONSORED BY: Greater Salem Filipino American Association

LOCATION: Houck Middle School / Commons Area

COST: $20 Pre sold ticket / $25 at the event

CONTACT: Marissa Musni - Chairperson  marissa_musni2001@yahoo.ccom

OTHER PERTINENT INFORMATION:  Proceeds will be donated to the Typhoon Victims in the Philippines.

Fundraising Event: 10.22.09

You are cordially invited to attend a political workshop and fundraising event for Typhoon Ondoy relief hosted by PSU Kaibigan and Portland CHRP.

Typhoon Ondoy: What the Philippine Government Is NOT Doing?
Thursday, October 22
5:30-6:30p.m.
Portland State University, SMSU 228
1825 SW Broadway
Light refreshments.

Free and open to all.
They are collecting material items through October 30. We encourage cash donations to BAYAN USA for BALSA.

Please visit www.bayanusa.org

We look forward to seeing you at the event.

In solidarity,
Portland CHRP and PSU Kaibigan

ONDOY OFFERING: Pacific Northwest Relief Project

The Filipino communities of Oregon and SW Washington are joining together to help the victims of Typhoon Ondoy in Manila, Philippines. Everyone is  encouraged to step up and help in organizing and donating the very much needed help for those whose lives have been gravely affected by Ondoy.

In this document we have described for you in detail the ways you can help, what you need to do with what you feel compelled to share.  This document serves as a guide to donors and is to be disseminated to all who may be interested in donating or organizing efforts.

Organizing Oregon After Ondoy

Wells Fargo Eliminates Transfer Fees to the Philippines

(Article lifted from this page)

Wells Fargo Eliminates Remittance Transfer Fees To Philippines For Families And Friends Affected By Typhoon Ketsana
Wells Fargo Donates $100,000 to American Red Cross

SAN FRANCISCO — September 29, 2009

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE: WFC) —with its remittance network member Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI) – is temporarily eliminating all remittance transfer fees (normally $5 or $7) for customers sending money using the ExpressSend® service to friends and family in the Philippines impacted by Typhoon Ketsana (also known as Typhoon Ondoy). The fee waiver is effective September 29 through October 12, 2009.

Wells Fargo also is donating $100,000 to the American Red Cross for relief efforts.

ExpressSend customers can send up to $3,000 a day for $5 if originated from an eligible Wells Fargo account (or $7 if originated from cash). The fee will be waived September 29 through October 12, 2009. Recipients can claim their funds at more than 800 branches and 1,500 plus ATMs throughout the Philippines.


“Bank of the Philippine Islands sympathizes with and shares in the plight of the victims of Typhoon Ondoy (international name is Typhoon Ketsana),” said Teresita Tan, SVP and Group Head, Overseas Banking and Channel Services for Bank of the Philippine Islands. “With the temporary fee waiver, we encourage our Filipino kababayans overseas who wish to donate to the flood victims to remit through BPI and Wells Fargo.”

Customers can send money by calling the Wells Fargo Phone Bank at 1-800-556-0605, going online at wellsfargo.com, or by visiting a Wells Fargo banking store. Wells Fargo has the capability to serve customers in English and Tagalog.

LBC Branches now offering FREE SHIPPING for in-kind donations

Article lifted from Ondoy Relief Multiply Site

Donations of relief items to victims of Typhoon Ondoy (international name: Ketsana) can now be shipped for free through LBC Mundial Corp. (LBC USA), Hugo Bonilla, the company's president and CEO announced today through a press release.

As an international company servicing the padala needs of Filipinos worldwide, LBC joins in the global efforts to provide assistance to families in the Philippines devastated by Typhoon Ondoy.

All donated items coursed through LBC USA will be sent to only one recipient in the Philippines, LBC Hari ng Padala Foundation (LHPF).  LHPF will in turn distribute the goods to various non-profits that are conducting relief efforts in the affected communities in Metro Manila and Luzon provinces.

"As of Oct. 1, all LBC branches in the U.S. are now drop-off points for in-kind donations to the victims of Typhoon Ondoy in the Philippines," Mr. Bonilla said. This development follows the partnership inked last Sept. 29 between LBC USA and ABS CBN Foundation's Sagip Kapamilya for cash donations.

In addition to waiving service fees for cash donations remitted directly to the Sagip Kapamilya program, LBC has decided to offer its sea cargo service for free after LHPF committed to sorting and distributing the donated items coming from donors in the U.S.

"Before deciding on offering this free service, we wanted to make sure there is one non-profit recipient in the Philippines who will take on the daunting task of sorting the big volume of donated items," explained Mr. Bonilla.

Rules and Box Sizes - All donated items must be boxed and sealed in standard-sized balikbayan boxes.  LBC will not accept open boxes or unpacked items.

Donors in California, Oregon, Washington State, Nevada and Hawaii can only use the 24x18x18 box size while donors in New Jersey, New York, Illinois and Virginia can only use the 28x18x17 box size.

In Saipan, only box size 18x20x22 is accepted while LBC in Canada's British Columbia will only accept the 18x18x30 box size.

All boxes must state the shipper's name and address.  Consignee information is as follows:
LBC HARI NG PADALA FOUNDATION c/o Jose Garcia
LBC HANGAR
General Aviation Center
Domestic Airport Compound
Pasay City

Donors are encouraged to send the following items: canned goods, rice, clothing, footwear, towels, blankets, cookware, utensils and other daily consumables.


For a list of the LBC branch nearest you, please visit: www.lbcexpress.com or call (800) 338-5424

LBC Mabuhay USA Corporation - Portland Location

8028 SE Powell Blvd
Portland, OR 97206-2316
(503) 775-6888

Medical Teams International Sending Aid to the Philippines

According to an article on their website, Medical teams International is "sending 1 ton of medical supplies, valued at $421,045, to care for 10,000 people over three months. We also have medical teams on standby to help." They are also responding to the urgent relief needed in Indonesia and Samoa this week.

To make an immediate and secure gift:

• Go to www.medicalteams.org/donate.
• Call (800) 959-HEAL (4325).
• Send your contribution to P.O. Box 10, Portland, OR 97207-0010. 

(AP Photo/Mike Alquinto)

Update on Typhoon Parma/Peping

Here is a satellite image of Typhoon Peping:

It is said to be Signal #4 already in Bicol. Rainfall in Manila shall commence in 3-4 hours. People are advised to get to high ground ASAP. All we can do right now is hope and pray that it will not devastate our nation state of calamity even more.

Today is another opportunity to help our country

It's not about being recognized and acknowledged for one's efforts, but knowing that our small acts of kindness contribute to a larger act of love for our country.

I am constantly updating the links tabs on the right hand side of this blog. I hope that they are both useful and simple enough for you to easily determine what you need to know. The list continues to grow and  I appreciate your patience and contributions. Keep them coming!

Today is a great day to save someone's life!

New Typhoon Alert

(photo taken from AccuWeather.com)

According to this online news article, another typhoon named Parma is said to be on its way to hit the Philippines again as early as Friday. It is a dangerous threat to the nation that is just recovering from Typhoon Katsana, more commonly known as Ondoy, as it is said to be an equivalent at least to a Category 3 hurricane.


To read more, kindly click on the link above.

If your relatives back at home have not been informed about this and are in contact with them, I suggest keeping them informed about this as well.

Clarification

Please note that the company we are in touch with to send balikbayan boxes for free has not yet confirmed and communicated that they have approved our donation application just yet. We are waiting to hear word (that will take about 2 weeks minimum) from their corporate office as to what the decision is. I apologize for the misinformation being passed around at the moment with regards to the free balikbayan boxes. HOPEFULLY, this application can be put into action SOON.

I would greatly advise for you to donate online to various foundations that are tax deductible such as the Ayala Foundation.

We will be sending an email brigade with a concise list hopefully within 24 hours to inform everyone how we all can help.



Please email me at welo.rivera@gmail.com if you have any other questions or concerns.

Thank you for showing your love and support to our country! God bless!

Lighting a Candle in a Dark Room: Reflections from Last Night

Fr. Tony Ong celebrated mass at the Holy Trinity Chapel in Beaverton, OR last night at 7:30pm to gather the Filipino community in prayer and love for the victims of the recent Typhoon Ondoy that has devastated various cities in the Philippines. There was an estimate of 49 attendees who came and shared their sorrows upon the unexpected loss of their family members' livelihood and homes.

Despite having deep worries and concerns about loved ones affected by the disaster, the group also expressed hope and steadfast faith in the Lord as God will help us get through this unfortunate incident and provide strength and love in this difficult time. Mass goers at Holy Trinity Chapel last night was able to raise over $1,100 and chose to donate this amount to Ayala Foundation as the vehicle for cash donations.

Thank you to Fr. Tony for spiritually leading the group and allowing us to share our inmost thoughts and concerns about our loved ones back at home. Thank you also to Franz and Monette Mallari for organizing the mass and calling everyone to gather in prayer. Thank you to those who shared their thoughts and personal information about their loved ones back at home who were affected by typhoon Ondoy. Thank you to everyone who attended and donated what they could at the mass.

Although the disaster is devastating and heartbreaking, we should be reminded that we are not alone in our sufferings. As we share our happiness with God, we also share our sufferings with the Lord. We are not alone in our hurts, frustrations and fears. We gather as one community to help others in every possible way that we can by donating money, goods, time and support. Our strength lies in our love for our God, our country and each other. We need to show that love is present in our lives especially in times like this. We need to remind ourselves that we are not alone in this and that, by helping each other, we are manifesting God's love to those in need.