The Grotto's response to the flooding in The Philippines

Fr. Jack wanted me to let you know what we are doing at The Grotto for The Philippines following the typhoon. There is a display board in the main chapel with some photographs of Fr. Jack's visit in August paired with others of the flooding. The Grotto's appeal is directed to help the Servite Seminary/House of Formation in The Philippines. Here is the letter from Fr. Jack that accompanies the pictures:

Fall 2009

Dear friends and visitors to The Grotto,

In August of 2009 I had the opportunity to travel to The Philippines to visit our fellow Servite friars and seminarians there. The Grotto has developed a strong relationship with the Servite community in The Philippines. We are fortunate to have had a number of Filipino Servite priests ministering here at The Grotto over the past several years.

On September 26 of this year The Philippines were hit by Typhoon Ondoy, which poured more than a month’s worth of rain in just six hours. Hundreds of people lost their lives, and many parts of The Philippines were submerged under water.

The Servite community in The Philippines, especially their House of Formation/Seminary, was not spared the flooding and damage. Here are some photographs from my visit before the typhoon paired with photographs of the flooding.

If you would like to help support the needs of the Servite friars and seminarians in The Philippines, please use one the envelopes below. Thank you for your generosity in supporting our Servite family in The Philippines.

Sincerely yours in the service of Jesus and Mary,
Fr. Jack Topper, OSMExecutive Director of The Grotto

___________

I hope all of your loved ones in The Philippines are doing OK.

Larry Kirby
THE GROTTO
PO Box 20008Portland, Oregon 97294-0008

LKirby@thegrotto.org

503.261.2429 My Direct Line
503.254.7371 The Grotto Office
503.254.7948 The Grotto FAX

Free Shipping for in-kind donaions for Ondoy

Hello everyone!

Here is an article about giving through in-kind donations.
Have a good weekend! Welo Rivera

Blog: Organizing Efforts in Oregon & SW Washington for Typhoon Ondoy Victims
Post: LBC Branches now offering FREE SHIPPING for in-kind donations Link: http://oregon4ondoy.blogspot.com/2009/10/lbc-branches-now-offering-free-shipping.html

Ondoy Offering - Pacific NW Relief Project

Dear Fellow Filipinos and friends of the Filipinos,

On behalf of the other leaders in the Filipino Communities of Oregon and SW Washington, I would like to ask for your help in disseminating this information to all Filipinos and friends of Filipinos who may want to help the victims of Typhoon Ondoy in the Philippones.

Below is a document prepared by leaders from the Council of Filipino American Association in Oregon, from the SW Washington Filipino American Association and the Filipino Catholic Community of Oregon. This is a HUMBLE but EARNEST appeal to all to step up and make a difference in lives of thepeople who were gravely affected by the typhoon and those who may be in danger as stronger typhoons pound on the country.

This relief project is called ONDOY OFFERING - Pacific Northwest Relief Project. The document describes in detail the steps you can take to help. By bringing out this guideline, we may be able to help people navigate the process of donation. It also provides guidance on organizing efforts as groups, families or institutions.

A website called http://oregon4ondoy.blogspot.com/ is up and running and which you can access to get updates on the process, for more information and data on the situation of typhoonn victims, and other pertinent information on the relief effort here in Oregon and SW Washington and in the Philippines.

The foundations chosen to handle our cash donations (Philippine Jesuit Foundation and Ayala Foundation, both 50`1c3 organizations) have been tested the last 2 days and they work. We have provided you also with more choices of avenues for donating and they are all in the website. However, many of them do not offer tax deduction on your donation nor have they been tested for efficiency, effectivity or accountability.

This collaborative organizing is an effort to HELP but also to BUILD, a stronger Filipino community, its bayanihan spirit and resilience to the challenges that face us today. We hope that the power of this spirit will move you to pass this on to ALL the people in your networks: parish, organization, schools, workplaces and social circles. Let this action of love and compassion ripple throughout until it reaches our brothers and sisters in the Philippines.

MARAMING SALAMAT PO! (Thank you very much). We do apologize though for any cross postings.

Together...ONE!

Respectfully,

Pia de Leon
Eric Tadeo
Welo Rivera
Titay Schommer

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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.

We encourage everyone 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.

CASH DONATIONS:

Cash donations are the most expedient and helpful for the local economy and so it is recommended that efforts be focused in asking people to donate cash.

We are recommending two foundations that have 501c3 tax status in the United States: Philippine Jesuit Foundation and the Ayala Foundation. This means that your check or online donations are tax deductible and they will be sending you tax receipts.

Here are the ways to donate:

1. For donations by check

a. Issue the check to "Philippine Jesuit Foundation"

b. On the memo line please write: For "Ateneo Task Force Ondoy c/o OSA & SLB"( "OSA" means Office of Student Activites, Loyola Schools, Ateneo de Manila University and "SLB" means Simbahang Lingkod ng Bayan)

c. Send or mail the check with the donor's (1) full name, (2) email address, and (3) postal address to:

Cristina Tabora Executive Secretary, Philippine Jesuit Foundation

236 West 27th Street, Ninth Floor

New York, NY 10001, U.S.A.

Telephone (212) 627-2788, (212) 233-0888

Downloadable PJF Donation Form available at http://www.philjesuit.net/illhelp.asp

Please email Cristina Tabora <taboracom@gmail.com> or <exsec@philjesuit.net> or Julie Calderon <juliecalderon65@gmail.com> to inform them that you have sent or mailed a check to them. The PJF has waived the 3% service fee for all donations toward the relief of typhoon Ondoy victims. Full donation amounts will be remitted by the PJF to the Ateneo as quickly as possible within the week for typhoon relief.

2. For donations online:

a. Open the Ayala Foundation USA website: http://www.af-usa.org/donate_now.asp

b. Click on the "donate now" button, click on the credit card icon, and select Ateneo de Manila in the drop down menu. Write "Ateneo Task Force Ondoy c/o OSA & SLB" for your choice of beneficiary.

c. Please email Marivic Padilla <marivic@af-usa.org> or <marivi.padilla@gmail.com> or <info@af-usa.org> or call her (+650) 598-3126 for step by step assistance or to inform her that you have made a donation online.

Marivic Padilla Administrative Assistant, Ayala Foundation USA

255 Shoreline Drive, Suite 428

Redwood City, CA 94065, USA

Telephone (+650) 598-3126, Facsimile (+650) 508-8898

AF-USA Donation Form available at www.af-usa.org/forms/Donation_Form.pdf

Donations through the AF-USA online through credit card will be remitted to the Ateneo as quickly as possible within seven days net of AF-USA 5% service fee and credit card charge.

Donations through the PJF and the AF-USA are monitored by the Office of University Development and Alumni Relations, Alingal Hall, Ateneo de Manila University.

*Ateneo de Manila in Quezon City is a designated evacuation and drop off center. If you wish to click on other centers serviced by Ayala Foundation such as the Philippine National Red Cross, you may do so as well.

3. Other agencies you can use to send money through are listed in the website listed below. Those agencies are not necessarily 501c3 accounts and may not be able to give you a tax receipt.
Other Ways of Helping:

1. Prayer services and fellowships may be organized in various groups and organizations in the next few weeks to provide Filipinos here in Portland and SW Washington the opportunity for community and a safe place to share their grief and concerns about this tragedy in our homeland. If a collection is to be made, please designate from the two choices the agency you want to handle your donation.

• Checks collected may be sent to CFAA (Council of Filipino American Associations, P.O Box 65053 Vancouver, WA 98665) and they will send it to the agency of your choice. CFAA will send you an acknowledgement they have received your gift.
• When you have done a collection, please include with the checks a list of names, addresses and amount so you or CFAA can send that information to the agency who will distribute your money in the Philippines and at the same time track our progress.
• We would appreciate a report back of activities organized and money collected so we can keep track of how Oregon is responding to this appeal. Please direct your reports to Welo Rivera – welo.rivera@gmail.com with the subject heading: “FUNDRAISING EFFORTS” or to any of the other organizers of this project.

2. IN – KIND Donation -At this point, we are NOT receiving any collected goods. If you wish to collect goods and send to the Philippines, either as individuals or groups:

• Please call LBC or Willex and send them as you would any Balikbayan Boxes. Some of these companies have promotional deals that can help you help the people in need. Please check our website for more information.

Medical Teams International is sending a medical mission to the Philippines to help in the disaster relief. For more information about this group, please check their website: http://www.medicalteams.org/.

Updates, information, other links related to ONDOY OFFERING will be posted regularly in our website: http://oregon4ondoy.blogspot.com/

For questions and more information, you may also contact the following:

Eric Tadeo – evcntadeo@msn.com – 360-690-0774

Council of Filipino American Association (CFAA) Chair
Titay Schommer – tkschommer@gmail.com
Welo Rivera – welo.rivera@gmail.com
Pia de Leon – piadeleon343@yahoo.com – 503-481-5228

Super Typhoon -Ondoy hits Philippines

A boy is lifted onto the roof of a building to escape the flooding in the Quezon City suburban of Manila . Nearly a month's worth of rain fell in just six hours Saturday, triggering the worst flooding in the Philippine capital in 42 years, which stranded thousands on rooftops in the city and elsewhere.

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Residents cross a flooded street with the use of a rope in Quezon City .

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Commuters wade through waist-deep floodwaters after heavy rains dumped by Tropical Storm Ketsana (locally known as Ondoy) on Saturday, Sept. 26, in Manila , Philippines .

Related

Times Topics: Philippines

Here in the capital, countless people remained on the roofs of their houses, where they had spent the night, drenched and unable to come down because of the floodwaters that had accumulated since the rain began falling Friday evening. The death toll was expected to rise sharply as more reports of casualties came in from provinces outside of Manila.

Tropical Storm Ketsana, packing 53-mile-per-hour winds, dumped nearly 17 inches of rain in just 12 hours, said Nathaniel Cruz, the government’s chief weather forecaster.

Officials said nearly 300,000 people were displaced by the storm; tens of thousands were brought to evacuation centers in schools, churches, gymnasiums and public parks. In Marikina City, a Manila suburb, people pitched tents wherever they could, some on the bridge across the overflowing Marikina River.

The storm “submerged up to 80 percent” of Manila, according to the environmental groupGreenpeace.

“It was terrifying to see the water rising, especially because there were live electrical wires around us,” said Diverson Bloso Jr., a waiter at a restaurant in Quezon City that was one of many flooded businesses. “There were trash and rats and cockroaches all around us.”

King Catoy, a filmmaker, rushed to Marikina City, where he recorded scenes of devastation: streets and houses covered in muck, people washing salvaged belongings in the murky river, a couple holding their five dogs — the only ones left with them after the storm.

“Marikina City always prided itself of being the most orderly, the cleanest and the most prepared city in the whole country,” Mr. Catoy said. Ketsana, he said, “showed that all that may have been just a facade.”

Excellent link to typhoon Ondoy

This page have an extensive information and connection links to other sites

http://www.google.com/landing/typhoon-ondoy.html