Filipinos' Bayanihan in Times of Calamities
Being one of the Ring of Fire countries, Philippines surely experience volcanic eruptions. And believe me, all of them are destructive. We might not experience tornadoes here but every year, Filipinos (especially in the Luzon and Visayas regions) face chaotic conditions whenever a “Bagyo” (typhoon) comes and visits the country unprepared. And sometimes, two typhoons join forces to destroy the country leaving the calamity victims homeless. Sick. Miserable. Dead.
However, in the midst of the darkness, the original Filipino “Bayanihan” comes out as well and dominates the hearts of those fortunate ones who didn’t experience the hardships like that of the victims. That's the unique characteristic of USthat still lives on until this very modern times.
Take for example the Typhoon Ondoy. One of the most devastating and unmerciful typhoon that hit the country last September 26, 2009 and murdered the roads and thousands of homes in the Luzon regions. It fled hundreds of people from their houses to their neighboring provinces. It was labeled as the worst typhoon dumping the heaviest rainfall in Metro Manila after four decades. Cars as big a buses floated like paper boats in a dirty river. People walked due to lack of public transport and impassable traffic. Residents were forced to stay on the rooftops of their houses due to submerged first- or second-floors. Some residents swum their way to the dirty flood water just to get away with no definite place in mind about where to stay. And some were helplessly drowned and carried away by the strong flow of rain waters.
The scenario left everyone miserable. Even the rich and well-housed people like the celebrities were not exempted to Ondoy's fierceness. Not even did their valuable and hardly earned assets. But at some point, most of us stood stronger for the country. Everyone helped. Everyone showed sympathy to the situation and searched for possible remedies to heal the wounds that Ondoy created.
Here are some of the most remarkable and admirable acts Pinoy did when such calamity strikes.
Angel Locsin and Anne Curtis: Shop and Share
These two beautiful, talented, hot and famous celebrities were not just all about faces. They were the founders of the first online shopping site Shop&Share.com created for the benefit of the Typhoon Ondoy victims. And what does their site selling? Some of the valuable items of famous celebrities in our country donated because of the convincing powers of these two gorgeous ladies.. Each item were of to be bid. Most of the bidders were the fans. Branded bags, shoes, belts, watches. All of which were personally used by the stars. The proceeds were donated to the thousands of homeless victims who stayed on evacuation centers.
Sagip Kapamilya Foundation
Thousands of volunteers signed up to help packing, distributing, and assisting the victims to the best they can. The volunteers came from all walks of life. There are teachers, students, employees, "istambay", poor, rich, ordinary and famous people. All united to bring back hope and to inform other Filipinos all around the world. All of them didn't ask for a wage or a talent fee for every hours of service. There were no rooms for FATIGUE and SELFISHNESS.
There was a 24 hour information service in which most of the celebrities were assigned. The service was for the for updates about the situation, confirmation of donations and for collecting data about the victims who might have been lost, died and reports from the authorities. Donations were received from big companies such as Purefoods, Nestle, and many more organizations who sent tons of their products to support the feeding program that was also conducted by the foundation. Filipinos who were residing to other countries also sent the best support that they can in order to help their kababayan.
The Sagip Kapamilya reported to have accumulated 100.2 million pesos from the donations in kind and 68 million pesos of cash as of Oct. 05, 2009. Indeed the foundation together with the volunteers successfully accomplished their aim of accumulating big amount of money for the victims.
To top it all, Sagip Kapamilya is just one of the many foundations and organizations in the country that is helping building our nation without asking for any return from their beneficiaries.
These are just two of the great qualities that a Filipino should be proud of. Bayanihan. We may think that it's slowly vanishing nowadays, but still, undoubtedly and unintentionally, whenever we see someone needing our HELP, we run as fast as we can to help and save. :)
However, in the midst of the darkness, the original Filipino “Bayanihan” comes out as well and dominates the hearts of those fortunate ones who didn’t experience the hardships like that of the victims. That's the unique characteristic of USthat still lives on until this very modern times.
Take for example the Typhoon Ondoy. One of the most devastating and unmerciful typhoon that hit the country last September 26, 2009 and murdered the roads and thousands of homes in the Luzon regions. It fled hundreds of people from their houses to their neighboring provinces. It was labeled as the worst typhoon dumping the heaviest rainfall in Metro Manila after four decades. Cars as big a buses floated like paper boats in a dirty river. People walked due to lack of public transport and impassable traffic. Residents were forced to stay on the rooftops of their houses due to submerged first- or second-floors. Some residents swum their way to the dirty flood water just to get away with no definite place in mind about where to stay. And some were helplessly drowned and carried away by the strong flow of rain waters.
The scenario left everyone miserable. Even the rich and well-housed people like the celebrities were not exempted to Ondoy's fierceness. Not even did their valuable and hardly earned assets. But at some point, most of us stood stronger for the country. Everyone helped. Everyone showed sympathy to the situation and searched for possible remedies to heal the wounds that Ondoy created.
Here are some of the most remarkable and admirable acts Pinoy did when such calamity strikes.
Angel Locsin and Anne Curtis: Shop and Share
These two beautiful, talented, hot and famous celebrities were not just all about faces. They were the founders of the first online shopping site Shop&Share.com created for the benefit of the Typhoon Ondoy victims. And what does their site selling? Some of the valuable items of famous celebrities in our country donated because of the convincing powers of these two gorgeous ladies.. Each item were of to be bid. Most of the bidders were the fans. Branded bags, shoes, belts, watches. All of which were personally used by the stars. The proceeds were donated to the thousands of homeless victims who stayed on evacuation centers.
Sagip Kapamilya Foundation
Thousands of volunteers signed up to help packing, distributing, and assisting the victims to the best they can. The volunteers came from all walks of life. There are teachers, students, employees, "istambay", poor, rich, ordinary and famous people. All united to bring back hope and to inform other Filipinos all around the world. All of them didn't ask for a wage or a talent fee for every hours of service. There were no rooms for FATIGUE and SELFISHNESS.
There was a 24 hour information service in which most of the celebrities were assigned. The service was for the for updates about the situation, confirmation of donations and for collecting data about the victims who might have been lost, died and reports from the authorities. Donations were received from big companies such as Purefoods, Nestle, and many more organizations who sent tons of their products to support the feeding program that was also conducted by the foundation. Filipinos who were residing to other countries also sent the best support that they can in order to help their kababayan.
The Sagip Kapamilya reported to have accumulated 100.2 million pesos from the donations in kind and 68 million pesos of cash as of Oct. 05, 2009. Indeed the foundation together with the volunteers successfully accomplished their aim of accumulating big amount of money for the victims.
To top it all, Sagip Kapamilya is just one of the many foundations and organizations in the country that is helping building our nation without asking for any return from their beneficiaries.
These are just two of the great qualities that a Filipino should be proud of. Bayanihan. We may think that it's slowly vanishing nowadays, but still, undoubtedly and unintentionally, whenever we see someone needing our HELP, we run as fast as we can to help and save. :)
