UPDATES
Dec. 16 – District of Eastern North America – Thank you so much for your gifts to the One La Salle Philippines Relief Fund.
Our ministries, Brother’s Communities, fellow Lasallians, generous benefactors and our District office came together to contribute $12,000 to help our fellow Lasallians in the Philippines.
“Allow me to express my sincerest gratitude to you and our fellow Lasallians in DENA; the relief and rehabilitation projects De La Salle Philippines (DLSP) initiated will not be possible without your generosity.”
-Mr. Keane Palatino, Director of the Lasallian Mission Office, De La Salle Philippines
The office of De La Salle Philippines has organized relief efforts into two phases, Relief and Rehabilitation.
During the just concluded Relief Operations Phase, De La Salle Philippines was able to help almost 30,000 families in the following areas.: Guiuan, Eastern Samar; Tanauan, Tolosa and other coastal areas in Leyte; Northern Palawan; Carles, Iloilo; Estancia, Iloilo; Bantayan Island Cebu; Cadiz, Negros Occidental; Manapla, Negros Occidental; Sagay, Negros Occidental; Pandan and Sebaste, Antique; and Roxas, Capiz. .
Currently De La Salle Philippines is calibrating plans for Phase Two: Rehabilitation, which will focus on rebuilding schools/ learning centers. Between now and January, continuous assessment and review of affected areas will be done, so as to have a clearer path on which areas to prioritize.
Thank you again for joining us to help children and families in the Philippines!
Nov. 14 – Manhattan College – Concerned about the lack of clean water available to survivors of the typhoon, a group of Manhattan College chemical engineering seniors have also partnered with an alumnus to help deliver water filtration devices to the Philippines. Annmarie Flynn, Ph.D., associate professor and chair of the chemical engineering department, began by reaching out to Sawyer Products, a company that produces simple, gravity-powered water filtration devices that can purify 500 gallons of water a day and work for up to a year. Read more >
Nov. 14 – De La Salle Philippines – The Philippine Lasallian Family is banding together once again for relief operations for our fellow Filipinos who were affected by Super Typhoon Yolanda. Various La Salle Schools have begun taking in donations and volunteers.
The Brothers and the Lasallian Family of the Lasallian East Asia District and the Sector of the Philippines are deeply grateful to all the Brothers, Lasallian institutions, and Districts from all over the world for their words of encouragement, prayers and pledges of donations for the victims of Typhoon Haiyan (locally named in the Philippines as typhoon “Yolanda”). Thankfully, none of our schools were in the direct path of the typhoon, although some schools have reported minor damages to their infrastructure. This Category 5 Typhoon is one of the strongest storms observed in world history. In 2013 alone, the Philippines has experienced an unusual number of over 20 typhoons already, but days of preparation and massive evacuations could not prevent the devastation wrought by Typhoon Haiyan’s strong winds and storm surges sweeping coastal towns of several islands. The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs estimates about 9.8 million people are affected and more than 10,000 feared dead.
Map of Typhoon Haiyan’s Path Across the Philippines
The Sector of the Philippines has organised a disaster relief and rehabilitation operations called “One La Salle Relief Drive: Yolanda (Haiyan)”. All 16 Lasallian Educational Institutions in the Philippines are coordinating their disaster response operations through De La Salle Philippines (DLSP). They have identified the University of Saint La Salle (USLS) in Bacolod City, Negros Occidental to be the main relief centre. DLSP will be sending to USLS the donations received. The location of USLS is very strategic given that the Sector’s priority areas for relief operations are “Sagay” and “Cadiz” in Negros Occidental, “Bantayan” in Cebu, and “Estancia” in Iloilo. These areas are not as publicized in the news like Tacloban City in Leyte and other parts of Samar, but are equally in need of relief. Currently, DLSP is also coordinating with communities in “Guiuan” in Eastern Samar, the area where Typhoon Haiyan (Yolanda) made its first land fall.
We have yet to receive more precise information as to how long relief will be needed. We expect that this will take some time since those drastically affected have lost their homes and that the evacuation centres will be their only refuge for now. For the rehabilitation phase, DLSP is looking at rebuilding the public schools in the affected areas in coordination with the Department of Education of the Philippines.
Infographic from the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Efforts
HOW YOU CAN HELP
In solidarity with our Lasallians in the Philippines, the District of Eastern North America has set up a fund to coordinate donations to aid in the relief efforts. All donations will be forwarded to the Lasallian East Asia District (LEAD) so they can be given to the Philippines Sector.
Click here to make an online donation
Or donations can be mailed to the District Office:
Br. Dennis Malloy, FSC
District of Eastern North America
444A Route 35 South
Eatontown, NJ 07724
Please make checks out to: FSC DENA
In the notes section put: One La Salle Philippines
PRAYERS
The following was provided by the Christian Brothers’ Midwest District, and we invite you to use it in your ministries and classrooms to lead prayer and discussion.