Volunteers from the National Council ofChurches in the Philippines (NCCP) packing relief items for distribution tothe victims of typhoon Haiyan. Photo: (NCCP)
“Initial donations to Us will support the relief work of the NationalCouncil of Churches in the Philippines (NCCP). Subsequent donationswill fund the work of the Episcopal Church in the Philippines (ECP) andthe Philippine Independent Church (PIC).”
The super typhoon is reported to have affected 9.5 million people innine regions of the Philippines. Over 1,000 are known to be dead andover 618,000 people displaced – with only two thirds finding shelter inone of the 1,458 evacuation centres.
The Primates’ World Relief and Development Fund (PWRDF) in Canada hascommitted a further $20,000, in addition to its initial grant of $20,000 given out via the ecumenical aid agency ACT Alliance immediately after the typhoon hit.
A statement from PWRDF noted that its partner agencies in the Visayasregion of the country are working together to provide relief tothousands of people in Visayas and Cebu, who were still working torecover from the Bohol earthquake last month when they were batteredby Typhoon Haiyan.
“The devastation is so big and massive, [it is] so overwhelming tosee many homes and establishments destroyed—even cement buildings… Manychildren are on the road begging for help, putting posters made of usedcardboard to deliver their message for the need of water, food andtents,” wrote Geraldine Labradores of the Southern Partners and FairTrade Center in an email to PWRDF.
PWRDF says its funds will be used to provide bottled water, rice, cannedgoods and other supplies in communities in Bohol and Cebu affected bythe earthquake and typhoon and who have not yet been reached by ongoingrelief efforts.”
According to Episcopal Relief and Developmentin the US, among those most at risk were the estimated 270,000 peoplewho had been residing in tents and other makeshift shelters followingthe 7.2-magnitude earthquake that struck the central Philippines onOctober 15, killing 222 people. It is also raising funds.
Its senior vice-president for programs Abagail Nelson said this week,”Our partner, the Episcopal Church in the Philippines, has doneexcellent work in the area of disaster risk reduction over the past fewyears, but when events come one on top of the other like this,challenges are compounded. We are standing ready to offer assistance asthe local Church assesses needs and identifies areas where it can besthelp vulnerable people in this difficult
time.”
Churches who are raising funds themselves include Trinity Wall Street and St Thomas Church in New York City. They have jointly committed $100,000 and are asking congregations, staff, and friends to give.
The Most Revd Dr. Paul Kwong, Archbishop and Primate of the Hong KongSheng Kung Hui has donated three hundred thousand dollars from the Hong Kong Sheng Kung Hui Archbishop World Relief Fund as an initial step in relieving the need of the sufferers in the affected areas.
Archbishop Kwong has also appealed to churches, schools and socialwelfare units of the province “to be generous in their contributions andto remember the sufferers and the dead in their prayers”.
After anxious Filipino crewmen and women converged on the world’s Mission to Seafarers‘centres in the hope that they can quickly find out the situation athome, the Anglican seafarer’s charity has set up a a new emergencycommunications fund, which will give free access to Wi-Fi and hand outphone cards to Filipino seafarers in their directly funded internationalcentres.
The Diocese of Singapore is setting up a Haiyan Response Centre atthe St Andrew’s Cathedral Welcome Centre and is looking for volunteersto serve in the field. It is also receiving donations.
The Church of Ireland is also responding through the Bishops’ Appeal emergency fund. Archbishop Richard Clarke and Archbishop Michael Jackson have sanctioned the immediate release of ?10,000 to Christian Aid partners on the ground to provide tarpaulins, tents, food and hygiene kits to those who urgently need them. They urge the Church to respond generously in the face of such overwhelming need.Anglicord, in Australia, as part of ACT Alliance have appealed to supporters to contribute $100,000 to support the work of ACT Alliance partners in the Philippines. The Anglican Board of Mission has also launched an appeal.
In New Zealand Christian World Service(founded by the National Council of Churches) launched an appeal.International programmes co-ordinator Trish Murray said, “It is a verydifficult time but an opportunity for New Zealanders to show they care.The storm was ferocious and the damage epic. One country cannot bear theload alone.”