The Pinoy Lounge

A small group of individuals have organised to send relief boxes to areas devastated by the recent floods in Manila. They are appealling to the Filipino Australian community to donate food and clothing.

Below is their open letter and contact details of the group.

Dear Friends and Colleagues,

As some of you may have read or seen in the news, the Philippines was ravaged by a typhoon that left 450,000 homeless over the weekend. In less than six hours, it rained an entire month's worth of rain. And it still continued to pour overnight. The amount of rainfall is higher than Hurricane Katrina and close to 80% of Metro Manila is submerged. Majority  have sought refuge on their rooftops and as of Tuesday, many have not yet been rescued as the roads are virtually impassable. Those who were lucky enough to make it to dry land are crowded in evacuation centres.  Relief operations are very overwhelmed as they are prepared to deal with one suburb at a time but not hundreds of suburbs all at the same time. With nothing but literally their wet clothes on the backs, the half million displaced families are in urgent need of food and clothing.

Even though I live safe and far away from this tragedy, my heart is close to my fellow Filipinos who are in need. My Filipino friends and I are organising Operation: Manila Rescue to send relief boxes to the Philippines. We've talked to a courier company (LBC Australia) who was generous enough to ship the boxes for free. All we need to do is fill them up! Here are the items urgently needed:

Food items: noodles, canned goods

Non prescription medicines: Paracetamol, analgesic, oral rehydration salts, multivitamins and medications to treat diarrheal diseases

Non-food items: Bath soaps, face towels, shampoo, toothbrush, toothpaste, plastic mats, blankets, mosquito nets, water containers, water purification tablets, plastic sheetings, and Laundry soap

Clothing - for all ages, all sizes, and all types.  From jeans to t-shirts.  Please keep in mind that the Philippines is a tropical country so thick jackets, heavy jumpers and anything too wintery is not of use!  Shoes are also a good donation - from runners to thongs. Blankets are most welcome too!

Please bring goods over to our deignated drop off points. We'll prepare a labeled box where you can drop it in. The boxes will be made available till Friday 3 October and will be shipped directly to Manila the day after. 

Looking forward to that warm Australian spirit extending out across the seas. Thank you in advanced for your support and kind generosity.


WHERE TO DROP OFF: 
1) Info below is courtesy of Rosary Coloma

Sydney: Hills District/North West: Michelle Barrera - 0410 515 147
Eastern Suburbs/CBD/: Carlos Barrera - 0411 384 587 or rafaelcar@hotmail.com
Inner West/City Fringe: Rosary Coloma - 0449 153 650 or rosary.coloma@gmail.com
Western Suburbs: the Blacktown drop off house is now full. Please deliver straight to the warehouse where the goods will be packed:

Mari Crame - Revesby Press 3/50 George Street Granville. Ph: (02) 97600933

Melbourne: Inner North -  Coco Quizon 0458603723

Goods will be sent to various relief effort groups/organizations such as Ateneo & the Sunshine Project.

2) Alternatively, you can drop it off directly to LBC Australia as they have agreed to help in our relief efforts.

LBC Australia
Unit 14 - 197 Power St. , Glendenning, NSW 2761
They'll box and deliver it for free.
You can also box it on your end, then give them a ring and they'll pick it up from your place.
You can get in touch with them directly at 1300522000 for pick up.

WHAT TO PACK 
Food items: noodles, canned goods
Non prescription medicines: Paracetamol, analgesic, oral rehydration salts, multivitamins and medications to treat diarrheal diseases
Non-food items: Bath soaps, face towels, shampoo, toothbrush, toothpaste, plastic mats, blankets, mosquito nets, water containers, water purification tablets, plastic sheetings, and Laundry soap
Clothing - for all ages, all sizes, and all types. From jeans to t-shirts. Please keep in mind that the Philippines is a tropical country so thick jackets, heavy jumpers and anything too wintery is not of use! Shoes are also a good donation - from runners to thongs. Blankets are most welcome too!

REMINDERS:
Label the box to either of the following addresses

GMA Kapuso Foundation Warehouse
Charles Conrad Street
Doña Faustina Village II
Brgy. Culiat, Tandang Sora
Quezon City , Philippines

Contact Person: Sheilana Ward
Telephone number: 931-7013

 

Monday 5 October is a public holiday (NSW) so best to collect relief goods till Friday, 3 October as people are likely to forget the appeal over the weekend

For more details please contact : Carmela Gollogley 0404 11 6505 or Gilbert Gaddi 0414985098

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