HAND-IN-HAND IN HABAGAT Calvin Chu Underwater world. That was the picture as torrential rains poured down on Metro Manila and nearby provinces for 8 consecutive days last August 2012. Houses submerged in flood waters. Cars rendered useless. People soaking wet and cold, waiting on rooftops for rescue boats. Schooling halted with public schools and other public infrastructures filled to the brim with people seeking shelter from the flooding. The rains were not due to a typhoon, but were brought about by a natural phenomenon called the Southwest Monsoon, or Habagat in native tongue. It is an annual occurrence, but with the changes in climate resulting from years of mismanagement of the environment, this year proved to be catastrophic. According to data from PAGASA, 363.7mm of rainfall in a span of 24 hours (80% that of Ondoy) precipitated
the flash flooding that affected nearly a million families in the NCR, CALABARZON, and Region 3 provinces of Bataan, Bulacan, and Pampanga. With people forced to leave their homes, business operations interrupted for days, and farmlands in nearby provinces damaged, those who rely on day to day income for their living were left to rely on others for help. In less than a week, Care Caravan mobilized a relief operation, Project: Habagat. Packing was done in a warehouse of a sister in Christ, through her family's generosity. Packing around 3,200 canned goods, 16,000 packs of noodles, and 20,000 kg of rice individually would take a lot of time, and the goods were needed urgently.
PROJECT ZAMBOANGA On September 9, 2013, armed conflict between the government troops and the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) erupted. As the government and MNLF battled it out, civilians were caught in the middle. It took nearly three weeks before the government declared the crisis over. The conflict displaced thousands of families. Houses were destroyed, business brought to a standstill and families were forced to rely on relief goods for their survival. Care Caravan through Sis. Jane Joe of UECZ gave relief goods for 2,000 families in evacuation centers. As some of the victims were still living in evacuation centers last December, Care Caravan sent another batch of aid for 200 families through UECZ.
9
PROJECT PABLO Denise Faith Garcia To say that Typhoon Pablo unnerved Mindanao is an understatement. Last December 2012, the strongest tropical cyclone to ever hit the southern part of the country stripped the most affected provinces of Compostela Valley and Davao Oriental of almost everything. Pablo, which resulted to a death toll of 1,067 people and a loss of P42.2 billion, now claims the number one spot as the costliest Philippine typhoon. Mindanao is a total neophyte in handling typhoons since it is very rarely intruded by such intense storms. Therefore, the damage brought upon by Pablo was also extremely severe. Hundreds of thousands ceased to have access to basic needs like food and shelter, and the farms that were their sole means of living were pummeled by the winds moving at more than 100 kilometers per hour. “Nakadungog mi nga naay paabutay nga bagyo, pero wala mi kabalo unsa ang i-expect. Abi ra namu muagi ra ang kusog nga ulan pero mas grabe pa diay.” (We have heard about the coming of the typhoon but we do not know what to expect. We thought that heavy rains will just pass by but it's worse than what we've expected.) “Nangaguba among mga balay. Karun nakipuyo nalang mi sa among kapitbahay. Ang mga tanum pud nga saging naguba na. Dili na namu ma-harvest kay guba na tanan.” (Our houses are destroyed and we are now just staying with our neighbors temporarily. We cannot harvest the bananas, too, for they are all destroyed.) These statements are often heard from residents of the areas affected by Pablo. These are the people who are trying to stand up again yet discouraged by the view of the destroyed agriculture that represents their future. In response to the immediate relief and recovery needs of the areas hardest hit by the storm, Davao Evangelical Church in partnership with CCOWE Care Caravan, sourced for goods like assorted canned goods, rice, instant noodles, biscuits, milk, and bottled water. In the days leading up to the distribution, the hands that helped were not only from those of the young professionals but were also from the entire church. Almost everyday, children, teenagers, adults, and even the elderly pitched in to hasten the packing process. During the distribution, it was very heartwarming to see so many volunteers who willingly aided the victims not only through handing out relief goods but also through a variety of services like providing medical care, counseling and most
10
importantly, sharing the gospel of Jesus Christ. From December 9, 2012 to January 27, 2013, the missions team went and gave assistance to the victims in Compostela Valley, Agusan Del Sur, Boston and Mongkayo. They also lent helping hands to the city's flood victims who were evacuated at Maa Elementary School and Davao Bible Community Church. In total, they served 6,673 families in 14 barangays and two evacuation centers. Below is a summary of all the areas the team served: December 9 - Compostela Valley St. James Hospital Brgy. Bangongan, Brgy. Mapaca, Brgy. Tandawan, Brgy. Macopa December 16 - Agusan Del Sur Brgy. Sayon, Brgy. Concepcion, Brgy. Awaw, Brgy. Tandawan, Brgy. Sta. Josefa December 30 - East Coast, Boston Brgy. Carmen, Brgy. Cabasagan January 20 - Mongkayo, Maa Elementary School (evacuation center) Brgy. Naboc January 27 - Davao Bible Community Church (Davao flood victims)
The tropical cyclone truly brought in so much damage and devastated countless hearts. Yet it is also safe to say that Pablo gave the nation and even the world a precious opportunity to unite. More so, it allowed Christians to be extremely salty and bright as countless responded to the victims' desperate cries for help and allowed the victims to remember God's grace to them by giving them another chance to live. “Nagpasalamat nalang mi nga gitagaan pa mi ug opportunidad sa Ginoo nga mabuhi pa. Ang uban namu nga kauban dili na namu makita. Diri namu makita nga dapat gyud diay mi magpasalamat sa among kinabuhi.” (We are just thankful that God has given us another opportunity to live. We cannot find some of our relatives and friends anymore and that made us realize that we need to be thankful for this life.) Indeed, God always has a purpose for everything. To Him be the glory!
DAY TO DAY ACCOUNT OF THE CC PANAY OPERATION Francis Chu Friday (November 8, 2013) The strongest typhoon ever recorded made its landfall – Typhoon Yolanda or internally names as “Haiyan”. Iloilo City was silent as most offices were closed as the local government advised people to stay home. Panay Island was in Yolanda's direct path. On the night before the landfall, people already flocked to supermarkets and groceries to buy supplies and food. We were warned to prepare and brace for one of the strongest typhoon ever recorded. As such, we prepared for our household and reminded our employees to fortify and secure everything that might turn loose and become a projectile. As I continue to monitor the satellite images and web forecasts, I got more worried and scared. Early in the morning, Yolanda made its first landfall at Guiuan Eastern Samar then Tacloban, the center of the storm was estimated to reach northern Panay at around 11am. At 10:30am we were already experiencing strong winds, and by 11am the winds became stronger but not as strong as we expected. Two hours passed and the winds gradually weakened. Power and communications were cut-off in our city, there were no cellphone signals and some of the landlines went non-operational. At around 3pm, I went out of the house to assess the damage. But to my surprise, it was not much as it should have been. I told myself it could have been worse. I went back into the house and was somewhat happy and relieved. Unaware of what happened in Leyte, Samar and Northern Panay, until news gradually trickled in since all communications were cut-off, nobody knew the exact extent of devastation. Saturday (November 9, 2013) I attended a wedding ceremony of a high school classmate. One of my classmate and best friend since elementary up to our college days, Arnold Betita II, is a secondary sponsor of the groom. His dad Arnold Betita Senior, is the mayor of Carles Municipality (northern most town of Iloilo) should have been one of the major sponsors in the wedding. While waiting for Arnold's dad, I overheard from one of the attendees anxiously reporting to a group of attendees whom I knew operates big fishing vessels in Estancia, another municipality in northern Iloilo. This gentleman came from the worst hit part of Iloilo and started narrating his ordeal. He had to drive a motorcycle to reach Iloilo City, since most vehicles can't pass through the highways due to fallen trees and electrical posts that scatter along the roads. He narrated to the fishing vessel operator how the super typhoon struck and that all her fishing vessels that was moored along the port
of Estancia for safety was devoured by the storm surge, and that all establishments within the port and along the coast was wiped out. He described the more than 15 feet waters and that most of her personnel attending the boats were presumed dead. We were then struck with the severity of the tragedy. Sunday (November 10, 2013) After lunch, Arnold called and we talked about the news yet we have yet to hear about from the Carles Municipality. From the radio reports, there was a group of convoy sent by the provincial capitol of Iloilo attempting to reach the town of Carles, since they were already able to reach the town of Sara, Balasan, Concepcion and Estancia the day before. There and then, we immediately made a plan that the moment Carles is made passable from the first group, we will go. That very afternoon, I met Arnold and we went to a local supermarket to buy canned goods, noodles and other essentials for the relief packs, at the same time doing some calls and sending text messages to friends, classmates and relatives if they can extend some help. We had nothing except a plan and an urgent desire to help. Thank God we were allowed to buy on credit. At that time, only us and a couple of friends had pledged and the money with us is not enough for the operation. By late afternoon, we were able to raise enough cash and pledges for one truckload of goods for our planned trip the next morning. We started posting updates on Facebook on what we are doing to update our friends and donors. We feel the need and importance that they be involved even though some are far away. After dinner, we commenced packing the relief packs with the help of some friends and relatives. Then one by one came neighbors and friends to help, some brought waters, canned goods, breads, cash and sacks of rice. Working tirelessly until all was packed and loaded onto the truck. This was the start of the Care Caravan Panay Operation... Monday (November 11, 2013) First trip north - 3rd day after Yolanda struck. Not knowing what to expect. Arnold and I checked and prepared for contingencies. We brought some medicines to give to the municipality in case they might need it. A three car convoy, two small vehicles and one truck, comprising of dear friends who volunteered to go with us began our journey north. A three-hour travel became four-and-a-half. Midway going to our destination, the devastation unraveled gradually. We had to deal with fallen trees, electric posts, transformers, high tension wires and other debris along the way. Oftentimes, we had to go way out of the highway to circumvent the obstacles and to make sure our truck won't get caught by low lying wires. It was already afternoon when we arrived at Carles. We went to the town hall to check Arnold's dad. All the roofing of the building's second floor was blown away. We found Arnold's dad at the back of the hall busy coordinating with his people, thank God they were ok. We unloaded most of the relief packs, tasty loaves and water intended for the remote islands and left some for the mainland. The islanders needed the water most since 11
small islands don't have sources of drinkable water. They had to travel by boat just to get water from the mainland. Mayor assigned us to distribute the remaining relief packs at one of the evacuation center, a national high school turned to evacuation center. As we set foot at the evacuation center, we noticed almost all classrooms' roofing were gone. We asked ourselves, how can the evacuees live in these conditions. People started to gather and fall in line, most are young and able bodied, some are old and some had newborns with them. People thanked us for the packs they received, you can see them smile like no other. It made me realized the strength and resiliency of our Filipino brothers and sisters. They taught me to be strong in spite of the hardships, to remain happy despite the loss and not to worry and be always hopeful. Travelling home was quite treacherous aside from the wires dangling from side to side, fallen trees and electrical posts, the highway is in total darkness. We got home almost 12 midnight, tired, hungry but with a sense of fulfillment that we are able to serve some of our brothers when they most need it. Tuesday (November 12, 2013) While discussing with Arnold what we saw and experienced the previous day, I received a call from Christine Huan and Leslie Sun. We started making plans on how Care Caravan can immediately send help and the plan to purchase relief goods locally for immediate deployment. By lunch time, we decided to have the caravan deployed by next morning. Phones started buzzing, orders began arriving one by one, sacks of rice then noodles. By evening, water provisions, canned goods, candles and matches arrived. Strangers, acquaintances, friends, neighbors and relatives began to arrive and dropped by to help, brothers and sisters from Iloilo Trinity Christian Church led by Marvin Du and his family helped in packing. A friend brought pancit molo for the volunteers, others brought their children to help. One friend, James, brought along his son and cartons of canned goods, water and biscuits. Little did I know that it was his son's birthday that day. Everybody packed tirelessly. By midnight everybody was already tired and started going home one by one. They are the unsung heroes of this operation. Not only did they spend time, resources and effort to help others in need and that they truly care. Wednesday (November 13, 2013) 5th day after Yolanda struck. We finished what we were not able to pack last night. A total of almost 4,000 relief packs have been completed by the time we are about to deploy. We finished packing just in time for the loaf bread to arrive from the factory. Three trucks were loaded for. The relief items were intended for the islands of Carles and Estancia. It was the fifth day after Yolanda struck and many islands have yet to be reached. If they were able to be supplied, it is only through boat and helicopter drops and surely the supplies should have ran out. Also we knew that most boats had capsized or rendered unusable due to the super typhoon. So our priority is on the islands.
12
A deployment of relief goods by the government was ongoing and they were doing their best. We met them enroute as dump trucks upon dump trucks of relief goods were being sent with police escorts. We tagged along with them then parted ways as we headed to our destination. With the help of dear friends and groups from Multisports Iloilo and Rotary Club of Metro Iloilo we started our travel back north. Then we split with one truck for team Rotary Metro Iloilo and Iloilo Trinity Christian Church for the islands of Estancia and our group two trucks for the islands of Carles. For this trip, separate teams covered two islands in Estancia and five islands in Carles and we were able to distribute some to inland towns of Balasan, Carles and Estancia. Breaking into smaller teams allowed us to cover more areas and became more effective in our case. The goal was to reach more in a short time. Before the operation we informed each of the group that when finished, they should head back to Iloilo since there was no way to communicate with each other. We don't want to travel in total darkness. We prayed for each others' safety. Our group arrived in the city at around midnight. We were glad all teams and team members were accounted for and safely home and their respective operation went well. Thursday (November 14, 2013) 6th day after Yolanda. Rest day for all of us. We got a chance to slow down, collect pledges, check cash position and pay bills to suppliers. Many organizations and individuals start to deploy relief goods going north. Most of the suppliers ran out of stocks from noodles, canned goods and candles, those available are instant pancit cantons and hot sardines in red, empty water bottles for bottled water also ran out. Now Care Caravan's priority shifted to temporary shelters. Experiencing ourselves the scorching midday heat during the operations and occasional
rains, I just can't imagine the ordeal they had to go through seeing mothers with infants with no roof at night and what to do in case of rain. Achi Leslie and I talked, and this started Care Caravan's sakolin drive. Friday (November 15, 2013 - And Onwards) With Care Caravan's support, the sakolin drive was a success. We were able to raise enough funds from Care Caravan and friends to temporarily give shelter to at least 3,000 families. Cover from the extreme heat, strong winds and rain. We started ordering rolls upon rolls of sakolin from a supplier, a good friend opened their home and volunteered to have the sakolins cut and folded for distribution. With much resource a big place and lots of household help Jake and his team worked behind the scenes. They cut the sakolins day in and day out, morning household help was the one cutting and folding, at night friends from different groups volunteered to cut. Along the way, we continued in distributing the relief goods - reaching more places, bringing God's love closer to the people, knowing, learning and understanding the people whose lives were affected by this event. I met many believers and non believers along the way. I pray that these people whom our God destined us to reach may one day know and experience our one true God. Care Caravan Panay Operations continued to make a difference, with groups from Iloilo Trinity going to other places covering more places and going multiple times headed by Marvin Du. Groups who came from Manila Brother Allen Uy and Calvin Chu, coverede Aklan, Capiz and Antique. Davao Evangelical Church relief goods, water, medicine and additional sakolins reached the province of Capiz covering towns of Pan-ay and Pontevedra. covered by Brother Jesse Amiel Ramoso and our group. And additional container vans from Care Caravan for the different churches and barangays for the town of Pan-ay were completely distributed .
13
14
T-SHIRT PROJECT With your purchase of CARE CARAVAN shirts, you were able to help those who were affected by Typhoon Haiyan. To date, 951 shirts have been sold with a total sale of Php 190,200. Amount collected was used to buy sackolins.
OVERSEAS PARTNERS Pastor Nelson Estrada (Chinese Christian Church of Rhode Island) with Care Caravan in a turnover ceremony at Pontevedra Christian School, Capiz Rev. David Lee (Chinese Christian Herald Crusades, California, U . S . A . ) w i t h R e v. Jeremiah Cheung (CBCP) and Care Caravan.
In April 24-25, 2014, Care Caravan volunteers (Ptr. Steven Dime, Ptr. Alex Chao, Lilibeth Sun Ong) together with Professor Sam Ng (Chinese Christian Herald Crusade went to Leyte to witness the turnover of fiberglass boats to the fishermen in Tacloban. In that trip, they also visited the churches and houses built under Care Caravan and Herald Foundation and distributed school supplies donated by JCAPA Jubilee Christian Academy Parents Auxiliary (led by former president Irene Wu Lim).
CONVERGENCE II Jacqueline Ong When disaster strikes and you find yourself volunteering to help out, have you ever been taken aback by your own fears? "What do I say?" "What do I do?" "How do I deal with them?"These are natural fears that caring people are left dumbfounded with after their hearts pushed their feet forward to the frontlines of a calamity scene. In the recent Convergence Seminar on Disaster Relief Care hosted by Care Caravan, professor of psychology in America Sam Ng tackled just how people are to deal and relate when in the scene of disaster. "Be sensitive. Every culture is different and certain actions and have various meanings." These were some of his advice. "Acknowledge what they said by repeating what they just shared, validate their feelings, then let them know you understand their reasoning. After you do those, then that's the only time you suggest your ideas," he added After the seminar, a group of teens who participated in Convergence were re-creating scenes and practicing amongst themselves how to re-act to certain dialogues of victims. Similarly, one volunteer who has been going on outreaches said after being equipped with new insights, "I'm usually shy and I didn't really know how to talk to the people I encounter in outreach work. Here, I learned and got to practice how to start a conversation with them.� NAME
2014 CARE CARAVAN OUTREACH MANAGERS CONTACT NUMBER
Allen Uy Leslie Sun Calvin Chu Steven Dime Carleen Tan Francis Chu Matthew Chua Jackson Ngo Gui Stellla Salcedo Sheree Go Cathy Holaysan Jesse Ramoso Renita Lim Alex Chao Marilyn Sy
+63 917 830 9212 +63 917 883 1115 +63 917 554 8847 +63 923 475 2184 +63 932 419 3243 +63 917 718 8867 +63 917 848 6529 +63 917 580 0100 +63 917 816 5651 +63 920 914 9200 +63 922 300 8886 +63 917 435 8461 +63 922 873 6582 +63 922 853 7244 +63 905 230 2475
FOR FINANCIAL OR IN-KIND DONATIONS: Bank Accounts for Financial Donations: CCOWEF Phils. Inc. (Banawe Branch) Banco De Oro 001370074075 SWIFT CODE : BNORPHMM Metrobank 065-3-06515488-0 SWIFT CODE : MBTCPHMM
15
Thank you to the churches and groups who have extended help in kind or cash for the projects during May 2013 to January 2014: Baguio Chinese Baptist Church Beijing International Mandarin Church Believers Fellowship Evangelical Church Builder's Aid Calapan Chu Eng School Caloocan Christian Baptist Church Cebu Bethany Church Cebu Gospel Church Cebu Gospel Church Mandaue CGC Caloocan CGC Manila CGC Ozamiz CGC QC Chee Puck Refrigeration Inc Christ Universal Mission Church Christian Bible Church of the Philippines Church of QC Cityland Grocery Dagupan Chinese Baptist Church Diamond Jubilee Evangelical Church Dumaguete Christian Church French Toss Clothing Co Fresh Republic G Shock Talk Phils Gerizim Evangelical Church Gideon Academy Glory Evangelical Church Grace Christian College Grace Christian Church of the Philippines Grace Gospel Church HHPI Employees Home Depot Balintawak Iloilo Trinity Christian Church Jesus Christ Church of Calapan Justino Corp Legazpi Hope Christian School Lighthouse of Faith Tabernacle
Machine and Computer World Inc Maranatha Sales Inc MC and Associates McBride Corp Megatech Wire and Cable Metalloid Trading MGC New Life Micros Retail Power Lite Metro Marketing Praise Evangelical Church PTCI Employees QUBE Quezon City Evangelical Church Softex Southport T-shirt (Shirt Station Enterprise) St Luke's Medical Center St Stephen's Parish T/S/C International Distribution Inc Tabaco Christian Community Church The Generics Pharmacy UEC Angeles UEC Balintawak UEC General Santos UEC Greenhills UEC Legazpi UEC Malabon UEC Palawan UEC Pasay UEC Philippines UEC Vigan UEC Zamboanga VG Multiproduct Westminster Church Youth Gospel Center
RESCUE RECON Rev. Jesse Ramoso If a disaster happens in our area, are we prepared? I did not expect that I would be able to take part in a disaster rescue operation from the Yolanda aftermath. Care Caravan asked from the CCOWE Young Professional officers for a volunteer to be deployed somewhere in Calamian Island, Palawan to document its relief operation. Two days prior to our departure, I was informed to prepare for a long drive to Samar. I will be working with STOUT Consultancy for Risk Reduction for relief operations. We were airlifted from Villamore Airbase using the “Airforce One” Fokker Jet F27 of the Philippines. Upon arrival at the Tacloban airport, an Osprey V-22 picked us up and brought us to Guiuan Samar. Our team was met by a local media. We then proceeded to our headquarters and were given a briefing on US military protocol. That was the time I learned that my team will work with the US Marines using their helicopters and will be dispatched by being hoisted or jumping off the plane. The US Marines named us as “Rescue Recon.” We will be the only rescue team that will partner with them as their reconnaissance on the ground, clearing the area; while the AFP and PNP will provide the ground force security. I am not a professionally trained rescuer nor knowledgeable in military rescue. I thought to myself I could be in the wrong team. It was then that I realized that the heart is very important but what are needed most in the disaster zone are the skills for emergency medical rescue. And I was part of a team with skills in these areas.
Not to mention all the individuals and anonymous donors who have given a part of what they have to be of help to those in need. To all the volunteers who have helped in packing; in lending cars, electric fans, and transportation; in providing additional manpower; in liking and sharing Facebook updates; in praying for the ministry – we thank God for the act of kindness you have shown springing from the love you have for our Lord and our countrymen.
The US Marines provided us with lightweight food supplies and air transportations, Germany provided us with doctors the rest are rescuers from different organizations and LGU's. Due to these circumstances, I realized that in every disaster there are two scenarios - the one rescuing and the one being rescued. Our country experiences typhoons, earthquakes, storm surges, etc. but only a few organizations take the preparation seriously. I realized that Christian organizations like us do not have the full vision of disaster risk management, prevention and rescue. What we are familiar with are basic first aid and basic rescue. Most of the casualties in the disaster are those abled men who try to rescue their love ones but do not have the skills in basic safety and training in survival. Because of this, I passionately encouraged our Care Caravan officers to organize our own rescue team with equipment and proper training as well as create an educational campaign about rescue and disaster risk reduction, then survival. 16