Benefit for Victims of Typhoon Ondoy

SAN FRANCISCO - A diverse array of elected officials, community organizations and leaders raised several thousand dollars at a benefit Friday night in San Francisco for the victims in the Philippines of Typhoon Ketsana, known in that country as Ondoy.

The massive flooding in metropolitan Manila in the Philippines has claimed hundreds of lives and affected more than 2.5 million people in what is considered the worst such calamity in the region’s history. The impact of this unfortunate event will be felt for many months ahead and the country will need a lot of help from the global community in rehabilitation efforts as well as in dealing with resulting food and basic supply shortages and the spread of disease.

“I grew up in Manila in a home by the river and this effort was prompted by that one Saturday in the wake of the killer typhoon when I couldn’t get a hold of my family,” said event chair Keesa Ocampo. “I didn’t know if they were safe or even alive.”

The event at Lot 46, which featured a short program showing photos of the disaster’s impact on the Filipino people, was hosted by Aimee Allison, host of KPFA’s Morning Show with featured DJs Chief Xcel of Blackalicious, DJ Big Rich, DJ Romeo, DJ Artek and performances by Kristine Sinajon, Gabe Bondoc and Patrick Landeza.

State board of equalization chair Betty Yee, State Senator Leland Yee, state Assemblymember Jerry Hill, San Francisco board of supervisors president David Chiu, San Francisco city college board member Steve Ngo, AC Transit board member Joel Young and Philippine Consul General to San Francisco Marciano Paynor, Jr. were among the officials at the event.

Proceeds from the event will be donated to ABS-CBN Foundation, a registered 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization.

Not Just the Philippines

The organizers of this benefit expressed their solidarity with the typhoon victims in Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos, as well as those who were most recently affected by the tsunami and earthquake in American Samoa, Samoa and Indonesia.

“Immediately following the weekend that Typhoon Ketsana hit the Philippines, we learned of the devastations that hit Indonesia, Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia and Samoa and we have all been challenged to think about how we are all connected, as citizens of the world,” said Ocampo.

“Our compassion for all our brothers and sisters in these countries propelled this event and the greater relief efforts that the San Francisco Bay Area community is engaging in. Though the event was conceived by those of us with ties to the Philippines, our effort now includes people from virtually every background, who are driven by their compassion for the people who are experiencing tremendous trauma as a result of this massive disaster.”

Broad Cross-Section of Support from the Community

In addition to Betty Yee, Leland Yee, Hill, Chiu, Ngo, Young and Paynor, the benefit was supported by a number of elected officials serving as honorary co-hosts, including U.S. Senator Dianne Feinstein, Congresswoman Jackie Speier, Board of Equalization Chair Betty Yee, Assemblymember Fiona Ma, SF. Mayor Gavin Newsom, S.F. District Attorney Kamala Harris, S.F. Assessor Phil Ting, S.F. Board of Education Vice-President Jane Kim, and S.F. Board of Education Member Hydra Mendoza,

The event committee, led by Ocampo, included Audie Vergara, Eric Casher, Erin Haney, Fred Calindas, Gen Jopanda, Glenn Fajardo, Keith Kamisugi, Kyle Wong, London Breed, Masood Ordikhani, Matt Haney, Meena Harris, Rene Astudillo, Rhean Fajardo, Terrine Baluyut, Vidhya Prabhakaran and Malia Cohen.

Community organization partners for the event include: ABS-CBN Foundation-USA, Asian American Bar Association, Asian American Journalists Association, SF Chapter, Asian Business League, Bay Area Asian Pacific American Legislative Staffers, Bliss Entertainment, Chinese for Affirmative Action, Citizen Hope, Clubworks, DineForChange, Drink for a Cause, Fil-Am Chamber of Commerce Santa Clara, Filipina Women’s Network, Filipino American Arts Exposition, Filipino American Chamber of Commerce of San Francisco, Filipino Bar Association of Northern California, hapihour.org, Inspire Hope Institute, Kaya: Filipino Americans for Progress, Manilatown Heritage Foundation, National Federation of Filipino-American Associations, Philippine American Press Club USA, Philippine Consulate General - San Francisco, San Francisco Fil-Am Jazz Festival Community, San Francisco-Manila Sister City Committee, Soulciety.org and Young Filipino Professionals Association.

Photos and video from the event will be posted at http://bayareabenefit.org.

Source: hapihour.org