23rd Birthday Typhoon Relief Fund

Hi Family and Friends,

I have a simple wish this year. Instead of buying me a drink or present for my birthday, please help me celebrate this year by donating to the restoration in the aftermath of Typhoon Haiyan that hit the Philippines on Friday, November 8th.

Birthdays come and go each year. Some people in life are not as fortunate as others and fight each day to see the next daylight. Many of us have been blessed with food, shelter, warm clothing, and a family - something we at times take for granted. I have been blessed with a great family, friends and the opportunity at life to pursue my dreams so in celebration of my 23rd birthday, I wish to give back and help others have the same opportunity at life that I have been given.
There is always a cause to give towards, but in light of the unexpected disaster that killed an estimated 10,000 people and displaced more than 600,000 in the central Philippines, I hope to give all of the raised funds to Unicef's relief fund (http://www.unicef.org). All donations to the relief fund will be transparent for all who have donated to the cause.

Thank you everyone!

11/11 News Update: Tacloban, a city of 200,000 people on the island of Leyte, lay in ruins with bodies littering the streets in the wake of Typhoon Haiyan. A civil defense official told NBC News on Monday that more than 56,000 homes had been destroyed on the island of Panay, with 83,000 others damaged.

But there was no word from many communities. One of the most powerful storms ever recorded killed at least 10,000 people in the central Philippines, with huge waves sweeping away entire coastal villages and devastating the region's main city.
"What worries us is there are so many areas that we have no information from and when we have this silence this usually means that the damage is even worse," Joseph Curry, country representative for Catholic Relief Services, told TODAY.
"We're unable to know the full extent of how many people are isolated and unreached, I would say it's in the millions," said Julien Anseau, an Asia region communications manager with ChildFund International.