Help the Monterola family recover
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Hello everyone. We have created this GoFundMe page for our dear friend Cyrus and his family due to the significant impact Covid and the natural disasters in Philippines have had on them. As Cyrus is unable to set up an account to receive funds directly from GoFundMe, all funds raised will be collected by Andrea Hui on behalf of Cyrus. All collected funds will be transferred to Cyrus at the end of the fundraiser via a money transfer and a receipt of the transaction will be posted on this page.
We ask that you please read the below and donate what you can to help us out with this cause for a wonderful man and his family.
Our good friend Cyrus Monterola and his wife, Elleryn Monterola come from humble beginnings. They are caring and loving people who look after their friends, family and community. The Monterolas have worked 16 hour days over the years in multiple jobs to provide a home, quality education (in hopes of giving their children an opportunity for a better future) and food for their three children Francesca, Jillianne and Joshua.
In 2019 things were going well for the Monterola family as they were able to provide their children with a good home, good education as well as being able to give back to the community via their church.
When Covid hit the world in March 2020, things took a disastrous turn for the Monterola family. Businesses shut down and lockdowns occurred. People were sick and scared. Many lost their jobs, but the bills stayed the same. In Australia, we were fortunate enough during this time to have some financial support from the government. For the Monterola family, there was no government support or financial aid that they could rely on in the Philippines.
The pandemic has caused devastation to Cyrus, a well-educated IT professional who had a career and plans for himself and his beautiful family. Cyrus is an optimistic man. He has been since a child, and his superpower (which we believe) is his optimism no matter the hardships he is facing. He approaches adversities with a smile and a solution. So when Covid came and the company he was working for was forced to close its doors, it meant he had to find other work. Regardless of the extreme toll this took on his health, happiness, and overall well-being, he was able to keep the family stable for a short period and continue to afford the online education for his children. He was just scraping by with all other household bills.
In August 2020, further devastation came in the form of flooding due to a typhoon. Unfortunately, this is not uncommon in the Philippines. With the current extra hours Cyrus was putting in, the family could complete some repairs from the damages of the flooding. However, a month later, disaster struck once again with another more vigorous monsoon hitting them.
The second monsoon was much more destructive than the one in August causing flooding and landslides. Their house infrastructure was damaged as a result of the landslide and the two consecutive storms and financial strain from Covid meant that the impact on Cyrus and his family was now unimaginable.
Cyrus knew that this meant it would require a lot from him and his wife to recover from this, but Cyrus, being the optimistic man, was determined not to allow this to affect the spirit of the family. Unfortunately in November 2020 the family was once again affected by a third monsoon. The storm came in with heavier rainfalls, violent winds, and flooding levels he had only experienced once at a young age.
The water sadly rose 150 cm in his area, so Cyrus together with his wife carried their children on their shoulders during this storm whilst they waited it out. The water levels had reached the height of their chin so their children had to wait on their shoulders carrying cellphones, food, and other essentials for hours as they waited out the storm.
When the November storm struck, it was the first time we heard Cyrus break down in tears. It was the first time we were made aware of the challenges he had been facing over the the months, unbeknownst to us.
We did our best to support Cyrus and his family throughout this time to ensure him and his family had food, medicine, and was able to buy the necessary essentials. It was a positive note to see that after the November storm, his positive and abundant attitude returned.
Since then, 2021 has continued to be the most challenging year the Monterola family has faced. They have not recovered from 2020 due to the recurring lockdowns and work not bouncing back for him and his wife. They have worked multiple jobs, but the bills continue to stack, as are the additional fees of not paying the bills. The final straw recently was his wife Elleryn contracting Covid-19 and being hospitalized. She is still unable to work, and with that meant one less income with medical bills stacked on top of it. She is recovering now but she can no longer work until she is fully recovered.
Due to Covid, lockdowns and the 2020 storms, his children can no longer attend school until their debt is cleared. The house, which they have worked so hard to have, will be repossessed in the next 2-3 months unless they pay their mortgage.
The Monterola family is a good, kind, and loving family. They are loving to one another. They are involved with the community, and support the community as much as possible through the church. Right now, they need help, and much like them, their community in the Philippines is in the same boat and are unable to help him.
This is where we come in. Our team has started this GoFundMe page so the Monterola family can keep their home; their children can go back to school, and they can purchase the essentials the family needs for their home. Cyrus is working three jobs currently to make ends meet, but it is not sufficient.
Our goal is to raise $9000 to assist Cyrus to keep the house they have worked so hard for, so that their kids can go back to school and continue their education.
We would be so very grateful for any assistance you can offer to help our friend with this extremely challenging situation so that he and his family can return to some kind of normality. Any amount of donation will be appreciated and we want to sincerely thank you for reading this far and for supporting our cause and friend.
With gratitude and heartfelt thanks,
Ultimate You Team
We ask that you please read the below and donate what you can to help us out with this cause for a wonderful man and his family.
Our good friend Cyrus Monterola and his wife, Elleryn Monterola come from humble beginnings. They are caring and loving people who look after their friends, family and community. The Monterolas have worked 16 hour days over the years in multiple jobs to provide a home, quality education (in hopes of giving their children an opportunity for a better future) and food for their three children Francesca, Jillianne and Joshua.
In 2019 things were going well for the Monterola family as they were able to provide their children with a good home, good education as well as being able to give back to the community via their church.
When Covid hit the world in March 2020, things took a disastrous turn for the Monterola family. Businesses shut down and lockdowns occurred. People were sick and scared. Many lost their jobs, but the bills stayed the same. In Australia, we were fortunate enough during this time to have some financial support from the government. For the Monterola family, there was no government support or financial aid that they could rely on in the Philippines.
The pandemic has caused devastation to Cyrus, a well-educated IT professional who had a career and plans for himself and his beautiful family. Cyrus is an optimistic man. He has been since a child, and his superpower (which we believe) is his optimism no matter the hardships he is facing. He approaches adversities with a smile and a solution. So when Covid came and the company he was working for was forced to close its doors, it meant he had to find other work. Regardless of the extreme toll this took on his health, happiness, and overall well-being, he was able to keep the family stable for a short period and continue to afford the online education for his children. He was just scraping by with all other household bills.
In August 2020, further devastation came in the form of flooding due to a typhoon. Unfortunately, this is not uncommon in the Philippines. With the current extra hours Cyrus was putting in, the family could complete some repairs from the damages of the flooding. However, a month later, disaster struck once again with another more vigorous monsoon hitting them.
The second monsoon was much more destructive than the one in August causing flooding and landslides. Their house infrastructure was damaged as a result of the landslide and the two consecutive storms and financial strain from Covid meant that the impact on Cyrus and his family was now unimaginable.
Cyrus knew that this meant it would require a lot from him and his wife to recover from this, but Cyrus, being the optimistic man, was determined not to allow this to affect the spirit of the family. Unfortunately in November 2020 the family was once again affected by a third monsoon. The storm came in with heavier rainfalls, violent winds, and flooding levels he had only experienced once at a young age.
The water sadly rose 150 cm in his area, so Cyrus together with his wife carried their children on their shoulders during this storm whilst they waited it out. The water levels had reached the height of their chin so their children had to wait on their shoulders carrying cellphones, food, and other essentials for hours as they waited out the storm.
When the November storm struck, it was the first time we heard Cyrus break down in tears. It was the first time we were made aware of the challenges he had been facing over the the months, unbeknownst to us.
We did our best to support Cyrus and his family throughout this time to ensure him and his family had food, medicine, and was able to buy the necessary essentials. It was a positive note to see that after the November storm, his positive and abundant attitude returned.
Since then, 2021 has continued to be the most challenging year the Monterola family has faced. They have not recovered from 2020 due to the recurring lockdowns and work not bouncing back for him and his wife. They have worked multiple jobs, but the bills continue to stack, as are the additional fees of not paying the bills. The final straw recently was his wife Elleryn contracting Covid-19 and being hospitalized. She is still unable to work, and with that meant one less income with medical bills stacked on top of it. She is recovering now but she can no longer work until she is fully recovered.
Due to Covid, lockdowns and the 2020 storms, his children can no longer attend school until their debt is cleared. The house, which they have worked so hard to have, will be repossessed in the next 2-3 months unless they pay their mortgage.
The Monterola family is a good, kind, and loving family. They are loving to one another. They are involved with the community, and support the community as much as possible through the church. Right now, they need help, and much like them, their community in the Philippines is in the same boat and are unable to help him.
This is where we come in. Our team has started this GoFundMe page so the Monterola family can keep their home; their children can go back to school, and they can purchase the essentials the family needs for their home. Cyrus is working three jobs currently to make ends meet, but it is not sufficient.
Our goal is to raise $9000 to assist Cyrus to keep the house they have worked so hard for, so that their kids can go back to school and continue their education.
We would be so very grateful for any assistance you can offer to help our friend with this extremely challenging situation so that he and his family can return to some kind of normality. Any amount of donation will be appreciated and we want to sincerely thank you for reading this far and for supporting our cause and friend.
With gratitude and heartfelt thanks,
Ultimate You Team
Organizer and beneficiary
Melvin Gallegos
Organizer
Balaclava, VIC
Andrea Hui
Beneficiary