On December 16, 2021, my mom's beautiful hometown of Siargao became the epicenter of calamity as Super Typhoon Rai (Odette) made first landfall on the island. A once beautiful beach town and surfing capital has been decimated, and now their communities are hanging on to every last hope. Siargao was ready for its renaissance post-pandemic in time for the holidays, but now they are restarting from scratch. [WaPo Article]

 

Our family is one of the fortunate ones in our village. Although not unscathed, the Virtudazo Ancestral Home in the village of Garcia in the town of Santa Monica remains upright and has become a resource center for the villagers, where virtually everyone has lost their homes. Our house has been turned into a communal space and kitchen to allow the villagers access to basic needs such as food and water.

 

 

Across our home is a multi-purpose open-court hall that, albeit being damaged, has been turned into sleeping quarters for families.

 

 

Inside the kitchen of our home, families take turn preparing food for the community and pooling resources to provide basic necessities. This is as direct an impact we as a family are trying to make to keep people afloat as they start from absolutely nothing.

 

 

We are coordinating with relatives in Siargao to provide for the most basic needs and supplies of the villagers: rice, food, basic construction supplies (e.g., nails, hammers, roofing, etc.) so they can start anew. Your donations will go directly towards these items. Below you will find the first batch of food donations that have made it into the island and directly to our village.

 

 

This holiday season, we hope to give these local communities a glimmer of hope and a chance to celebrate the holidays while they start to rebuild their lives all over.

 

We are coordinating with relatives in the Philippines and sending money to purchase goods in nearby towns/cities to transport back to Siargao.

 

 

Any and all amounts will make a huge difference to the lives of these families. We will keep you posted with updates of our progress. Thank you so much for your generosity. Salamat karajaw.