Fundraising project initiated by Filipino-Canadian raised funds to buy boats for typhoon-affected families in PH

FILE: Aerial photo shows the aftermath of Typhoon Ulysses along Camarines Sur. President Rodrigo Roa Duterte conducted aerial inspections of severely affected areas in Cagayan Valley and Bicol Region on November 15, 2020. REY BANIQUET/ PRESIDENTIAL PHOTO

Countries could be a thousand miles apart from each other, but if a time comes that one calls for help, the distance would not even matter.

While the world continues to win over the coronavirus pandemic, the Philippines had to face another challenge after successive typhoons — Typhoon Quinta (Molave), Super Typhoon Rolly (Goni), and Typhoon Ulysses (Vamco) — devastated the country in November, shattering properties and livelihoods of many Filipinos, particularly in Luzon.

Learning about the situation of their typhoon-affected kababayans, other Filipinos immediately came hand in hand to send relief, with most of them initiating various fundraising projects.

But such initiatives for the typhoon victims were not only happening within the Philippines. A fundraising project that began with an email from a Filipino-Canadian in British Columbia was able to raise funds enough to provide two fishing boats to the Filipino families in Dingalan, Aurora.

Ann Fontanilla, executive director of Trinity Western University (TWU) GLOBAL – Branches, wrote an email to her colleagues and some Canadian friends last November 15, informing them about the situation of some families in the Philippines after the successive typhoons devastated the country and left billions worth of damage to agriculture and infrastructure.

“I was telling myself, ‘how can I help in my own small way?’ I don’t have much, but I probably have more than those people who lost their places and their homes. So I just thought of rallying some of my friends and co-workers,” Fontanilla told Philippine Canadian Inquirer (PCI).

Her initial goal was to raise funds to provide food and water, but this, later on, became bigger after she received an overwhelmingly positive response from her colleagues and friends. Just a few hours after she sent her email, she immediately raised $500 CAD — that was when she started aiming higher. From those basic necessities, she thought, why not help them regain their livelihood?

When she saw the donation drive for boats for fisher families in Dingalan, Aurora, Fontanilla told her friends and co-workers that she wanted to help them sustain their livelihood by donating funds to purchase a boat that costs around $2,500 CAD.

“Some of my friends said, ‘Oh that’s a good idea.’ From $20 CAD, some people are now giving $100 CAD, $200 CAD,” she recalled.

“With my small plan, I thought I would just send a couple hundred but then my dream has become, ‘Oh. Now I have to aim for $3,000 CAD,'” she added.

Fontanilla’s project continued to receive support within the university after her colleague who is a professor, Dr. Imbenzi George, introduced it to his class of Master of Arts in Leadership students. The class, composed of students from other countries such as China, Bangladesh, Vietnam, and India, was “very receptive” when they heard about the initiative and did not think twice about helping.

“The professor [Dr. George] said we can give you one boat. So after that initial one boat, we were able to raise two boats: one boat from the students, one boat from the other donors. So we have now two boats already to be given so that’s more than $5,000 CAD,” she said.

On December 9, the graduate students had the chance to talk with Dingalan Mayor Shierwin Taay via Zoom meeting.

With the help from her friends, colleagues, and students of TWU, Fontanilla was able to raise a total of P191,330 which she sent to the municipality of Dingalan on December 22.

It was not only the fisher families who benefitted from the fundraising initiative as it turned out that the donors also gained something from it: the opportunity to be aware of the situation in the Philippines.

“Many of my friends don’t know where the Philippines is, more so they don’t even know where the Aurora is. They don’t know where we are, they don’t know the actual realities of being poor in the Philippines,” Fontanilla said.

“For me, it’s enough that I am able to share to them our realities and for them to hear and listen to that story,” she continued, sharing that a lot of her friends were also grateful to learn more about the Philippines through the initiative.

Fontanilla said she could not be prouder that she came from a country where no matter how huge the wave that is trying to drown it, its people will always rise above. This reminded her of the movie “Finding Nemo” where Dory, despite being in an uncertain situation, kept on saying, “Just keep swimming.”

“I think Filipinos are very good at that, we just keep on swimming and we never give up. I’m so proud of my origin, my heritage. I’m so proud of my heritage,” she said.

Donations are still coming in which, she said, could be alloted for the third boat.

Those who are willing to donate may contact Fontanilla through ann.fontanilla@twu.ca or ann.fontanilla@gmail.com. If they are in Canada, they may call 778 879 9676.