By ALICIA AGUILERA
Members of Canberra’s Filipino community who have been directly affected by recent Typhoon Ketsana are working hard to secure aid to assist with the relief efforts.
The Philippine-Australian Association is raising funds and finding goods on a list provided by the Villamor Air Base High School to send to their home country.
Association member Kym Kunze said many members of the local migrant group had been directly affected. Some lost loved ones.
“My best friend’s nephew drowned trying to save other people that needed help in the floods around the Pasig River,” Ms Kunze said.
“My other friend Emely also lost her sister due to the floods. She was unable to get to the hospital for her daily dialysis and died as a result of missing her treatment.”
The association is hosting a fundraising karaoke night later this month (October 2009) and already has more than 120 guests confirmed and has already provided close to $1000 in various forms of donations, including cash and perishable goods.
The chair of the Canberra Multicultural Community Forum, Sam Wong, said Canberra residents had a reputation for opening their hearts and wallets to victims of natural disasters.
“The world has had more than its fair share this year with the Italian earthquake and typhoon that devastated Taiwan and parts of the Chinese mainland,” Mr Wong said.
“I know that Canberrans will respond and they can be confident their donations will go where they are needed most.”
He said the Philippine-Australian Association in Canberra is one of many multicultural groups in the ACT which are raising funds towards recent natural disasters.
The Australian Government is also providing $2 million, which will be delivered through the World Food Program, to feed the people affected by Typhoon Ketsana.
