Students rally with event to help typhoon victims

When Typhoon Haiyan caused widespread fatalities and damage in the Philippines earlier this month, Penn students started raising money for relief efforts in any way they could.

Adding to these efforts, the Penn Philippine Association and several other campus groups are organizing a fundraiser event, “Waterproof: A Charity Coffeehouse,” tonight at 8 p.m. at the Penn Newman Center, located at 3720 Chestnut Street.

The name “Waterproof,” College senior and PPA Vice President of Communications Ronald Martin said, reflects “the resilient spirit of the Filipino people” despite the disastrous effects of this month’s typhoon.

The event will include raffle prizes, catered dinner, student performances and T-shirt, poster and bracelet sales. All proceeds will benefit the Philippines-based charity Gawad Kalinga, which aims to alleviate poverty and rebuild the nation after the typhoon’s destruction.

Related: Campus groups raise relief funds for Philippines typhoon

Wharton senior and PPA Vice President External Paulo Bautista hopes to raise several thousand dollars through tonight’s charity coffeehouse. Other events such as Miss America Nina Davuluri’s keynote speech, Kina Grannis and Big Asian — all part of Asian Pacific American Heritage Week — have already raised $1,433 to date. Tickets at the door for Waterproof will be $10, with group rates and discounts for T-shirt purchases.

The Vice Provost for University Life has also been providing help and counseling for those whose families might have been affected.

Some current students who live in the Philippines have felt the impact of Typhoon Haiyan most directly. “I have friends who were affected by the typhoon,” Wharton and College sophomore Tricia Peralta said. “Seeing firsthand your friends who were going through it … Literally everything was gone.”

College senior Bernadine Soriano had relatives in Manila who were affected by a different typhoon a few years ago. However, Haiyan “is 10 times worse than that,” she said. “I felt like I had to do something.”

Related: Philippine Consulate General talks Philippine-U.S. relations

Both students described the typhoon’s effects as comparable to Hurricane Sandy and Katrina combined, wreaking havoc on “people [who] are already the poorest of the poor,” said Peralta, who plans to return home over winter break and help the affected area of Tacloban.

Martin emphasized the importance of continued relief — even into next semester. “We don’t want people to forget that there are still so many people displaced,” he said.

“People still need to rebuild these cities,” Soriano explained. “They don’t have the infrastructure. They have trucks but the trucks don’t have gas.”

All Penn students and Philadelphia locals are encouraged to come to Waterproof. “There’s a difference between knowing and reading about [the typhoon] and doing something to help,” Soriano said. “And this is an opportunity to help.”

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