Cebu Typhoon Disaster Relief

Hello Friend,

I'm Jemross from Cebu, Philippines and my US/ American partner of 10 years is Isaac. Over the past 10 or so years, we've had many ups and downs trying to work our lives out as I'm sure you can relate with. Those ups and downs helped us to narrow our focus on building our own business in the Philippines. While the Covid19 Pandemic proved to be a great challenge for us all, it also gave us the time to plan and to save for the business that we wanted. After much time and effort, we found a great opportunity to open a burger stand or ‘burgeran’ in Tingo, Olango Island, Cebu (Ayuk's Grill).

Last July 8th, we took a great risk by starting our burger stand in Olango even though the pandemic continued to pose challenges. We invested all our savings, time, and effort into building our business even with the pressure of the pandemic. For the past five months, we found slow but steady growth which made us hopeful for the future. Through this slow growth, we were able to give back more to our community, friends, and family. More specifically, we had three employees which in turn helped to provide for their large families. Also, we were able to share our house, internet, and work opportunities with our friends who were struggling to rebuild their finances. As work was, and still is, scarce, we had liquidity to finance other families of our community and island. Finally, we were able to make long-term plans for improving my family’s house and living standards. We had and gave hope which was and is so hard to find during the pandemic. We were all excited for Christmas, New Year, Tingo Fiesta, and the future. We felt certain that things were beginning to improve after a long and hard two years. We were so close to feeling that we had finally achieved a goal or a small success in our ten years of struggle.

Last Friday night, December 16th, 2021, all our hope and excitement was abruptly and, in our perspective, crudely taken away from us due to the Rai or Odette ‘Super-Typhoon’ (https://www.nytimes.com/2021/12/19/world/asia/philippines-super-typhoon-rai-odette.html).

Looking up into the raging night sky from our small concrete bathroom, I thought, "How can we ever hope again?" Where do you go when everything is suddenly gone? It will take months for power, transportation, and communication to be restored to the community of Tingo that so openly welcomed the crazy gay couple. I do not know what will happen to us, but I do know that you can continue to give hope where we are now unable. In less dramatic terms, here's how:

1) Tingo, Olango Community

Our friends and their families will need water, propane/ butane, and gas for the generator that powers the purification system. They are a powerful, survivalist community, so this is the main need. Gasoline is now 60 pesos or $1.10 per liter but this price increases daily due to demand. Water is also ₱110/ $2 for a 5-gallon jug and rising. For the average family with a gross daily income of ₱200 or less, this is impossible especially since there is no cash flow now. Local and federal governments are trying their best, but with over a million people living in the urban areas, the outlying islands and provincial areas and left to wait at the end of the line. (https://web.facebook.com/photo/?fbid=4573345790961...) / (https://psa.gov.ph/content/cebu-second-most-popula...) (a bit old but not far off still http://oneocean.org/download/20010629/olango_profi...)

Here is a great list of immediate needs provided by my friend Nayeon. We discussed whether or not these items could be shipped. Due to the logistical challenges and her expertise from working at FedEx, we decided that it would be better to try and buy the items in or around Cebu. If you would prefer to donate physical products, please refer to the Red Cross or similar organizations that have the means to bypass logistical challenges. Otherwise, donations we received will be applied according to the following price list.

> tents (Tents for sale at SM)
> water and water containers (see above as well as water jugs for sale / Local Donation Drive for water containers)
> tarps and vinyl covers (https://shopee.ph/Tarpaulin---Lona---Tolda---6-FT-...)
> emergency solar lights (https://shopee.ph/Brightex-10W-150W-LED-Solar-LED-...)
> gasoline for generators (price varies by supply and availability)
> soap, shampoo, detergent, toothpaste/ toothbrush, etc. (https://www.dti.gov.ph/konsyumer/latest-srps-basic...)
> canned goods and dry goods (https://www.dti.gov.ph/konsyumer/latest-srps-basic...)

If transport is restored, building supplies will be the next priority. Please follow these links to get a better estimate of the costs. (https://www.affordablecebu.com/load/business/list_...) (https://askinglot.com/how-much-does-it-cost-to-bui...).

2) Our Family

Our Aunt Evelyn lost her house. Same as above, also here are the costs of roofing and cinder block. In short, $10 per square meter for metal roofing and $6 per bag of Portland Cement. http://dngroup.com.ph/metal-roofing-prices-in-the-.... / https://philconprices.com/tag/hollow-block-price-p...

My mother's home, next door to my aunt, also needs to be repaired.

3) Our Friends

Our friend Clauden with her three brothers and two sisters lost their home. Her younger sister has also been in and out of the hospital being diagnosed with lupus, so they have completely drained their finances on medical bills.

Our friend Sentti was working at the hospital to build a house for his family from an island called Nocnocan. His house was destroyed, and his home island was directly in the path of the typhoon. We haven't had any official reports, but we know many lost their lives.

This really seems like an impossible challenge as these are just a few of the many, many affected families. This is why not one person can solve this. As far as I know, I do not have any friend who is a billionaire. On the other hand, if you could share a little and help a little, it would bring hope back to this community which is more valuable than all the money. Thank you for your time and consideration.

Sincerely,

Jemross Erida and Isaac Hathhorn