wfn.org | CRWRC Helps Bring Aid to Philippine Typhoon Survivors

[Worldwide Faith News <wfn@igc.org>]

IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Grace Wiebe, International Relief Program Coordinator, 1-800-334-2920
Beth DeGraff, CRWRC Media Contact, cell 616-648-7821 or 1-80055-CRWRC

CRWRC Helps Bring Aid to Philippine Typhoon Survivors

SEPTEMBER 30, 2009?The Christian Reformed Relief Committee
(www.crwrc.org) is working with local churches and disaster response
teams in metro Manila to distribute emergency supplies to survivors of
Typhoon Ketsana in the Philippines. The Typhoon is one of four
disasters to hit Asia Pacific in the last week, including a 7.9
magnitude earthquake that rocked Indonesia early this morning.

Three Christian Reformed Church of the Philippines (CRC-P)
congregations in Manila were affected by storm?reportedly the worst in
40 years, taking more than 240 lives so far. CRWRC-Manila office staff
said Saturday that unaffected congregations and local Disaster
Response Teams are collecting and distributing emergency aid to
survivors and evacuees, including food supplies provided by CRWRC.

?Thousands of Philippine families have been severely affected by the
storm,? says CRWRC staff, Lem Rosselon from Manila. ?People are in
danger from the cold, from hunger, and from drowning and sickness.
Many roads are still flooded but we are able to intervene, doing
whatever we can to help save lives.?

Volunteers from the churches, who have been working non-stop since
last week, are packing bundles of cooked eggs, bread, pasta, canned
goods, bottled water, clothing, blankets, matches and candles, and
rice to give to hundreds of survivors.

?From mid-afternoon, sometimes until midnight, teams are dispatched to
visit, bring relief goods, words of comfort, and pray with families
from Pasig, Mandaluyong, Cainta, Makati, Antipolo, San Juan, Taytay
and San Mateo,? says a representative from Bread From Heaven Community
Church in Mandaluyong. ?We began on Sunday, and while we are
exhausted, we are privileged to extend compassion and generosity to
many who are in pain and suffering.?

Although one CRWRC-Philippines Consultant was stranded in Los Banos
over the weekend due to the storm, CRWRC staff quickly joined with
local agencies to plan a coordinated response with the CRC-P churches.

CRWRC is seeking funds to respond to Typhoon Ketsana in the
Philippines. Donations can be made at online at www.crwrc.org, by
calling 1-800-55-CRWRC, or by mailing checks designated
?Philippines/Asia Floods 2009? to: CRWRC, 2850 Kalamazoo Avenue SE,
Grand Rapids, Mich., 49560-0600.

Grace Wiebe, international relief project manager for CRWRC, is
available for interviews by calling 1-800-730-3490. Or call Beth
DeGraff, media contact, at 1-800-55-CRWRC or cell, 616-648-7821.

To learn more about CRWRC?s international relief programs, go to  www.crwrc.org.

To inquire about CRWRC Work Teams in the Philippines responding to
flooding on Mindanao Island where CRWRC is building 15 homes in the
next 12 months, go to www.crwrc.org/volunteer or email
servicelearning@crcna.org.

CRWRC is a non-profit agency of the Christian Reformed Church in North
America ministering to people in need around the world with relief,
development, and justice.

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