Expats set reunion to help hometown of Palompon, Leyte recover from ‘Haiyan’
Maria Yvette Campos-Home of the Phil Am Association of Rochester, Minnesota, personally hands the check donation to the BPUSAFI president/founder Felix E. Diongzon. CONTRIBUTED PHOTO
CARY, Illinois – A “grand reunion” of natives of Palompon, Leyte, now living in North America and other places abroad and who are sending aid to survivors of typhoon Haiyan/Yolanda will take place on July 5 at the Hilton Hotel & Suites, Niagara Falls, Ontario, Canada.
Consul General Junever M. Mahilum-West of the Philippine Consulate in Toronto will inductof officers and board members of the Bangon Palompon USA Foundation, which helping the town recover from devastation. The reunion is billed as “Sayaw ug Hudyaka sa Niagara 2014,” hosted by the Palomponian Association in Canada.
Bangon Palompon was established right after super typhoon Haiyan/Yolanda devastated the central part of the island in the Philippines. Palompon, Leyte, was hard hit – 95 percent of it was damaged and more than 50 percent of the households were left homeless.
The foundation aims to improve the lives of the victims of the typhoon through timely and effective aid and by partnering with organizations locally and internationally in rebuilding homes, implementing livelihood projects and granting scholarships to deserving students for educational advancement.
Bangon Palompon was able to distribute 21,839 households emergency relief packages, 50 carpentry kits, 500 emergency lights and batteries, 500 personal care kits, and sent 250 families to temporary shelters with the help of our local volunteers from Cebu City and Palompon, Leyte. It sponsored a medical mission in cooperation with Mercy in Action medical Team.
Recently the organization was able to grant a full tuition, uniforms and supplies to three recipients for college courses at Palompon Institute of Technology in math, English and marine engineering. Ongoing projects help grade school student (K-6th grades) with supplies
Bangon Palompon Foundation President Felix E. Diongzon said that most of the donations have come from individuals and organizations in the US, Canada, the Netherlands and Australia.
The following BPUSAFI officers and board members to be inducted are: Felix E. Diongzon, Founder/President (Cary, Illinois); Lowena P. de Luna, Vice-President (Miramar, Florida); Roselyn R. Piedad, Secretary (Tampa, Florida); Lyssa P. Borabon, Treasurer (Mississauga, Ontario, Canada); Vilma Marquez, Internal Auditor (Willowbrook, Illinois). Board Members: Antoinette E. Atad, (Clarkson, Western Australia); Lynde Ben Lachica, (Cebu City, Philippines) Carmen Madeleine M. Paloma, (Montreal, Quebec, Canada); Ranulfo P. Payos, (Henderson, Nevada); Edgar Patrick Sanchez, (Beaverton, Oregon); Eduardo Rey Sentina, (Belleville, New Jersey); Irving Joseph Arevalo, (Palompon, Leyte, Philippines).
