Knights join in the relief effort; A personal story from a Knight

Courtesy of the Supreme Council's website

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The Supreme Council of the Knights of Columbus has sent an emergency donation of $50,000 to the Philippines to help in efforts to recover from record flooding caused by Tropical Storm Ketsana (known locally as Typhoon Ondoy).

At least 140 people died in flooding in the capital of Manila, where more than 80 percent of the city was under water at the height of the storm, which affected 27 provinces in seven regions of the country. Hundreds of thousands have been displaced, and are without electricity or clean drinking water.

State and local councils are encouraged to contribute money for Philippine disaster relief as well. The Supreme Council will forward the funds to the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines (CBCP), which is coordinating Catholic relief efforts. There are more than 250,000 Knights in the Philippines, nearly all of whom have been adversely affected by the flooding.

The president of the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines, Archbishop Angel Lagdameo, issued a statement Sept. 29 that expressed his “profound gratitude to the Knights of Columbus Supreme Council and the U.S. Bishops’ Conference - Catholic Relief Services. They were among the first to respond.”

A very personal story of the storm’s impact comes from Supreme Council staffer Brian Caulfield, whose wife’s family lives in Manila.

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The story is presented here.

Pray for Philippine Flood Victims

My wife’s family in the Philippines was caught in the flash floods that hit the Manila area over the weekend. Their lives were saved by events that were nothing short of miraculous. I will recount here the amazing story one of my wife’s sisters told her by cell phone.

But first, let's all pray for the people of Manila and the surrounding areas. More than 240 are reported dead in the flood, thousands and thousands are homeless. A huge clean-up is beginning that will take weeks or months. Today is the feast of St. Lorenzo Ruiz, a Filipino martyr. Let's ask him to intercede for his people, who are enduring such suffering.

Tropical storm Ketsana hit the northern Philippines with little warning about the destruction it would wreak upon an area that is accustomed to violent weather. In 12 hours, about 17 inches of rain fell, which equals the average amount that falls in all of the September rainy season.

My wife’s mother and father live in the house in Marikina, a few miles east of Manila, where she grew up with her seven brothers and sisters. Living in the house with the parents at the time of the flood were a brother, his wife and their two teen sons; a sister and her 8-year-old daughter and a teen niece. My wife’s father is almost 80, with a spinal condition that makes mobility difficult.

Living a block from the river, they had seen floods before, the worst bringing some 8 feet of water into the house. With Ketsana, however, the water rose to 20 feet, forcing my in-laws to the second floor bedrooms, then onto a pitched roof.

Cellphone Updates

It was a frantic struggle, and my wife and I heard bits and pieces by a cell phone relay as it was happening. Her sister who was in the house called her brother, who was safe in a higher suburb of Manila, with regular updates. Her brother started calling my wife at 2 a.m., Connecticut time (2 p.m. Saturday, Manila time).

First, the water was up to the twelfth step of the stairs leading to the second floor. That was one step above the highest previous flood, but still no cause to panic. In the next call we heard that the water was ankle deep on the second floor and rising quickly. Then it was knee deep, then belly deep. Those in the house were looking for something for my father-in-law to float on so they could get him to the roof. They got hammers to knock out the windows and bend the safety bars that were meant to keep out robbers. The water was just about to come in the window when they were preparing to climb out. They were praying more fervently than ever.

A Miracle of Prayer

My sister-in-law later told my wife that they felt the presence of Jesus as they prayed, and when they looked out the window, they saw a long, sturdy rope floating by. They grabbed the rope, thinking it would help them get to the roof. Then they saw a bunch of bamboo poles floating by. They were able to gather about 30 of them, and lash them together to build a makeshift raft. They put my father-in-law on the raft.

They decided to set out for a neighbor’s house, which was on a bit higher ground. Once again, the raft was a lifesaver. The two best swimmers pushed my father-in-law on the raft across the backyard to the next house. They returned to get my mother-in-law, and all the others, one by one. Amazingly, the hastily constructed raft stayed together the whole time.

Once everyone was safely across, my wife’s family and the elderly neighbors were then forced to the roof of that house, braving high winds and slashing rain for hours until the waters began to recede, gradually.

The miracle of prayer saved my wife’s family. We figured out that just about the time they were gathering the parts of the raft, my wife and I were praying the rosary at 2:30 in the morning, our time. We prayed specifically for a boat, or a raft or a helicopter to come to their rescue.

God is good. Let us continue to pray. [God gives whatever we ask of Him, if it be according to His Will.  FIAT VOLUNTAS TUA!]
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The events last week show a lot of facets of Filipinos...
Politically, a lot of bad things can be said about how politics played a role in this and not just nature's fury.
More bad things to say more than the good ones.

Culturally, Filipinos can still manage to smile in spite of the tragic events all due to the fact that Filipinos TRUST in the LORD... that in the end of every storm, a rainbow will shine!

YOU CAN SEND YOUR DONATION THROUGH THE KNIGHTS OF COLUMBUS CHARITIES (UNITED IN CHARITY) BY CLICKING THE LINK BELOW.

http://kofc.org/un/eb/en/about/charities/UIC_donate.html 

All online donations made to United in Charity through Oct. 31, 2009, will be earmarked for Philippine disaster relief and will be sent to aid the victims of Tropical Storm Ketsana (known locally as Typhoon Ondoy)