AFTER the devastation caused by Typhoon Ondoy in Central Luzon and National Capital Region (NCR), the Filipinos’ “bayanihan” spirit became visible.

MANILA. Relief operations at the Sagip Pinoy Project at the Megatent, Ortigas. (Sunnex/Kathrina Alvarez)

Juan Borra III, executive director of Megatent in Ortigas Center, Pasig City, said the idea of putting up a relief center came to mind when former students, through the social networking site Facebook, expressed their desire to help the typhoon victims.

Sun.Star accepts donations for victims of Typhoon Ondoy

“My students in Facebook told me that they want to do something to help the victims of Typhoon Ondoy. Thanks to the information disseminated through Facebook and Twitter,” Borra said.

“Originally we started out with no more than four people on Monday, by the end of that day we had something like 400 volunteers,” he added.

One Nirvana, the organizer of the Sagip Pinoy Project (SPP), headed by Dom Hernandez, Trina Soriano, Marla Montemayor, and Ning Peralta started to accept donations like canned goods, clothes, and medicines Monday morning.

Megatent, one of the biggest relief centers in Metro Manila, already shipped more than 40,000 relied goods; 1,000 boxes of clothes; 500 packs of medicine supply; and 300 plus ready to eat packages.

Borra said the good thing with their relief operation is that they were able to dispatch the goods in 45 minutes as soon as the vans arrived.

There’s also a continuous monitoring and orientation in the venue for coming volunteers and they were able to establish networks with other relief centers in the area.

According to Mochie Cuyco, one of the first volunteers in Megatent, the relief bags consist of noodles, canned goods, biscuits, water, bread, juice, and milk.

They were also accepting clothes, slippers, toiletries, sanitary napkins, and candles.

These are then transported to needing barangay’s like San Roque, Pansol, Bayanihan, and Bagumbayan.

The SPP also delivered the donations to Bagong Buhay Project 4 in Quezon City, Bagong Ugong, Pasig, Barangay Banaba in San Mateo Rizal.

Cuyco said they need more volunteers and vehicles to transport the goods.

“We like to accommodate more volunteers. We need shifters. Though we already transported some of our goods, the thing is more goods are coming in and more productions is being done.”

SPP is also asking drivers, nurses or doctors and volunteers to pick up goods from the center.

A number of anonymous donors were also recorded during the two-day relief operation. “Everyone who donated here, they donated it anonymously, just like last night a kind donor donated 200 sacks of rice.”

Borra added that even Filipinos were affected by this calamity “nothing could affect the spirit of the Filipino people.”

Adrian Crisanto, who came along with friends all the way from Los Baños, Laguna, said it is better to be pro-active in this time of need.

“The mere fact na nakaupo ka lang at nakaharap ka lang sa Facebook at tumitingin ng update, going here is one way of reaching out to our fellow Filipinos (The mere fact that your just sitting and logged on to Facebook and waiting for some update, going here is one way of reaching out to our fellow Filipinos),” Crisanto said.

Cuyco, who monitors the packing and the volunteers, said: “I decided I should go out and find someplace that I could go with and just reach my hand.”

Just like Borra, Cuyco lauded Facebook and Twitter for spreading news about the event.

“With the use of Internet, especially Facebook and Twitter basically the information has grown and at least more people are aware of the situation here in Megatent,” Cuyco said.

Cuyco added: “It’s not in the number that counts; it’s more the experience they had here in Megatent.”

“People never donate some surplus; you can tell that they are donating things that they need in order to live on, ordinary people sharing their resources. They give until it hurts and they are the real heroes of this enterprise,” said Borra.

"Raise the Roof", a benefit concert for the victims of Ondoy is organized by SPP on Thursday, 2 p.m. onwards in Megatent.

Bands like Hale, Spongecola, Chicosci, Mayonnaise, Imago and many more will perform during the event. (Glaiza Jarloc/Sunnex)