MANILA, Philippines – Remember the 6-year-old who gave the contents of his piggy bank to the victims of Typhoon Yolanda? More than a month after his act of generosity, he got an anonymous gift from the Philippines.

It was a neatly-wrapped gift about the size of a shoe box containing around 4 small jeepney toys and an “I LOVE PH” shirt – a package Shoichi Kondoh received “from the Filipino people.”

“It was a spur of the moment thing really. I remember seeing the news feed about the boy’s efforts, and I thought one kind deed deserves another,” Jose (not his real name)* said in an e-mail to Rappler.

Days after Typhoon Yolanda (Haiyan) wreaked havoc in the Visayas, Shoichi gave his childhood savings of JPY 5,000 (P2,173) to the Philippine embassy in Tokyo. (READ: Shoichi, 6, gives up savings for Haiyan victims)

After seeing Shoichi’s efforts, Jose coordinated with his friends here and abroad to come up with the perfect gifts – products that will remind the kid of the people he helped.

Cheesy

The group sent the package last November 20, but it took the Philippine embassy about a month to find Shoichi because he did not leave an address when he first made his donation with his mother Miho.

“I got in touch with [the embassy] through their contact page on the website. They got back to me via e-mail a couple of days later. I explained what our intentions were, and I asked if they could assist us in getting the gift into the boy’s hands,” Jose explained.

He said they sent the gift anonymously to give an impression that it “came from the Filipino people, in general.” “Yes, very cheesy, we know,” he added.

In return, they only asked the embassy to send them photos for them to see that their humble gift has reached the boy.

Help came pouring in from the international community after the super typhoon killed thousands and displaced millions. It easily became one of the biggest stories of the year, with top media organizations showing audiences from all over the globe heart-wrenching images of the disaster. (READ: World media in PH; Cooper slams slow Haiyan response)

United Nations (UN) Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon, who visited Tacloban last Saturday, December 21, said the UN is trying to “mobilize at least US$800 million” (about P33.6 billion) in funds over 12 months to help the Philippines in its efforts to recover from the devastation. (READ: #ReliefPH: Typhoon Haiyan survivors still need your help)

“Never despair. The UN is behind you. The world is behind you,” the UN chief said. – Rappler.com

*The name was changed after the source requested anonymity.