Aklan college students gather to help Yolanda survivors

Aurea Lynne Paz

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Project #UHELP was started by Aklanon college students studying in Iloilo City

LINE FOR RELIEF. Residents of Bakhaw Sur, Kalibo get relief goods from #UHELP volunteers. All photos taken by Ronifelle Barrios and Mary Wencel Villanueva.

KALIBO, Aklan – Over the Christmas break, Aklanon students from major universities in Iloilo City volunteered and worked together to help their fellow Aklanons who survived Super Typhoon Yolanda (Haiyan).

#UHELP kicked off with a Christmas concert held last December 27, 2013, featuring the talents of Aklanon college students, alumni and guests.

On Friday, January 3, volunteers gave the proceeds of the concert to Barangay Cupang in Banga, Bakhaw Sur, and the pediatric ward of Dr. Rafael S. Tumbokon Memorial Hospital in Kalibo in the form of goods, sleeping mats and a special treat for the children.

#UHELP chairman Ma. Geena Karoleia Alindato admitted that she was initially concerned they wouldn’t raise enough funds but she was thankful they pulled it off.

“It’s fulfilling to see the students coming from different universities working together and actually enjoying. All our efforts paid off,” said Alindato.

#UHELP. A typhoon-affected resident signs up to claim relief goods.

Over 8,000 families are affected in Banga with an estimated P150 million worth of agricultural damage.

The coastal area of Bakhaw Sur in Kalibo was also affected by Typhoon Yolanda. Although electricity has been restored in most parts of the barangay, some areas remain powerless due to its remoteness.

More help needed

Beneficiaries of the program were thankful for the continued support they receive from various organizations.

“We are very happy and thankful that organizations like yours continue to help us, even months after the typhoon,” Bakhaw Sur Barangay secretary Tessie Roldan said.

STUDENT EFFORT. These relief goods were prepared by #UHELP student volunteers.

But rehabilitation work is not yet over in the province.

Ronifelle Barrios, a #UHELP volunteer, observed that people in Bakhaw Sur still need help especially in rebuilding their homes.

“They really need materials to reconstruct their homes, families whose homes were totally damaged still live in tents until now. Hopefully the Local Government Units will continue to help,” Barrios said.

Some areas in Aklan and Capiz still have no power supply and rely only on generators for electricity. Destroyed homes, uprooted trees and fallen posts are yet to be cleared. Schools still have no roofs, while some families live in houses without a sturdy wall. – Rappler.com


Aurea Lynne Paz is a volunteer for the Typhoon Yolanda Story Hub Visayas, a citizen journalism portal created on Nov 13, 2013, by veteran journalists, student writers, mobile journalists, and photographers based in Iloilo City. The Hub delivers reports from across Panay Island, especially the severely damaged and minimally covered area of northern Iloilo and the provinces of Antique, Capiz, and Aklan.

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