L.A. Filipino Community Mobilizes for Typhoon Relief

Those efforts included a 5K Charity Walk in Van Nuys Sunday morning that raised about $7,000 and collections at most Filipino churches.

The charity walk, which got underway at 6 a.m. at Woodley and Balboa Park with 300 participants, had been previously planned to help the Philippines continue to recover from a 7.2-magnitude earthquake that killed 222 people on Oct. 15.

"We were quite surprised by the number of people that participated, before the typhoon hit we thought we would get about half that," said Bing De la Vega, president of the Philippine Disaster Relief Organization, which helped organize the event alongside Renew Our Minds and Heart, also known as ROMAH.

An estimated 10,000 people are feared dead as a result of the typhoon, which  unleashed 200-plus-mile-an-hour winds and wreaked havoc in the central Philippines late Friday and early Saturday.

Experts say it is one of the most powerful storms ever recorded.

"I did see an overwhelming expression of support from our community, at least in Southern California," Hellen Barber De La Vega, consul general for the Philippines in Los Angeles told the Los Angeles Times. "In the last two days, with the images of what's happening in the Philippines, we have already received so many queries."

Actor George Clooney has been closely following the news and told reporters from CBS2 and KCAL9 Saturday night from the Brittannia Awards in Los Angeles that Hollywood celebrities will rally in support of those affected by this "terrible disaster" just as they did for earthquake-ravaged Haiti and New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina.

More than 330,000 Filipinos live in the Los Angeles area, one of the largest such communities in the United States.

The Filipino Christian Church in Westlake held a rummage sale over the weekend and plans to host another one next Saturday from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at 301 N. Union Ave. with all proceeds benefiting typhoon victims.

Pastor Einstein Cabalteja said he's consoled three families with relatives they feared were killed in the typhoon.

"There was no connection with them and their family for three days," he said.

Donations can also be made through the church's website at www.fdccla.org. Monetary donations are also being coordinated by the Philippine Consulate General in Los Angeles with information being updated regularly at its website: www.philippineconsulatela.org.

In Long Beach, the National Alliance for Filipino Concerns, known as NAFCON, held a press conference today announcing they would host fundraising efforts throughout the week including a vigil Friday evening where donations would also be accepted.

De La Vega said many people are sending money directly to relatives and friends. Others are coordinating efforts through their local churches.