Bangon Bohol! (Rise up Bohol!)
On October 15 a 7.2 magnitude earthquake hit Bohol. The death toll as of the writing of this post has reached just under 200, while some of the Philippines’ oldest stone churches have been severely damaged.
Huey helicopters flew in relief goods from other islands. I believe most of them coming from Cebu since it has one of the largest ports in the country, and is the closest of these ports to Bohol.
Volunteer centers in the capital city of Tagbilaran were full of relief goods and volunteers. There were some hiccups however. One mayor actually refused relief goods while other distant towns were just hard to get to because of damaged roads and bridges.
I helped a bit but being out of shape limited by assistance. Volunteers moved sacks of rice weighing at 50 kg (110 lbs), loaded by 12-15 volunteers in just 40 minutes. The sacks had to be counted, divided, and then reloaded on trucks meant for specific towns up and down earthquake ravaged Bohol.
A closer look at some of the rubble from the churches reveals shells and coral. I had read somewhere (either “Barangay” by William Henry Scott or “Philippines 6th to 16th century” by E. P. Patanñe) that the Spanish got Boholanos to bring building material, either limestone from the hills or corals from the sea, to each mass. It blew my mind to know that these remnants of marine life held by Boholano ancestors were seeing light once again for the second time in centuries.
Within hours of the quake, what seemed to start with a small band of social media savy Boholanos soon became a movement. Now with more than 11,000 likes, the Bangon Bohol Facebook page releases updates on everything from where to volunteer or donate, to areas that are still experiencing aftershocks.
A group of young designers from this movement got together and designed and printed t-shirts with their own resources to help raise funds. Each tee shirt is P250, and the proceeds go to earthquake victims up and down Bohol.
When I got my own tee I was so excited I took a selfie with it on lol
You can order your own by getting more information on their Facebook page here: Facebook.com/HelpLittleTarsi
UPDATE: The proceeds for the shirts have already been used for relief goods and have been distributed. People rock. Bangon Bohol, Tacloban, at Pilipinas.