Liza Florida's Blog

As many of you already know or from reading the “About Me” section of this website that I have chosen to go to the Philippines as a volunteer for some amazing children’s causes as well as volunteer for the Philippine National Red Cross Disaster Management Service Division.  It would be a series of life changing events that would ultimately lead me to this decision.

Being a single mother there has always been a great longing and desire to be of service, especially to the causes dedicated to women and children.  But bearing witness to many families lose their homes in foreclosure to the devastating effects of the “mortgage meltdown” and almost having lost my own home to the Triangle Complex Fires in November 2008 led me to finally step away from a ten year career in real estate mortgage consulting.  In December 2008 I ventured out into the non-profit industry with the intention of teaching homeownership preservation and to eventually launching The Myriad Foundation.  2009 would serve as a year of learning as my experiences would ultimately determine whether I would have the love and passion to stay in the non-profit industry and launch my own organization.

In September and October 2009 the Philippines was hit with a series of tropical storms which would be known as Typhoon Ondoy.  The typhoon claimed many lives and displaced hundreds of thousands of families.  Relief efforts were in full swing as the Filipino American communities and organizations came together as one to help the families that became victim to the typhoon.  Unfortunately many of the food and clothing donation drives had to cease because the Philippine governement encouraged monetary donations due to the need of immediate assistance. 

I had never seen such an outpouring of love from so many different walks of life until such a disaster brought us all together.  My final decision to go to the Philippines as a volunteer arrived upon reading an article stating that many of the families were going back to their unsafe homes or the areas where their homes once sat.  Their sense of community was in disarray due to the untimely and catastrophic experience and therefore these families were knew of no other home or had no other place to go. 

Reading this article really put things in perspective for me.  Back in 2008, I had the experienced the feelings of having to pack up my whole life in a matter of a few hours because of the fires were threatening to take my home, but in the end my home was spared.  However, the families in the Philippines that became victim to Typhoon Ondoy were not so fortunate.  These families barely have livable conditions and what little shelter they did have was now taken away by the floods.   

So with that said, if you would like to keep tabs on this adventure for the next five weeks as I journey back to my motherland, the Philippines, I encourage you to check back on a regular basis to read my journal entries. 

I will be volunteering for a few organizations, the first being K.I.D.S. Foundation with their Trek to Remember event.  This event is a four day medical mission and a four to five hour hike to the villages of Miarayon, Bukidnon.  This mission provides clothing, medical and school supplies for 1,000 children ages 0 to 17 years old.

To learn more about K.I.D.S. Foundation projects and events log onto www.KidsFoundation.org.ph.

The following three weeks will be spent with the Philippine National Red Cross in their Disaster Management Service Division.  I would like to gain a greater understanding of the fundamentals to carrying out a Disaster Preparedness or Disaster Management program for those susceptible and those affected by vulnerable situations such as the typhoons and the volcanic eruptions.

To learn more about Philippine National Red Cross projects and events log onto www.redcross.org.ph.

In my final week, I will join my mother in her home province of San Marcelino, Zambales for her 3rd Annual Childrens Mission.  This project provides school supplies, clothing, hygiene products and chocolates to the local schools in this province.

The service I give the next five weeks is a small gesture for the loving gratitude and abundance I have experienced in my life.  It is my hope that my service will be a blessing to those whom I come across and moreover an opportunity to develop a sound infrastructure for The Myriad Foundation.

Our focus is to help support and promote causes for individuals, groups, non-profits and social enterprise companies through the use of advanced technology such as Internet video streaming and mobile broadband marketing.  Please stay tuned while my friends at Peaceful Media assist me in launching www.TheMyriadFoundation.org.