Home » Santa Clarita News » Community News » West Ranch High Students, Alumni Call For Donations For Taal Volcano Victims In Philippines
Dora and Peter Cruz (2nd and 3rd from left), owners of Gong Cha in Santa Clarita are shown handing over their donation of $500 to West Ranch High School students (L- R) Nathan Almeda, Julia Camia, Troy Boggs and Tristan Manalang for their fundraising drive to help the people of Batangas after the eruption of Taal Volcano. Photo courtesy of Ivy Manalang

West Ranch High Students, Alumni Call For Donations For Taal Volcano Victims In Philippines

A group of Filipino-American students from West Ranch High School are collecting donations to assist the tens of thousands of people affected by the eruption of Taal Volcano in the Philippines.

The recent eruption of Taal Volcano on Jan. 12 has forced many Filipino residents to flee their homes and move to evacuation centers. Those most affected are villagers in the hard-hit province of Batangas.

Current West Ranch High School students Nathan Almeda, Troy Boggs, Julia Camia, Indigo Garcia, Katris Fabian, Joseph Fabian, Hans Lontoc, Tristan Manalang, Dani Nalangan, Joaquin Santos and Marcus Salvador; and alumni Josh Alvarez, Camie Sotiangco and Jared Sotiangco all met through the West Ranch Band and Colorguard Program.

The group is working with their families to collect funds to support the humanitarian and medical missions of the Batangas Medical Center Taal-Ong Tayo (Tulong Tayo) program in Batangas City.

To kick off their donation and fundraising drive, Almeda wrote a letter and sent it to a few local organizations and businesses in Santa Clarita.

First to respond were Dora and Pete Cruz, Peter Cruz and Pia Sadaqatmal; owners of Gong Cha, a bubble tea shop in Santa Clarita. Recognizing the immediate needs of their “kababayan” — or countrymen — back home, the business owners donated $500 to the group’s cause, and even expressed support for future charitable work and projects, according to organizers.

Among the urgent needs of the victims are food, water, medical supplies, hygiene kits (including toothpaste, toothbrush, soap, shampoo, baby diapers and feminine products), clothing and linens/blankets.

Donations collected by West Ranch Students for those affected by the eruption of the Taal Volcano. Photo courtesy of Ivy Manalang

However, collecting donations in kind and then shipping them to the Philippines would take almost a month. Instead, the students are calling for cash donations, and plan to hold fundraisers such as bake sales to get funds quickly via money transfers.

Through this fundraising, the students assure that their donations are able to get to the victims immediately and would be able to help more of those in need.

Receiving all donations is Dr. Licarte-Macalalad at the Batangas Medical Center in the Philippines, who then plans to purchase supplies and help distribute them to affected areas.

As of Jan. 16, 100 bags of relief goods had been sent to people in need, and the students have raised $1,200 to date, according to organizers.

“Learning about this disaster and seeing how the people of Batangas were affected

brought sadness to many people, including myself,” Almeda wrote in his fundraising letter. “As a Fil-Am, who has learned to love the country and people, (I) would like to help in any way just to let them know that even if we are in a different country, there are still people who care about them.”

For any person, organization and/or business interested in supporting the cause, contact Ivy Manalang here.

Ed. Note: This information provided to KHTS by Ivy Manalang.


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West Ranch High Students, Alumni Call For Donations For Taal Volcano Victims In Philippines

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About Jade Aubuchon

A Santa Clarita native, Jade has spent her whole life involved in community outreach. After graduating from Learning Post High in 2015, she went on to College of the Canyons to pursue a double major in English and Marketing. Jade spent several years as a ballroom dance performer for a local studio and has performed at public and private events throughout Santa Clarita. As KHTS Co-News Director Jade oversees the KHTS news team, which covers all the latest news impacting Santa Clarita. Along with covering and writing her own news stories, Jade can be heard broadcasting the daily local news every weekday morning and afternoon drive-time twice an hour on KHTS 98.1FM and AM-1220. Jade is also instrumental in reporting on-the-scene local emergencies, covering them on-air and via Facebook Live and YouTube. Another dimension to Jade’s on-air skills and writing are her regular political and celebrity interviews, including her bi-monthly interview with our Congressman Mike Garcia and many other local politicians and community leaders.