15 November 2013 – While the winds and rains brought by typhoon Yolanda (Haiyan) may have died down, its effect continue to be felt by Filipinos from around the globe as they watch and listen to stories of hope and despair from countrymen who went through the actual ordeal.

Like everyone else, members of the Filipino community in Iqaluit, capital of the northernmost territory of Nunavut in Canada is responding to the call for assistance by Canada which has set up a relief fund to match monetary donations from society made through registered charities.

When a massive typhoon washed through the islands and cities of the central Philippines, Bob Gabuna, sitting on the opposite side of the world in a house overlooking frozen tundra in the Plateau subdivision of Iqaluit, sat with his eyes glued to television.

His family resides in Romblon, an island province in central Philippines known for its white sandy beaches, and which Typhoon ripped through this past week.

He reckons that about 25 Filipino families living in Iqaluit are also anxiously watching images of the Category 5 storm and its aftermath on television and the internet.

Iqaluit resident Esmeralda Bautista grew up in Tacloban, one of the worst hit places in the Central Philippines.

“It’s very traumatic seeing out town, our city flattened,” she said. Thankfully, none of her family members were killed . “Right now they’re suffering from the smell of death and debris,” Bautista said through tears.

On November 10, the Our Lady of the Assumption Roman Catholic parish in Iqaluit raised $750 that will go towards the relief efforts of the Internamtional Red Cross.

And though she still has to wait a few more days to do that, Bautista takes comfort in the fact that support from around the world is pouring in. “People in the Philippines will know that a lot of people are thinking about them, and trying to get help through to them and praying for them, “ she said. END