05 December 2013 – The Filipino Community in Madrid, in cooperation with the Philippine Embassy in Madrid, organized a benefit concert and raffle entitled Damayan for the victims of typhoon Yolanda (Haiyan) on December 01 at the Salon de Actos of the Colegio Calasancio. 

The Filipino community, comprised of 39 organizations representing their regions in the Philippines, religious affiliations, and professions here in Spain, pooled their resources and talents to come up with an entertaining three-hour show featuring Filipino youth talents from the community talent pool and some Spanish talents who performed popular songs and Original Pilipino Music (OPM). 

Before the program began, Philippine Ambassador to Spain Carlos C. Salinas took to the stage to express appreciation for all the individual and collective efforts made by the Filipino community to raise funds for those affected by typhoon Yolanda (Haiyan) and encouraged them to continue their efforts given that a lot more work and assistance is needed to ensure that those affected will recover from this tragedy. At the same time, he lauded the “bayanihan” spirit of the Filipinos which is largely contributing to lift up the spirit of unity and solidarity among Filipinos.

In addition to the show, the Filipino community also organized a raffle. The grand prizes include two VIP tickets to a Real Madrid game and two roundtrip tickets to the Philippines.  Raffle prizes were provided by businesses and organizations that have close links to the Philippines and the Filipino community namely Malik Travel, Qatar Airways, Edyfar Viajes, Lebara, Fundación Real Madrid, Hotel InterContinental Madrid, The Garden, Flash Agency, and Taste of America.

All proceeds of the benefit concert and the raffle will be given to organizations working in relief and rehabilitation efforts for the victims of typhoon Yolanda (Haiyan).  END