One Nation hosted a Typhoon Haiyan Relief Benefit Show last night, providing the attendees with live entertainment, baked goods and a chance to win passes to Disneyland.
More than 60 attendees came out to support the benefit show, which featured Cal State Long Beach students performing musical acts, including freestyle rap, acoustic guitar and singing accompanied with piano.
Lyle Hizon, a junior healthcare administration major, said she has been performing for years and found the event to be an opportunity to showcase her talents for an important cause.
“I’ve performed before and still get nervous from time to time,” Hizon said. “I have family in the Philippines, but I’m fortunate that they were not affected, but I still want to help those that were.”
Some One Nation members were personally affected by the typhoon, as many have relatives and hometowns near the central point of the catastrophe, the Leyte and Samar islands.
“I actually have family devastated in the area of the typhoon,” junior American studies major Jonathon Velasco said. “My uncle’s roof was ripped apart, and it’s just a tragedy.”
Velasco performed a freestyle rap during which attendees were encouraged to participate by volunteering subject matter.
A few of the show’s organizers said they wanted to provide attendees with a memorable show.
“We want to give people a good show before finals start,” Harlan Huynh, a senior communications major, said. “It’s a stress reliever.”
Huynh said the benefit show was planned in two weeks and the artists from One Nation encouraged its happening.
“The performers planned the show. They made it happen,” Huynh said.
The entry fee for the benefit show was $5, and a number of other donation opportunities were available for attendees.
Attendees were offered raffle tickets for $1 a piece for a chance at winning T-shirts, gift cards and Disneyland tickets.
All raffle prizes were donated from the organizations under One Nation, including Pilipino American Coalition (PAC), Zeta Phi Rho and Chi Delta Theta, Huynh said.
One Nation organizations also sold star-shaped lanterns used for Christmas decorations, homemade baked goods, clothing items such as knit beanies and Typhoon Haiyan relief buttons.
All the proceeds from the benefit went directly to National Alliance for Filipino Concerns (NAFCON). The organization has already donated proceeds to NAFCON from an open mic night at Hiccups Tea House, said Frances Ramos, a junior health science major.
“We haven’t set a goal in what we want to raise yet, but we’ve raised $700 from [Penny Wars and Hiccups] so far,” Ramos said.
One Nation and its organizations have been working to find donation opportunities for those affected by Typhoon Haiyan since it hit the Philippines last month.
Typhoon Haiyan left behind an estimated 5,000 casualties, more than 2,000 injured and more than 600,000 families homeless, according to the Los Angeles Times.
One Nation committee members will host future donation opportunities through next year, including the 17th Annual Pilipino Christmas Fest on Saturday and the Pilipino Cultural Night on April 25, PAC President Matthew Downey said.
“I want to say thank you to all the people that came out to support this great cause,” Downey said.
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