IN THE AFTERMATH of the incredibly disastrous Tropical Storm ?Ondoy,? heartwarming displays of volunteerism and concern spread throughout our country.

As sad as I was to see the damage and despair, I was also proud to see the Pinoy resilience and responsiveness exhibited during the crisis. Kudos all around, indeed, whether you have acted individually in some small or heartfelt manner, or you have been part of the larger corporate or institutional efforts that are still ongoing.

It used to be that newspapers were called ?the first draft of history.? Not anymore. It has been compelling to watch these rescue efforts unfold via TV and cyberspace, and the immediacy of the various social media has been amazing. Now, newspapers have been relegated to the second or even third draft of history.

Whichever draft it is, newspapers are still a ?good read? ? to see all the news and pictures summarized in one source. Then the scale of the entire calamity is revealed and the enormity of the relief efforts can be admired.

Leading the institutional charge has been the Philippine National Red Cross, visibly present in the worst hit areas like Marikina and Cainta. So many private efforts are underway that I am hesitant to even begin a listing, as so many would be left unheralded. Let me just note some of the stories I am particularly aware of.

Commendable

Among the youth, commendable efforts were channeled through different schools. For instance, the Beacon International School community provided relief to its Sitio Tres neighbors. Without hesitation, after a request from the barangay captain, the school sheltered some 250 families in its covered courts.

Several ninth-grade students swung into action and spearheaded a relief drive. Students, parents and staff repacked clothing and food items and distributed more than 1,000 packages to Sitio Tres families who had braved the floodwaters and were in need of food, clothing and medication.

Assumption College San Lorenzo was a relief center tapping hundreds of students for support. Our HS ?81 batch donated goods, which have been distributed to the residents of Malibay in Pasay and the communities around the Assumption schools in Antipolo and San Simon, Pampanga.

Several other schools, like Ateneo and La Salle, are still accepting food and cash donations. They urge families to continue to be involved in the various relief efforts underway.

Birthday celebrations were set aside to give way to relief efforts. Hotel Elizabeth grand dame Beth Fernando, with her family, and top salon owner Ricky Reyes, organized Kainin ng Bayan to feed 2,000 people per day in different evacuation areas in Marikina, Rizal and Pampanga.

Full force

Assumption classmate Popsie Gamboa and I were happy to help in the packing of relief goods. I must commend Jean Fernando for getting so many friends to donate through Facebook. Among them is Sonja Ocampo of Cupcakes by Sonja, who is donating the sales of her Red Velvet cupcakes to Makati Red Cross.

Bag lady and Philippine Daily Inquirer contributor Ingrid Go has been focusing her efforts on the Del Pan Tondo orphanage and Fabella Center, Payatas. Several new mothers have no homes to go to and are in need of basic medicines.

HSBC volunteers were in full force at the Red Cross Rizal Chapter all week, bringing with them hundreds of relief packages they had prepared earlier at the Bonifacio Global City headquarters. Among the volunteers were HSBC?s SVP for Group Communications Johanna Garcia and CEO Mark Watkinson, joining his wife Sarah and daughter Caroline, who had already been there several hours before. Makati Red Cross director Marivic Rufino thanked the HSBC family for their amazing and generous support.

HSBC, along with its BPOs headed by Jen Strybel and Shiv Menon, donated P2 million to the Rizal Chapter and Makati branch of the Philippine National Red Cross, which is conducting relief and rescue operations in areas most severely affected.

Staff donations also continue to pour in, and volunteers crowd the cafeteria daily to pack relief goods. According to Johanna, relief operations at the cafeteria look like a well-oiled, factory assembly line.

Fashion gala

Mark added that HSBC hires not only the best and the brightest, but also those with the biggest hearts. HSBC has always supported charitable projects, like my latest one, ?Lustico: A Fashion Presentation,? the first solo fashion gala of Dennis Lustico. Co-producer Kaye Tinga and I were excited to be able to increase our support for the Red Cross with funds raised from this event.

As part of these efforts, we?ve expanded the silent auction with artworks, vacation packages and airline tickets. To accommodate more patrons, we?re now holding ?Lustico? on October 17, 6 p.m., at the Makati Shangri-La Hotel, which has generously agreed to sponsor our venue.

Usually the hotel is full every Saturday, but October 17 opened up when the Tatler Ball moved to the following month, November 27. Tatler top lady Irene Martel-Francisco wanted to focus on relief operations in October and felt it most appropriate to move the magazine?s anniversary celebration to a later date.

Tatler editor Anton San Diego will be supporting ?Lustico? through ticket sales and by providing loot bags for all the guests. The main beneficiary of this year?s Tatler Ball is the Pink for Life Foundation. Also, a portion of the funds raised will be given to the flood victims through Philippine Christian Foundation.

In a timely celebration for the 14th Festival of Trees, a formal, sit-down dinner will take place on Oct. 7 at the Manila Polo Club. The charitable affair is a joint fundraiser between Makati Garden Club and Philippine Business for Social Progress, with one generous objective ? to raise funds for our needy countrymen.

To date, Festival of Trees has raised close to P100 million to support numerous beneficiaries from Antique and Maqueda Bay to Bicol and Mindanao. This year?s beneficiaries will be the flood victims of Tropical Storm Ondoy, as well as Project Escuelas, to benefit six of the neediest schools in war-ravaged Basilan and Maguindanao.

Aside from the annual formal dinner-cum-auction of beautiful Christmas trees and paintings, conceptualized by Mindy Barredo Perez-Rubio, this year?s event will include a floral fashion show and a silent auction of ?mystery gift boxes.? The live auction of paintings will culminate with a donation of a one-week sojourn in a luxurious, oceanfront, four-bedroom villa by LUXLife at the prestigious St. Regis Bali Resort. LUXLife is a Hong Kong-based Private Destination Club.

In just several weeks, productive ?solicitor? Josephine del Gallego was able to collect from several generous donors including restaurants, boutique shops, clothing shops and specialty services.

For more information, please call the Festival of Trees Secretariat at 527-7741 to 48 or e-mail pbsp@pbsp.org.ph or log on to www.pbsp.org.ph.

All these disasters and relief efforts have given me and a number of friends a ?life check? moment. Is this all part of climate change? How do we stay positive in the face of all this?

Positive energy

Yoga is a wonderful medium to infuse positive energy to life. Bikram Yoga Manila (www.bikramyogamanila.com or call 889-1011) is organizing the 2009 Philippine Yoga Asana Championship, sponsored by Pru Life UK, at the RCBC Plaza this Oct. 25.

The event will showcase the benefits ? mental, physical and emotional ? of practicing yoga. This should be a great way to stay positive in the face of all these super typhoons besetting us.

Let me end with an admonition to stay safe and dry. For the latest on weather news, call the new 24-hour hotline at 433-ULAN (433-8526).

E-mail the author at seaprincess@inquirer.com.ph.