Glee star Darren Criss is well-known as a proud Filipino, and in wake of the recent devastation to the country, he has posted an emotional plea on his website asking fans to donate.
When Typhoon Haiyan, one of the largest natural disasters on record, struck the Philippines last week, thousands of people were killed and many hundreds of thousands more are homeless, without food or shelter.
Half-Filipino Darren Criss has – not unexpectedly – joined the cause calling for as much aid as possible to be sent to the country, offering to send personally signed thank-you cards in an effort to raise visibility for the disaster and collect more donations from fans who might appreciate the reward.
Darren had not commented on the crisis prior to last night, when he posted a tweet explaining “Took me a second to put this together…” and linking to the You’re Not Alone campaign on his website. Darren has chosen to support the World Food Programme and offered to send a signed card to every fan who emails in a screen-cap of their donation receipt.
Darren explains his connection to the Philippines and his aim in raising money in an emotional home-made video posted as part of the campaign page. You can watch and read Darren’s statement below:
Dear friends,
In case you’re not already aware, last week’s Super Typhoon Haiyan wrought unimaginable destruction to the Philippines, leaving thousands dead and millions more in need of food, water, and shelter. The Filipino government has declared a national state of calamity, which allows it to use state funds for relief – but the reality is that this won’t even begin to scratch the surface of what the country now needs to heal from such terrible devastation.
This is where you come in.
In an effort to raise money for those in need in the Philippines, I’m encouraging anyone who should find themselves at this site, whether fan or stranger, to donate what they can to the relief effort, and let those in need know they are not alone.
For everyone that donates $25 to the World Food Programme, I will print and mail you a postcard with your name on it alongside every other person that joins in this effort… and sign every single one of them. To me, this is a minuscule gesture in comparison to what your donation will end up providing. But if it means we can all generate more help and attention to where it is so desperately needed, then it’s the least I can do. Every little thing counts in times like this.
As some of you may know, the Philippines is where a large majority of my family is from. My mother was born & raised there, and as a result I have always been proud of my Filipino heritage, as well as lucky enough to feel the tremendous support of the Filipino community throughout my life as an artist. I thank everyone who has voiced their concern for my family that live there, and I return the same sentiment to those of you who have the same situation.
Thank you for taking the time to read this, and I hope you can pass this on to as many people as you can via Twitter, Facebook, Tumblr, or whatever you feel has the most reach.
People are in need now. Please donate and send us your info by Monday November 18th.
With love & gratitude,
– Darren
Darren’s campaign page also offers a large list of alternative links for those who may want to participate in giving aid via a different organization.