It is officially the holiday season. Stores are displaying the must have decor, Starbucks is selling their seasonal lattes and there is buzz about the preparation for family Christmas card updates. In the world of marketing and specifically nonprofits, it is full blown fund raising season where families that are checking off all of the must-haves take time to look after the have-not’s. Where my scope of focus is most often honed in on impacting the community of Orange County, I must take a quick intermission from our fast paced fund raising world to recognize those that are currently in crisis elsewhere.

Devastation in the Philippines. *Photo courtesy of Hope Force International.

Typhoon Haiyan has devastated the coastline of the Philippines, claiming an estimated 10,000 lives and obliterating villages and coastal communities throughout Tacloban with up to 150 mph winds. When reflecting on this special season, I can’t help but think about the families whose lives have just been interrupted by such a severe tragedy. If you want to do something to help, please support my friends at Hope Force International, a verifiable and highly trained team of disaster responders. Right now Hope Force International is connecting with potential partners for a mounting a response in the Philippines where a reconnaissance team will travel to the affected areas in a matter of days. The degree to which we are willing to be inconvenienced & interrupted is the degree to which God can use us. While we desire to serve the least, the last and the lost of Orange County, let us not forget our suffering brothers and sisters across the oceans.