Hi I’m Rickard Sellstedt, I’m one of the volunteers with Disaster Tech Lab in Northern Cebu.

My trip to the Philippines first started as a vacation but since I was here during the tyfoon I saw all the damage by Yolanda and then started as a volunteer with Disaster Tech Lab.

So what have I been doing since I got here?

My first week mostly consisted of meeting with different contacts in Cebu who we got in contact with before we started our relief work. I’ve met with both doctors, people in the IT-industry and the manager for a Christian camp to be able to identify places where communication services are needed. During the week we also helped in Arapal Camp to give relief goods to around 300 survivors who live around Arapal Camp and we also handed out around 15 t-shirts to children from villages around Arapal Camp.

This week Disaster Tech Lab have been visiting Arapal camp a couple of times to continue the planning of a wireless network and Internet access for the volunteers and children living on Arapal Camp. During our visit yesterday we also handed out 50 t-shirts for children who stays at Arapal Camp who are within the project Tree Of Life.

A short description of Tree of Life from Arapal Camps site:

“Arapal Christian Camp is not just a camping ground. Every weekend, 35 kids come to the camp to play, eat, and study. They also do chores such as cleaning the surroundings, picking up fire wood, planting trees, and helping fix the meals. Parents take turns cooking as volunteers. During the week, the kids attend public schools and on weekends they come to the camp. We provide the kids with uniform, shoes, school supplies, etc. They also get a little school allowance every week.  If they need help or have any problems, they know that they can always come to the camp and ask for help. This program is called Tree of Life.”

To even help out more I donated some material and funding for two old ladies so that they could get a new roof over there head and hopefully new houses. Today, Eric Wetterauer,  a new member of the team joined in Cebu arriving from the US.

Below is also some pictures taken at the camp while we handed out some t-shirts and also when we meet other people.

I’ll be leaving tomorrow but will add another post before I leave!

Tree of Life Children gets new t-shirts from Disaster Tech Lab

Some of the children who got new t-shirts

One of the ladies who got some material to be able to rebuild her house