Metro Manila Pride Fundraising Update: June 21, 2016 (12 PM)

Our goal: PhP 184, 702.00

What you helped raise so far: PhP 215,481.22 or 116.66% of our goal!

We’re overwhelmed by the amount of support you have given to make sure that Pride happens safely and successfully this year. Because of your generosity, we are now able to pay for:

• The marching permits
• The use of the Lapu-Lapu monument area for the day
• A down Full payment for the lights and sounds
• A generator set for our electricity
• Lunch, snacks, dinner, and water for our volunteers and performers
• A parade truck, food, and fare for the lolas of the Home for the Golden Gays! (Funded directly by Rainbow Rights Project)
• Tents (for our lights and sounds, our control booth, and our equipment)
• Various organizer equipment and materials
• A donation for the Philippine Red Cross and the local police volunteers
• Food and equipment for our additional security volunteers

 

The Donors

Our deepest thanks and gratitude goes out to these individuals and organizations who have helped raise the Pride flag in Luneta! None of this would be possible without all of you. Here are the donations that came in as of June 21 (Tuesday) at 10 PM:

PARTNERS

Karnepunan – PhP 5,000 cash and PhP 3,000-5,000 food donation for volunteers’ lunch (In kind donation not yet reflected in total amount raised)

Rainbow Rights Project, Inc. – PhP 16,500

“Ming” – PhP 9,000

Anonymous BDO Donation (June 16) – PhP 10,000

Jon-Jon, Lucian, and Lilith Rufino – PhP 24,000

Anne Francisco – PhP 10,000

David Mendoza – PhP 13,530.84 (Converted from 300 USD; June 21 PayPal rate of 1 USD = 45.1 PhP)

Anonymous PayPal Donation (June 18) – PhP 9,000

Ajeet Victor Panemanglor and Nico Mattes – PhP 9,688.08 (Converted from 225 USD less 10.20 USD PayPal transfer fee; June 21 PayPal rate of 1 USD = 45.1 PhP)

ADVOCATES

Anonymous BPI Donation (June 13) – PhP 6,000

Yana Leonor – PhP 5,600

“R” – PhP 5,000

Words Anonymous Donation from”IpagLoveAn: Let Love In” Pride Benefit Show – PhP 5,850

ALLIES

Anonymous BPI Donation (June 13) – PhP 3,000

“Paolo” – PhP 4,765 (Less PhP 235 PayPal transfer fee)

Anonymous BDO Donation (June 16) – PhP 3,000

Charz and Evan Tan – PhP 3,000

Patricia Crespo (June 16) – PhP 4,298.29 (Converted from USD 100 and less USD 4.70 transfer fee; June 21 PayPal rate of 1 USD = 45.1 PhP)*

“Ben Schizo” – PhP 3,000

TDR –  PhP 3,000

Anonymous PayPal Donation (June 18) – PhP 3,382.71 (Converted from 75 USD June 21 PayPal rate of 1 USD = 45.1 PhP)

Ampalaya Monologues donation from “Ampalaya Monologues: LoveWins” Pride Benefit Show – PhP 3,000

SUPPORTERS

Din Lee – PhP 1,000

Anonymous BPI Donation (June 3) – PhP 1,000

“Cec and Tata” – PhP 1,500

Anonymous BDO Donation (June 7) – PhP 1,000

“Ming” – PhP 1,000

Liah Nase – PhP 1,000

“Jefe” – PhP 1,000

Anonymous BPI Donation (June 13) – PhP 2,000

Chris Velasco – PhP 2,000

Nadine Umali – PhP 1,000

Lanz Paningbatan – PhP 1,426.50 (Less PhP 73.50 PayPal transfer fee)

Maggie Cortez – PhP 1,426.50 (Less PhP 73.50 PayPal transfer fee)

Gia Santiago – PhP 1,000

Anonymous BPI Donation (June 14) – PhP 1,000

Anonymous PayPal Donation (June 15) – PhP 2255.14 (Converted from USD 50; June 21 PayPal rate of 1 USD = 45.1 PhP)*

Marc V. Muñasque (June 15) – PhP 1,000

Anonymous BPI Donation (June 15) – PhP 1,000

“juliegee04” – PhP 1,000

Anonymous BPI Donation (June 15) – PhP 1,000

Anonymous BPI Donation (June 15) – PhP 1,000

Anonymous BPI Donation (June 15) – PhP 1,500

Tyrel Olores (June 16) – PhP 1,000

Anonymous BDO Donation (June 17) – PhP 1,300

“Dave” – PhP 2,000

Rosario Rocha – PhP 1,000

Mayu Joaquin – PhP 1,000

Pia Cortez – PhP 2,255.14 (Converted from 50 USD; June 21 PayPal rate of 1 USD = 45.1 PhP)

Anonymous PayPal Donation (June 18) – PhP 1,127.57 (Converted from 25 USD; June 21 PayPal rate of 1 USD = 45.1 PhP)

Anonymous BDO Donation June 20 – PhP 1,000

LOVE

Chris De Vera – PhP 200

“Hanna” – PhP 500

Anonymous BDO Donation (June 2) – PhP 600

Anonymous BPI Donation (June 2) – PhP 200

Anonymous BPI Donation (June 2) – PhP 500

Anonymous BPI Donation (June 2) – PhP 500

Anonymous BPI Donation (June 3) – PhP 250

Anonymous PayPal Donation (June 3) – PhP 633.24 (On June 3: Converted to 14.04 USD from 10 GBP; June 21 PayPal rate of 1 USD = 45.1 PhP)*

Anonymous PayPal Donation (June 3) – PhP 200

“LJ Alexis” – PhP 600

“Emma Watson” – PhP 177.20 (Less PhP 22.8 PayPal transfer fee)

Anonymous BPI Donation (June 6) – PhP 200

Anonymous BPI Donation (June 6) – PhP 300

“Dennis” – PhP 500

Jamie Flores – PhP 300

Ics Aquino – PhP 500

Anonymous BPI Donation (June 13) – PhP 200

Drei Castillo – PhP 500

Gail Monzon – PhP 687.81 (On June 13: Converted to 15.25 USD from CAD 20; June 21 PayPal rate of 1 USD = 45.1 PhP)*

Ethan and Mark Chua – PhP 500

Karen Labsan – PhP 500

Anonymous PayPal Donation (June 15) – PhP 177.20 (Less PhP 22.8 PayPal transfer fee)

Anonymous BDO donor (June 15) – PhP 300

Anonymous BPI Donation (June 16) – PhP 200

Anonymous BDO Donation (June 17) – PhP 400

Anonymous BDO Donation (June 17) – PhP 250

Anonymous BPI Donation (June 18) – PhP 200

“Penguin Stitches” – PhP 400

Anonymous BDO Donation June 20 – PhP 200

Anonymous PayPal Donation June 21 – PhP 500

DONATIONS AND SALES FROM PRIDE BENEFITS

Pride Launch Party Donation Bucket at Catch 272 – PhP 1,500

Pride Launch Party Merchandise Sales at Catch 272 – PhP 900

Words Anonymous Donation Bucket at “IpagLOVEAn: Let Love In” Benefit Show – PhP 2,764

Words Anonymous Merchandise Sales at “IpagLOVEAn: Let Love In” Benefit Show – PhP 2,750

* Adjusted to reflect PayPal conversion rate on June 21 when the money was withdrawn to the attached BPI bank account

Please note that we were given written consent to publish the above names and aliases. We will never publish the names of those who do not give their consent.

Those marked anonymous include donors who asked not to be named and did not provide an alias, those who did not responded to our email asking for their consent to publish their names or alias, and those who did not get in touch with us at all after making their donation.

If you made a donation and would like your name or alias published or if you do not see your name above, please send us an email at metromanilapride@gmail.com.

Can you still donate?

Yes! Every year, Pride always starts with zero funds. Funds we raise beyond our goal will help us jumpstart planning and organizing for next year’s Pride and other Metro Manila Pride efforts!

You can still donate via the banks and PayPal accounts below.

We will still credit your donation as Pride donation. Kindly send us a photo of your bank deposit slip or online transfer to metromanilapride@gmail.com including whether or not you want your name published. You can also opt to just give us an alias!

What will you do with the funds you raised beyond your goal?

Everything will help fund the work that Metro Manila Pride does!

Anything we raise beyond our goal will be used primarily to plan for next year’s Pride and to help Metro Manila Pride finally become more sustainable as an organization. It will also help us make our existing projects more regular and get some of our shelved projects off the ground.

In the end, this money will be used to create even more enriching, inclusive, diverse, empowering, and safe spaces for LGBTQIA+ persons in Metro Manila.

How will you keep yourself accountable for these funds? 

As we mentioned before in our Metro Manila Pride Fundraising article, we will be releasing a post-event account of how all of these funds were used and what we plan on doing with the funds we raised beyond our goal. We will make this report available to the public.

We firmly believe that this is your Pride. You made this happen so you deserve to know where every centavo went.

Disclosure on corporate sponsorships

We were fortunate enough and extremely grateful to receive 4 corporate sponsors this year. In the coming days, we will be revealing these sponsors whose partnerships we value greatly.

While we are not able to divulge exactly what we received from them, we can say that all but one of these sponsorships are in kind or x-deal sponsorships. Due to company regulations, the pledged monetary sponsorship can only be released after Pride.

These x-deal sponsorships are amazing as they allow us to create a better Pride experience for you. However, as amazing as they are, we still needed to raise the money to be able to make Pride happen. It is for this reason that we launched this fundraising campaign.

What about the monetary sponsorships released after Pride?

In the past, these were used to pay for Pride’s debts. But for the first time since we started this, we will not need to do that. For the first time since we started this, we will actually have some money saved up for next year’s Pride organizing. For the first time since we started this, we will actually have some room to breathe.

All thanks to all of you.

An updated note on security

The recent Orlando Shooting not only has our community in tears, it has also amplified fears about our own security. While, historically, the Pride March has never been subject to any form of violence, we want you to know that this is a fear that we share and we’re committed to making sure it is an unfounded one.

As such, we have been in touch with various organizations and individuals who can help us beef up security on the day itself. Here’s what we’ve been able to do so far:

• We approached the local PNP office of Manila about adding security to the actual Festival grounds. However, due to a shortage of personnel, they have informed us that they are only able to send two riders to help us with traffic during the March.
• The Commission on Human Rights (CHR) c/o Atty. Twylah Rubin sent a letter to the Manila Police District (MPD) and the PNP Human Rights Affairs Office (PNP-HRAO) on June 20 to request for additional police protection for us. The PNP-HRAO responded saying that CHR would need to contact the PNP Chief. No response from MPD. The CHR will contact the PNP Chief today.
• We will still appreciate any connections you can give us that might be able to help us with this matter. Please get in touch with us at metromanilapride@gmail.com.
• At the recently concluded community meeting, Ivanka Custodio of Bahaghari suggested that we create a system of self-marshalling where we would train community volunteers to execute our security plans. Our Security Head, Julian Tanaka, is currently drafting a letter that will go out to all registered organizations tonight. In this letter, we will ask for at least two volunteers from each organization to be part of the security team.
• Ryan Villaruel of ASEAN SOGIE Caucus said this about security: “Security is not just about having a police/security force there. It is also about letting people understand the risks and how to manage those.” We wholeheartedly agree with this. So Mr. Tanaka will also be creating security reminder materials for everyone at Pride and a security briefing will be scheduled within the week and at Pride.

Together, we will all make sure that Pride is the fun and safe space we deserve to have.

To say that we are overwhelmed with gratitude is an understatement, mga mahal. When we started this campaign, we thought we would get a few thousand pesos at most. We never thought that we would reach, much less exceed our goal!

We have nothing but the deepest gratitude for your love and your trust. Thank you so much for letting love in and helping make sure that nothing takes Pride away from us.

See you on Saturday, mga mahal! ?

With much love, gratitude, and Pride,

Nicky H. Castillo and Loreen Ordoño

Co-Coordinators, Metro Manila Pride