Support United Way BC’s Kapwa Strong Fund

United Way BC has always been committed to standing with communities in times of need, and both corporations and individuals have appealed to us as a trusted conduit for their gifts during this crisis.

We have a trusted history working with partners in communities and can assist in various ways to fill gaps that remain. Our commitment to this work is more important than ever today.

We stand with our friends and neighbours in the impacted neighbourhood, especially the Filipino community, during this tragedy to help where we can.

Our Emergency Response & Recovery supports our work during times of crisis throughout our regions with immediate and ongoing relief efforts, long term recovery, and community rebuilding.

As we navigate this tragedy, we know supports and needs will evolve to meet the need.

Through our helpline services, VictimLinkBC and 211 British Columbia, we are supporting victims with their emotional trauma and providing support and referrals to community agencies.

At this time, our efforts are focused on helping with mental health supports and trauma counselling, access to essential needs including meal and gas vouchers, and events and spaces for community to connect and share resources. 

As we continue conversations with agencies, community leaders, and governments, we will provide assistance and aid where needed and possible.

United Way BC works with local agencies, other charities, and government to determine how we can best support those impacted by the tragedy at the Lapu Lapu Festival in Vancouver.

100% of donations to United Way BC will support those devasted by this traumatic event.

We review and award grants regularly. Please keep an eye on this section for updates.

• Alliance Philippines Cultural Heritage Association – Promote long-term community renewal through inclusive gatherings (Salo-Salo), intergenerational storytelling (Kwentong Pinoy), and Tagalog language and culture education (Filipino School). Together, these initiatives strengthen resilience, belonging, and collaboration, fostering a more confident and connected Filipino community.
  
• Amici Curiae Friendship Society – With a long-standing commitment to accessible, trauma-informed, and culturally sensitive services, AC helps individuals navigate complex legal systems and overcome barriers such as legal jargon and technology, ensuring those impacted can advocate for their rights and access necessary supports.
  
• Bandits Community Foundation – Create a lasting space for healing, resilience, and empowerment following the April 26th tragedy. By refurbishing the basketball court in Philippine flag colors and offering free youth camps led by Filipino coaches, the project fosters cultural pride, physical and mental wellness, and strong community connections, providing youth with a safe and positive outlet to grow, unite, and honor those affected.
  
• BIBAK Organization of British Columbia – Festivals on June 28^th and November 22^nd to bring together the community (including those impacted) for a culturally appropriate meal and to share resources and information around emergency supports and community care programs. 
  
• British Columbia Bereavement Helpline – Culturally grounded, trauma-informed grief support for Filipino community members affected by  April 26. Efforts include free Traumatic Loss Facilitator Training, inclusive healing events (e.g., Bereavement Walk, Yoga, Paint Your Grief), and accessible resources like translated grief brochures. In-person gatherings will incorporate food to foster comfort and connection. 
  
• Dance West Network – The program includes five workshops or talks led by speakers from diverse backgrounds in the local Filipino community—such as artists, migrant workers, and those in the farming sector—and culminates in participants showcasing their work in a professional gallery.  
  
• Filipino Canadian Community & Cultural Society of BC – Capacity support to transition from volunteer-driven organization.
  
• Formative Motion Society  – Paglaum is a trauma-informed therapeutic yoga series designed to support Filipino-Canadian community members affected by the events of April 26^th, 2025. This three-month program offers weekly group and one-on-one yoga therapy. It provides a safe, culturally relevant space for healing through gentle movement, breathwork, guided rest, and community connection—acknowledging the ongoing and non-linear nature of trauma and recovery. 
  
• Frog Hollow Neighbourhood House – Bi-weekly healing art circles for youth (up to age 30). 
  
• Gallery Gachet Society – Mga Kwento – Many Stories offers a healing space for interdisciplinary storytelling, where Filipino community members come together with residents of the DTES and Chinatown to grieve, remember, and rebuild. 
  
• GJ Multicultural Services Society – Provide culturally responsive trauma support to Filipino community members through four integrated approaches:
  • Immediate crisis counseling with Filipino speaking therapists for those directly impacted
  • Community healing circles incorporating traditional Filipino practices
  • Basic needs fund providing practical assistance with transportation, childcare, and daily necessities for affected families; host culturally significant community reintegration events to rebuild trust and connection
• H.I.M. Health Initiative for Mens Society – “Hoy, Pare — Mag-Usap Tayo” is a 6-week trauma-informed therapy group (up to 10 participants) for self-identifying Filipino men and queer men affected by the events of April 26th.  
  remember, and rebuild. 
  
• Himig Kabataan Cultural Society – Youth-led expressive arts space to support those affected by the Lapu Lapu Tragedy, offering healing and community connection through music. Weekly choir rehearsals, providing a safe, supportive environment for victims and survivors.
  
• Indigenous Wellness Training Society – The Kapwa Healing Circles & Peer Resilience Project offers culturally grounded healing for Filipino families and communities affected by the Lapu Lapu Day tragedy. Led by Indigenous helpers, the project includes ceremony-based healing circles, one-on-one counselling in Tagalog, Ilokano, and English, and peer responder training.
  
• Kathara Pilipino Indigenous Arts Collective Society – Provide low-barrier subsidized group therapy and 1:1 clinical counselling to individuals who have been negatively impacted by the tragedy by improving their quality of life outcomes.
  
• KCH Collective Society – Community Lamay & Healing Network includes grief circles, art therapy, movement healing, and restorative justice programming—accessible six days a week in person and virtually. 
  
• Latincouver Cultural & Business Society  – Community LaDedicated space for healing circles and mental health support at Carnaval del Sol on July 12th and 13th for healing and solidarity following the events of April 26^th, 2025. 
  
• Mabuhay House Society:
  • Supporting a group of community members that has come together to provide care and support for those affected by the April 26 tragedy. 
  • Mabuhay House Society and UBC’s Child and Youth Healthy Futures Lab will host a symposium to address mental health needs in the Filipino-Canadian community. Aimed at fostering culturally relevant youth mental health programming, the event will strengthen connections between Filipino organizations and support sustainable mental health initiatives.
• Maple Bamboo Network Society – A digital storytelling project to create a healing space for Filipino Canadians through a culturally rooted platform.
  
• Migrante BC – Filipino Society:
  • 2-hour Art Therapy
  • Fundraising efforts to support victims and families through sale of art programming
• Moving Forward Family Services – Provide trauma-informed counselling with little to no wait times, and no limits on the number of sessions, for those impacted.
  
• Multicultural Helping House Society – Drop-in services, emotional and mental health support, healing workshops, and assistance with legal and documentation needs. 
  
• National Pilipino Canadian Cultural Centre Society – This program offers trauma-informed, arts-based healing rooted in the Filipino value of Kapwa (shared empathy). It includes intergenerational Hilom (healing) Circles with storytelling, poetry, and art, as well as Walang Hiya performing arts workshops featuring movement, spoken word, zine-making, dance, and music. These will culminate in the Sapin-Sapin Festival—a community showcase of healing and solidarity.
  
• Philippine Cultural Arts Society of BC  – Workshops led by speakers from diverse backgrounds in the local Filipino community—such as artists, migrant workers, and those in the farming sector—and culminates in participants showcasing their work in a professional gallery. 
  
• Philippine Nurses Association, British Columbia, Canada – Providing support to a group of 35 fraternity brothers who volunteered together at festival and were impacted (not open for referral).
  
• Pinoy Pride Vancouver Society – Art therapy for queer, femme, non-binary individuals who are affected. On-site counselling for individuals at select festivals.  
  
• REACH Community Health Centre Association – Trauma-informed counseling and a six-week mental health support workshop for people affected by the tragedy. 
  
• Sher Vancouver LGBTQ Friends Society – Culturally sensitive crisis counselling with registered clinical social workers and counsellors to provide mental health support.
  
• St. John Society – Trauma-informed therapy dog sessions for individuals affected, facilitated by trained St. John Ambulance volunteer teams in accessible community spaces across Greater Vancouver.
  
• South Vancouver Neighbourhood House:
  • Providing mental health support and healing spaces for youth and children impacted.
  • Strengthening mental health resiliency and coping strategies for youth and staff on how to regulate emotion, grieve, and be supportive for peers who are healing and grieving.
• The Landing Youth Centre Foundation – The HOPE South Vancouver Youth Program (Healing, Opportunity, Purpose, Empowerment) is a community-led initiative supporting youth affected by the tragedy. Running from July to December 2025, it addresses youth-identified needs for safety, connection, and purposeful engagement. Through partnerships with local agencies, the program offers healing-centered activities such as leadership training, wellness supports, art, hiking, sports, financial literacy, and volunteer opportunities. HOPE aims to provide a stable, empowering space where youth can heal, grow, and rebuild together.
  
• The Little Mountain Neighbourhood House Society – Building on the School’s Out Thriving Minds Summer program, Thriving Communities offers trauma-informed, family-centered, and culturally grounded supports rooted in joy, intergenerational connection, and the Filipino value of kapwa. Led by LMNHS and the BC Filipino Therapist Collective, the program aims to provide sustainable healing and become a lasting community resource for intergenerational wellness.
  
• United Filipino Canadian Associations in BC – Fundraising initiatives to support individuals in the community who have Philippine or dual citizenship with their healing, as well as providing individual needs support for those directly impacted – based on VPD Victim Services referral.  
  
• University of the Phillipines Alumni Association in British Columbia – The 11th annual “Balagtasan, Harana, Kundiman, Tula at Sayawan” will serve as a cultural healing space for the Filipino-Canadian community in response to the events of April 26^th. Through poetry, music, and dance, the event will honour the victims, foster collective mourning and resilience, and celebrate Filipino heritage. 
  
• Vancouver International Centre for Contemporary Asian Art – This project offers talks, workshops, and programming for Filipino youth, centering on the value of Kapwa—shared identity and interconnectedness. Using balikbayan as a metaphor, it invites youth to reconnect with their Filipino roots through culture, care, and community, similar to how balikbayan boxes carry love and resources across distances. The program provides a healing space for grieving, cultural connection, and strengthens the legacy of Filipino arts and resilience in Vancouver.
  
• VS. Creative Society – A Creative Healing Series is a 6-month arts and wellness program supporting those impacted by the events of April 26^th. The series offers a safe space to reflect, express, and heal through art, 
  movement, writing, and traditional practices. 

KAPWA is a term that describes the Filipino experience of community, interconnectedness and shared humanity. Many Filipinos practice this value through solidarity, and we’ve seen this value extended across the overwhelming support from our broader communities.

If you are able, please consider donating by clicking the donate button at the top of this page.

Volunteer opportunities are also available. Please sign up at Kapwa Strong – Volunteer Call Out List | iVolunteer Powered by United Way British Columbia.

Please send your request to use the Kapwa Strong logo for your fundraiser to kapwastrong@filipinobc.com.

For all media inquiries please contact PR@uwbc.ca.

Anyone who has been impacted by this traumatic event can call or text VictimLinkBC for free, confidential support 24/7. Dial/Text 1-800-563-0808 or email 211-victimlinkbc@uwbc.ca. Please know you’re not alone. Reach out for resources.

For additional information about local community supports and services, please contact 211 British Columbia. Dial/Text 2-1-1 for free, confidential assistance in over 240+ languages. bc.211.ca

General inquiries: info@uwbc.ca

Questions around your donation/giving: giving@uwbc.ca

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