Beckham to visit Tacloban

MANILA, Philippines - Football supertar David Beckham, who dazzled Filipino fans when his former club LA Galaxy played the Philippine Azkals in Manila two years ago, will return to the Philippines, this time to lend a helping hand to victims of Typhoon Yolanda.

Beckham’s Philippine visit was bared during a press conference yesterday in Miami, where the high-profile former England captain and Major League Soccer (MLS) commissioner Don Garber announced his decision to form a “people’s club” in Florida.

According to a Reuters report posted on Yahoo! Sport UK and Ireland, Garber took the occasion to praise Beckham not only for his influence on the game but also for his charity work as goodwill ambassador for the Unicef and the group Malaria No More.

“He noted that Beckham was headed to the Philippines next week for Unicef to help with the relief efforts after November’s Typhoon Haiyan,” the report said.

Beckham, along with his wife Victoria, had previously pitched for international aid to Yolanda victims last November, personally donating 20 boxes of clothes to British Red Cross to help raise funds.

Beckham led the Galaxy team that visited Manila as part of their Asian tour in 2011, giving Pinoys that included boxing idol Manny Pacquiao a sampling of his famous moves on the pitch.

DOT sets global ‘thank you’

Meanwhile, on Feb. 8 at 4:40 a.m., exactly three months after Typhoon Haiyan hit the Philippines, the country will launch a global campaign expressing its gratitude to the world, having received an outpouring of support following the devastating effects of the typhoon.

Triggered by an overwhelming sense of appreciation, which has been strongly expressed in social media – for example, #PHthankyou, this groundswell of gratitude is captured in a ‘Thank You’ campaign created by Filipinos from all over the world. Depicting different ways of expressing their heartfelt appreciation, various messages and images in social media showed the world that foreign support and encouragement has made, and continues to make, all the difference in the country’s ongoing rehabilitation and rebuilding efforts.

Hoping to ensure the gratitude is received by everyone, the  Department of Tourism has crafted a thank you message to be displayed through print ads and billboards in iconic places across the world, specifically Times Square, New York; Piccadilly Circus, London; Potsdamer Platz cor. Leipziger Platz, Berlin, Germany; Lafayette Mogador, Paris; Shibuya Crossing, Tokyo; ION Orchard, Singapore;

Yonge-Dundas Square, Toronto; Darlinghurst, Sydney; and Paiknam Building, Jung-gu, Seoul.

All the people across the globe who have expressed sympathies and extended support, financial or otherwise, are invited to witness the message of appreciation from the Philippines and help share the country’s gratitude to the rest of the world.

Using the hashtag #PHthankyou, people around the world can continue to share their support and appreciation. – With Olmin Leyba