by Lillian Csernica on January 30, 2014
I’m very pleased to announce that my story, “Storm Warning,” is now available as part of a very important, very meaningful project:
My story is one among a total of 40 donated to this anthology in support of all the victims of Typhoon Yolanda, aka Haiyan. In the description at Amazon.com, Editor Dean Francis Alfar expresses his purpose in creating Outpouring:
On November 7, 2013, Typhoon Yolanda (international name: Haiyan), the strongest storm ever recorded to make landfall, hit the Visayas region of the Philippines, devastating the provinces of Samar and Leyte. The storm claimed over 6,000 lives and leveled entire towns and cities. A few days after the storm, writer Dean Francis Alfar issued a call asking other writers to contribute stories for an anthology, the proceeds of which will go to the Philippine Red Cross. “Here then is the final result, an anthology of different stories by authors you’d never expect to share a same table of contents,” says Alfar. “A number are by well-established writers, bristling with previous publications. A few are first publications. What these stories have in common, besides being well-written and engaging, is that they all present because of the kindness of spirit of their authors. In the midst of catastrophe, I knew that my country did not stand alone.”
Please consider buying a copy of the anthology. Disasters have been causing devastation and loss with increasing frequency. Here in the mountains where I live, we suffered flooding one winter back when my son Michael was still a baby. We tried to get to Santa Cruz, but the road was washed out. A Red Cross shelter set up inside the local Catholic church became our emergency haven for the next two nights. The R.N. on duty specialized in pediatrics, so my special needs baby had excellent care. God bless the Red Cross and all the help they provide. I’m proud and honored to be part of this project, grateful for an opportunity to do my part to help raise the funds that will bring comfort, safety, food and medical care to other families just as the Red Cross helped mine.