Tim Tebow Foundation's Philippines Hospital Spared by Typhoon
The hospital being constructed in the Philippines by the Tim Tebow Foundation was not damaged by Typhoon Haiyan, the foundation reported Tuesday.
The orthopedic children's hospital, named the "Tebow CURE Hospital," is being built in one of the nation's largest cities, Davao City. The project is a joint effort between the Tim Tebow Foundation and CURE International, a faith-based organization that operates programs and hospitals in 29 countries to assist people with physical and spiritual healing.
Workers began building the hospital in February 2012, and the Tim Tebow Foundation said in a press release in October that the facility is expected to be open by summer 2014.
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Tebow was born in the Philippines, where his parents Bob and Pam Tebow served as missionaries. His foundation works with the Bob Tebow Evangelistic Association (BTEA) on church planting, evangelism and orphan care efforts there.
The foundation reports that children at Uncle Dick's Home, an orphanage run by the BTEA, were not harmed during the storm, though "there is a great amount of need with some of the foundation's other ministry partners."
The hospital cannot assist typhoon survivors because it is still under construction, a spokesperson for CURE International told The Florida Times-Union, but the Tim Tebow Foundation is now collecting donations through its website for the Philippine Aid initiative.
All of the money collected through the initiative will go directly to relief efforts, according to the statement released by the organization. The funds will be distributed to "ministries that align with the foundation's mission to bring faith, hope and love to those needing a brighter day in their darkest hour of need."
Haiyan was one of the most powerful typhoons ever recorded. An early estimate said 10,000 Filipinos may have been killed by the storm, though President Benigno Aquino has since said the actual number is probably closer to 2,000 or 2,500.
"Ten thousand, I think, is too much…There was emotional drama involved with that particular estimate," Aquino told CNN.
Tebow, who started the Tim Tebow Foundation in 2010, is currently an NFL free agent. The evangelical Christian quarterback was released by the New England Patriots in August before the start of the regular season, and he has been looking for work in the league ever since.
Earlier this week NFL.com's Ian Rapoport said via Twitter that Tebow hired a broadcast agent and may look for a job in television, but only if he can't find work as player in the NFL.
