The Vigan Cathedral was temporarily closed to the public last July after the magnitude 7.0 earthquake damaged its facade on July 27, 2022. (Photo courtesy of Mark Anicas)
LAOAG CITY, Ilocos Norte — The St. Paul Metropolitan Cathedral in Vigan City, Ilocos Sur province, is leading a fund-raising campaign on Saturday, October 8, to restore the historical structure after it sustained damage from the magnitude 7.0 earthquake that struck Luzon in July.
In an announcement on Facebook on Friday, the church invited interested individuals to participate in a fun run dubbed “Ma.Taray-Maan ti Simbaan 2022.”
The activity aims to help restore the Vigan Cathedral to its “original, reliable, and secure construction.”
The fun run will start at 4:30 a.m. and take off from Plaza Burgos in the city, according to the Cathedral.
Interested participants can choose from the three distance categories of 3K (P300 registration fee with singlet), 5K (P350 with singlet), and 10K (P400 with singlet).
On July 31, a donation drive called “Simbahan ko, mahal ko” was also launched to raise funds for the cathedral’s rehabilitation.
The National Commission for Culture and the Arts earlier said that at least P675 million would be needed to restore cultural properties, including the cathedral, in Ilocos Sur, Ilocos Norte, and Abra, which were damaged by the July 27 earthquake.