SAN DIEGO — San Diegans are rallying support for earthquake survivors in Turkey and Syria. The earthquake is among the deadliest in recent history. Hundreds of thousands of people are homeless in freezing winter weather conditions.
"We just want everyone to know that we need help now," said volunteer Sinem Yilmaz.
She is volunteering to help the California Language Academy collect and send donations to Turkey.
"It's winter out there in Turkey so we're collecting winter clothes, baby clothes, diapers, baby formulas and anything that could be helpful for someone that doesn't have a home right now," she said.
They've sent 70 pallets of donations so far and don't have plans of stopping anytime soon.
"It's heart wrenching. I don't have close family there but I have many friends that lost their loved ones," said Ali Kiran, the president of the House of Turkiye.
Kiran said they're working to raise money to send overseas and look to meet a $100,000 goal by the end of the weekend. Beyond monetary support, he's also asking for support spiritually.
"I want to say also that we need people's thoughts and prayers. those are important. we are receiving a lot of support, emails, messages and those are helping us to emotionally cope with this tragic event," he said.
They're hopeful the San Diego community will continue supporting the survivors whose countries are in a state of devastation.
"It's a really tough situation that can't be put into words. I highly recommend to people check out the video of people to see the situation and pray for Turkey," said Yasin Deniz, the School Director of the California Language Academy.
Donate
The House of Turkiye is holding a gathering Saturday morning to rally support for community members impacted by the earthquake.
Learn how to make a monetary donation to the House of Turkiye, here.
The California Language Academy is accepting donations at 444 West C Street #420, San Diego, Ca 92101 during regular business hours or contact them through Instagram or FaceBook if you'd like them to pick-up the donations from you.
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