| Turkey and Syria are very much in the news and in urgent need of every help available. This particular write-up is from a release from GHNI staff, Jeff and Beth Latsa, who currently lives in Turkey. Donation sites are listed within their update. Currently, I am also working with another organization that is providing immediate relief that is more focused on Recovery Efforts, directly related to securing potential lives (time is about out) and bodies still under the collapsed buildings, in Syria, where almost no aid is being provided via NGO(s) and/or governments. Those efforts are via FrontierPartnersInternatinal and sent directly to WarmHeartMinistries in Lebanon, where teams are already on the ground and working in Syria. Funds for such efforts can be directed to: https://www.frontierpartners.org/donate-for-lebanon?mibextid=Zxz2cZ Here’s back to Jeff and Beth … A Semi-Truck Full Of FoodEstablishment of 5 Soup KitchensSending 40-Foot Containers with Doors and Windows to Set Up Bases of Operations I WANT TO HELP As the human suffering is immeasurable, many times the response is measured by the number of water bottles, diapers, and body bags distributed. The official death toll has climbed to over 40,000, yet our friends on the ground tell us that the real number might be 5 to 10 times higher. The pain of a mother that has lost her entire family and future or the grief of a father holding the lifeless body of his baby is being felt across an area that stretches across 200 miles. This is similar to the distance from Cleveland to Columbus and then to Cincinnati; the earthquake destroyed most of the cities in between. The scope of the work is unfathomable.  As a response, we and several partners have established soup kitchens in five of the hardest-hit areas. Since many people’s homes have collapsed, all their plates and belongings are crushed, and they are unable to cook for themselves. We cook boiled eggs in the morning and simple meals like soup or pasta and we use vans to deliver the cooked meals to the survivors and their families.  As a sign of our long-term commitment, we have sent refurbished shipping containers similar to single wide mobile homes from Izmir, the city we live in, to be used as soup kitchens.  Next week, I will be headed to the earthquake-affected area. I am assembling a small team of highly trained professionals who can make a significant impact, lay a foundation of the future, and provide credibility for our work. This team includes two medical doctors, a person trained in search and rescue, our Disaster Relief Director, a friend who ran a soup kitchen for 5,000 people during the last earthquake, Basak (our Turkish National Leader)…and me.  Although not yet confirmed, I plan on having a live report from the earthquake area via ZOOM. Tentatively it is scheduled for 11:00am EST (8:00am PST; 5:00pm Europe) on Wed., 22 Feb., 2023. Once I get it set up, I will send you an invite. I’d love to have you join us, ask questions, and find out how you too can get involved and help. I WANT TO HELP Thank you for your compassion for these families that have lost so much. God bless, jjl PS – often the giving link doesn’t work when this e-mail is forwarded. You can give by clicking on this link: https://bit.ly/drturkey Pass this e-mail on to friends and family, or even your church.  Jeff & Beth Latsa Istanbul. Turkey – GHNI Daniel Emig – GHNI – supports and releases these communications … |
Daniel at GHNI 