The Turkish student community at the University of Wisconsin is holding several opportunities for students to provide aid to Turkey following one of the deadliest earthquakes in over a decade.
A 7.8 magnitude earthquake hit Turkey with a historic number of aftershocks Monday, according to NPR. There have been over 20,000 casualties so far, with the number continuing to increase. The earthquake is one of the deadliest since the 2011 earthquake in Japan.
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The earthquake destroyed thousands of buildings and tens of thousands have lost their homes and been misplaced, according to CBS News.
UW students are organizing ways people in Madison can support the devastation through money and resource donations. Students can help by providing food, water and shelter to people affected by the earthquake, Madison Association of Turkish Students undergraduate representative Idil Dokucu said.
The campus’s Turkish community is connecting money donations to multiple different organizations, including the Turkish Philanthropy Fund, working towards finding health, resources and search and rescue, UW student Yoel Nasi Kazado said.
“Seeing people from the community helping us out, asking how they can help, donating and showing their support on social media and stuff like that really goes a long way,” Kazado said.
In addition to those donations, the Turkish student community is raising money through Venmo. Any donation to the Venmo user @IdilDokucu will be matched by university alumni and others one to one and in some cases one to three, Kazado said. These Venmo donations go to the Ahbap Foundation, another group working towards relief efforts in Turkey.
Students can also help by donating resources like food, water, clothes and more at drop-off locations on the MATS Instagram. The association has yet to find a permanent drop off location but updates their Instagram regularly with priority items needed and the locations to bring items to, Kazado said.
The Turkish community is reaching out to all students, faculty and staff at UW, Kazado said.
“Even as low as $1 equals to almost 19 liters of water there, which can really be life saving,” Kazado said. “And because of that, spreading the news and letting people know about these causes and work that we’re doing is really important.”
Editor’s Note: This article was updated to accurately reflect that the Turkish student community is raising money for relief efforts through Venmo.
