On February 5, Amer Hac Abdullah was a loving husband and the father of six children. Early the next morning, when a 7.8 magnitude earthquake shook Türkiye to its core, he lost his wife and two of his daughters.
The dreams he had for building a safe and happy home for his family — after fleeing Syria in 2011 to escape horrific violence and oppression — crumbled to the ground in an instant. And their struggle to find safe shelter and a warm meal continues months after the quake.
Amer's 3-year-old daughter, Ilin, was trapped under rubble for four hours. She emerged only to learn that her mother and two sisters had died, and their home was destroyed.
Ilin's big brown eyes now look to Amer to keep her safe. He is now her home. Each day, Amer and his four surviving children roam the now desolate streets without their mother and sisters. With no tent and little to eat, they search together for food and shelter.
When you reach out your hand to give a donation today, you extend God's love to hungry and frightened children, like Ilin, and their dedicated fathers, like Amer.
Like any loving father, Amer's focus is on his children. "It's all about the kids," he says. "The food, I just give to my children. If they eat, I'll eat. If they're hungry, I am hungry. I don't want for me. I just want for my children."
Your love travels to help your neighbors heal and rebuild
As a kind and compassionate person of faith, you share a powerful connection with your global neighbors and feel in your heart how critical it is that we share our love with them in their times of need.
Thanks to the urgent support of neighbors like you, who care, earthquake survivors like Amer and his family were able to receive lifesaving aid, which included:
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Airlifting urgently needed supplies, like tents, tarps, winter clothing and solar lights.
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Coordinating with partners to distribute ready-to-eat food and hot meals, sleeping bags and sleeping mats.
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Meeting survivors on the front lines to share your love, prayers and support.
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And so much more.
You can imagine how great the needs are for people who have lost everything, including their loved ones. Two of the most urgent are shelter and clean water.
You can provide a safe place for families to call home
To help hurting families rebuild their lives, along with you and our partners, we are constructing a container city with 400 homes near a hillside above the city of Kirikhan — one of the hardest-hit communities.
Each family's new home will include two rooms with a bathroom and a kitchen. The cities will also include washing machines and clean, running water, comforts of home they once had before the devastating earthquake.
Additionally, there will be a private garden area outside each container, so every family will have an outdoor space to call their own. Larger designated recreation areas, where children can gather and play together, will also be created.
Encouraging play and connection for the little ones, like Ilin, who've endured great loss, is critical for good mental and physical health. A fragment of their childhood restored.
Your loving gift today will provide shelter, food and clean water for those who have lost so much — in Türkiye and around the world.
Your love makes all the difference
In addition to navigating the lack of shelter, food and water, survivors are suffering extreme trauma and PTSD after losing everything — their loved ones, homes, possessions and sources of livelihood — to the earthquake.
Many are also devastated by memories of being stuck under the rubble for hours or even days, or desperately searching for missing children or loved ones.
Individuals, like Amer — who lost so much — need your caring love, strength and support for the long haul. Like you, they don’t think of themselves first but only the needs of their children and neighbors.
As Amer said: "When I get food, as long as the kids eat, I'll be fine."
Our neighbors who survived this natural disaster have had to be braver and stronger than we can imagine for their families and their communities. Your love and support can bring them the comfort in knowing they are not alone in their journey to recovery.
Your compassion and generosity will make a real difference in the lives of parents, children and families who are hungry, homeless and desperately trying to rebuild.
God bless you for sharing your love and support.
Thank you.