Update: The journey to the pueblos outside of Manta, Ecuador to deliver aid to families affected by the April 16th earthquake took place on Friday, May 6th. Including Daniel Estrada's family members, we were able to provide direct aid to approximately 108 families in need. Please refer to "Update #3" above for details. Below are pictures from the journey to affected cita of Manta and is pueblos. Thank you to all of those who donated for making this possible!

Sonia and I with the owner of a local grocery store who sold us bulk items at a discounted price to support victims of the earthquake


Escuela Ann Stevens students help (!) with water

Over 100 pounds of rice sorted for donation kits 

Supplies are organized in the local church to be carried to the bus before it departs for Manta 

Escuela Ann Stevens student Arturo carries a kit to the bus

Teacher José and Escuela Ann Stevens school cook Rosario help organize supplies on the bus upon arival to Manta

Volunteers help carry supplies from the bus to families in San José 

Boxes of donated food are distributed to families in San Pablo

Sonia and I with Padre Cristóbal (and lots of sweat) in San Pablo

Reverenda Gina and I visit with family friends of Padre Cristóbal in Manta. The second story of their home collapsed, along with the interior walls of their house.


Teacher Sonia, Reverenda Gina, and Padre Cristóbal deliver aid to a woman whose family's home was destroyed outside of San José.

Sonia helps deliver mattresses to Daniel's aunt and cousins in Ursa

Reverenda Gina and Daniel's aunt as we visit Ursa

Remains of a clinic outside of Tarqui 

Volunteers towards the end of a long day 





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Hola and buenos días from San Eduardo, Ecuador. My name is Yvonne Carter, and I am a registered nurse and recently board certified family nurse practitioner from Nashville, TN. Since 2014, I have had the privilege of traveling to this small pueblo as part of a medical mission trip through the faith community of St Augustine's Chapel in Nashville. As a participant in a global health program through my alma mater Vanderbilt University School of Nursing, I have spent the past three months living alongside members of the San Eduardo community learning more about community health perceptions and needs. 
(School Teacher Tatiana and I preparing for a home visit in February)

On Saturday evening, April 16th, a great earthquake of magnitude 7.8 struck the coast of Ecuador. In San Eduardo, houses shook and the earth trembled, but at the end of the night everyone was safe and accounted for and all houses remained standing.

(Road outside of Perdenales, one of the towns most devastated by the earthquake)

Other communities were not as fortunate. As the worst tragedy this country has suffered in decades, thousands of houses and buildings have been reduced to rubble and entire cities of families have lost their homes. An estimated 25,000 people are currently homeless or displaced due to this natural disaster, and upwards of 1,000 families in more rural areas are currently without the most basic necessities such as food and water. Among them is the extended family of Daniel Estrada, a 7th grade student at the primary school "Escuela Ann Stevens" in San Eduardo, who lived outside the coastal town of Tarquí before they lost their home in the earthquake.

(Daniel &  his parents after recently completing 7th grade)

Through families and friends at Daniel's school (including Tiffany and Melissa, friends in the photo featured on the donation page), the teachers of Escuela Ann Stevens (Sonia Veliz, Ketty Angulo, Tatiana Andaluz, and José Tuapanta) and local Reverend Gina Angulo have taken action to stand in solidarity with families affected by the earthquake, including Daniel's aunts, uncles, and cousins in Tarqui. I have had the privilege of joining these community leaders as we travel from house to house through fields of corn and cacao gathering donations from families who live off of an average of $10 a day themselves. There is a long road to recovery ahead, but these families are prepared to give of what little they may have in order to support those who have lost everything.

(Teachers walk from house to house in rural San Eduardo and surrounding neighborhoods carrying donations)

On behalf of the community of San Eduardo, Escuela Ann Stevens, the family of Daniel Estrada, and this country that is suffering a great loss, I am asking my friends and family to join in this movement of solidarity and allow the sense of community to spread from this small pueblo in rural Ecuador to your homes, your workplaces, your churches - and from there to more friends and families as well. No donation is too small; even $5-10 can go a long way in Ecuador.

(Reverend Gina with a family after they donated their rice!)

The funds collected will be used to purchase basic necessities that will be donated directly to families in rural areas affected by the earthquake who have not yet received aid from emergency services. These include: bottled water (a priority); nonperishable food items such as rice, beans, and tuna; hygienic necessities such as toilet paper, soap, and sanitary towels; blankets; and insect repellant (as malaria and dengue fever remain a threat for those without shelter).

(San Eduardo's donations as of April 23rd)

In true grassroots fashion, we will use donations from the US to purchase these goods locally here in Ecuador and help stimulate the local economy, which is expected to suffer severely as a result of this tragedy. With our partners Padre Cristóbal in Guayaquil and Reverenda Betty in Manta, we will personally travel to these areas to ensure that these donations are recieved by those who need them most - including Daniel's family. The need is great and affected families are expected to require support from outside assistance for at minimum 2-3 months. In the immediate aftermath of this disaster, we ask you to help us in whatever capacity you can. Our current goal is $5,000 for Daniel's family and others. If we can surpass that, all the better! 

(The teachers of Escuela Ann Stevens and Reverenda Gina)

I will keep this page updated with specfic accounts of goods purchased and donations delivered. We plan to travel to the rural pueblos of Tarqui and barrios of the province of Manabi to assist in providing for these families at the beginning of May.

"Muchas Gracias" from San Eduardo, from Ecuador, and from me.

If you would like to share this link to social media, please use the hashtag #EcuadorListoySolidario (Ecuador Ready and United) to continue to show solidarity for those affected! 

(Escuela Ann Stevens students Maya and Jaime)

"The needs are great, and none of us, including me, ever do great things. But we can all do small things, with great love, and together we can do something wonderful."
- Mother Theresa

VAMOS ECUADOR!



*All photos featured were taken and used with permission