Earthquake Relief Help for Antakya (Antioch)

Here is the public Dropbox link: https://www.dropbox.com/sh/m5f44upxq5nba5p/AABgCwYVQSSHW3kYxYyq_dY2a?dl=0

Donation Campaign Update: We started our campaign to help the children affected by the earthquake in Turkey on February 6, 2023. I talked with local groups, the mayorship of Defne and Samandag municipalities, and local people before making any donations. Following our conversations, my high school friend (Dr. Ibrahim Dikmen, pediatrician, originally from Antioch), his sister (Cemile Dikmen, a school teacher), and the mayorship of the local government advised me to contact a local psychologist Mehmet Can and his brother physiotherapist Soner Can.

They helped with the needs of 500 disabled families residing in Samandag at the Samandag Disabled Life Rehabilitation Center, which was not damaged in the earthquake, from the 3rd day of the earthquake. At the same time, they continue their psychosocial and educational activities with their volunteer teachers and employees.

After I talked with them, they provided me with the details of families with disabled children in need. Furthermore, we contacted the local education center at the local container cities, and one of the local teachers, Oner Bakimci, sent us the details of students in need. That was our aim at the beginning: To create a direct impact.

What we did so far?: Overall, we have 50 families and 10 students (name, IBAN, phone number, story). For each family, we sent 2000 TRY (approximately 93 Euro – exceptionally for one family, we sent 11000 TRY due to the graveness of the disability in need). For each student, we sent 1000 TRY (approximately 47 Euros).

What is the total amount that we have collected so far?: We collected 5880 euros so far. After GoFundMe Fees, exchange fees, and transfer fees, the total money I received in my account (Is Bankasi -Turkey) was 121,723.86 TRY. Nevertheless, as promised, I paid the excess fee from my account. Therefore, we have a balance of 126,028.33TRY (5880 euros as of May 16, 2023).

What is the total amount we have donated so far?: So far, we have donated 119,000 TRY and still have 7,028.33 TRY in our balance.

Where can I see all this flow?: It is essential to know whom you helped and how your donation positively impacts society. Therefore, we decided to share our activities transparently. In the following Dropbox link, you can find the following files, and we continue to update:

Here is the public Dropbox link: https://www.dropbox.com/sh/m5f44upxq5nba5p/AABgCwYVQSSHW3kYxYyq_dY2a?dl=0

What is next? : We continue to keep the connection with disabled children in need. We need to raise more funds for the survivors. My GoFundMe page will be open. If you want to send donations directly to the families, you can also find their details in the Dropbox folder.

Engin Iyidogan

Assistant Professor in Finance

SKEMA Business School

Grand Paris Campus

https://sites.google.com/view/enginiyidogan