Firefly in Syria: Emergency Earthquake Appeal

This article was posted on behalf of Firefly International.

The devastating earthquake in southern Turkey and northern Syria has caused massive loss of life, destruction and heartbreak. Since the earthquake on 6th February Firefly has raised over £101,000 in offline donations - now with your help we'd like to reach our target of £200,000.

Firefly for Syrians mourns the death of staff, neighbours, friends and families, and of children they have taught.  They are determined to rise above this appalling tragedy and rebuild the educational services they have been providing.  The surviving children, who have suffered so much, deserve no less.  The challenge is huge but so is the commitment.

Project Director Fadia Shaker describes her experience of the earthquake in these words:

“in the dark night and severe rain, I ran under the rain and screamed and then came back to my mother…screamed and huge buildings fell around me…finally found my children all three, with my husband, all miraculously OK.  I am still in the mind of everything destroyed in minutes, the friends of my mother’s and missing relatives…I hope to wake up and discover it was a dream.  I do not know how our lives will be any more but I am confident that I am lucky for my family, and that I will fight and start again.”

Our staff are now contacting the families of the 1000 children we have registered in our programmes and conducting a full needs assessment.  This is a huge task hampered by very poor communications so will take a while.  Our aim is to re-start activities for the children in northern Syria within a few weeks. We can re-open our centre in Antakya which seems miraculously undamaged, once it has been surveyed and passed as structurally safe. 

Please go to our website for updates on Firefly's earthquake response. Home - Firefly International

We leave intact the pictures and stories on our website, even though they describe how life was before the earthquake.  The objectives remain the same – the needs have intensified and the challenges we face are even greater.  With help from our supporters, we commit to overcoming the challenges and meeting the needs. 

Please support Firefly International by donating whatever you can.