Bergen Woman Lost Family In Turkey Earthquake, Raises Cash For Village

BERGEN COUNTY, NJ — Merve Ayra woke up Monday morning to discover she had lost her 4-year-old niece, aunt and uncle in a massive earthquake on the other side of the world.

"I wanted to be with my family," said Ayra. "And not being able to go was like torture."

Now the Bergen County woman, who moved from Turkey three years ago, is raising funds for her home village Harmanli, one of many devastated by the 7.8- and 7.5-magnitude earthquakes that struck her native country and Syria on Monday.

Ayra — who moved from the Adiyaman Province in southern Turkey in 2019 — hopes she can rally her community and raise cash to send back to all those suffering in the wake of the earthquake.

Adiyman was one of the areas hit hardest by the earthquakes, according to a Washington Post report that describes chaotic relief efforts and long lines of people waiting for water rations and blankets.

Funds raised by Arya will go to the son of the local Baskan (or mayor) Ahmet Degirmenci in Harmanli, who has promised to get food, water and firewood to as many as he can as the village waits for outside relief, according to Ayra.

"I am doing everything in my power to help (the survivors)," she told Patch. "But I need community support."

Ayra's GoFundMe has raised $1,780 in relief funds as of Wednesday morning.

"Your donation, no matter the size, will be put to work immediately to bring aid to those in need," she wrote on her GoFundMe page. "Let's come together and show the power of compassion in the face of adversity."

The death toll in Turkey and Syria stood at an estimated 11,000 people as of Wednesday morning, according to the Washington Post, and the Times reports 9,057 of those people were in Turkey.

Turkish communities across the globe have been raising funds to send back home as outrage builds over the government's initial response.

"Please do not spare your help even if it is small," Ayra pleaded, in Turkish, on her GoFundMe page. "Your generosity can make all the difference in the lives of these individuals."