ÿþ<HTML> <HEAD> <TITLE>Donate to Wood Houses for Homeless Turkey Earthquake 2011</TITLE> <meta name="Description" content="Please Donate to Wood House Project to help earthquake surviviors make it through the winter in Ercis and Van, eastern Turkey where a million people were displaced by earthquakes on Oct 23 and Nov 9, 2011."> <meta name="Keywords" content="donate earthquake relief,Van earthquake,Ercis earthquake,turkey earthquake relief fund,photos van earthquake,photos ercis earthquake,emergency shelter"> </HEAD> <BODY> <BLOCKQUOTE><BLOCKQUOTE><BLOCKQUOTE><BLOCKQUOTE> <BLOCKQUOTE><H2><font face=arial color=#CC3300><b>First Wood House Completed in Private Earthquake Relief Effort</b></font></H2></BLOCKQUOTE> <p> <table border=0 cellpadding=0 cellspacing=15 noborder> <tr> <td width = 400 valign=top><font face=arial size=2> <H2><font color=#CC3300><b>in Ercis, Turkey</b></font></H2> December 2, 2011, by Amy L. Beam, <a href="http://www.mountararattrek.com/contactmountararat.htm">Mount Ararat Trek</a> <p> Construction of the first 8-room wood house for homeless earthquake survivors is now finished in Ercis, eastern Turkey. Seven families (40 people) are living one per room. The eighth room is being reserved to house emergency cases during the winter. . .most likely people still living in tents and dying from exposure. The house has electricity, heat, a toilet and shower. It cost approximately $12,000 USD, half of which came in cash donations and the other half in donated materials and labor. <p> This privately organized emergency relief project to build wood houses was initiated after 6,000 buildings were destroyed in Ercis and Van, Turkey, from the October 23 and November 9, 2011 earthquakes leaving approximately 900,000 people homeless. Both cities are now empty. An estimated 800,000 survivors dispersed throughout Turkey to friends and relatives, but about 100,000 people remain in tents with no financial means or place to relocate. <p> When Marilyn Evelyn in Ankara contacted her friend, Mehmet Bozbay, asking for his help in donating the $3000 USD she had collected among friends and colleagues, Mehmet went into action and contacted Koksal Halep Olu who is the man who actually organized and constructed the wood house. Mr. Olu s phone is (009) 0532 341 4250. He speaks some English if you want to speak to him. Mehmet Bozbay, along with his brothers and father, own Asur Hotel in Van, Turkey, where many visitors who climb Mount Ararat overnight in Van. The Bozbay family is widely known and respected throughout eastern Turkey. They have now relocated to Ankara and Antalya until spring when repairs will begin on their hotel (covered by insurance). <p> The mayor of Rize, Turkey, on the Black Sea donated the water tanks for the house and was helpful in many ways. Businesses in Dogubayazit donated some building materials, heaters, beds, and carpets. We spent several weeks trying to get the local government to establish a bank account for donations, but were told they would first have to get approval from government officials in Ankara. Time was ticking; winter has arrived. Finally, we could wait no longer, so we gave up on government assistance in opening a special bank account. <p> Mehmet Bozbay had the idea that by building one house as a model, others would be encouraged to join into their own small self-help groups and build more houses. Indeed, this is what is happening. Many people who watched the rapid building of the first wood house in Ercis asked how they could get the materials to do the same thing and what it would cost. An idea is a powerful tool, and when it is turned into reality people get excited and motivated. Despair turns to hope. The impossible becomes reality. The jaded become inspired to donate. <p> Other private efforts are underway. A group of 100 businessmen in Istanbul, all from Dogubayazit, have purchased approximately 70 containers and are building a container village in Ercis with the name of "New Dogubayazit". But it will take many such private efforts to provide enough housing for homeless earthquake survivors to get through the winter. <p> In the Kurdish culture, when a friend asks for help it is shameful not to help. One simply cannot say <i>no</i>. In the Kurdish culture, if someone is poor and has only one loaf of bread, if their friend is hungry, he will share his last loaf of bread. That is how people survive in a country with no  safety nets . My friend Mehmet has asked me for help and now I ask you. Please give something, no matter how small. Small donations add up. <p> Mehmet wants to build a 12-room wood house in Van to be completed by the end of the year. The house will sleep 80-110 people displaced by the earthquakes. The estimated cost is a mere $13,000 to $15,000 USD. Some of this will come in the form of donated materials and services, but we cannot expect the same amount of such donations as for the first house. We now have raised $2000 for the second house, among just a handful of people. All money goes directly to building the house. There are no administrative fees withheld. Mehmet Bozbay will provide receipts, photos, and thank you letters when the next house is completed. I know most people are cautious and jaded about donations, but <font color=red> <b>please will you help with at least <i>LUNCH MONEY</i>?</b></font> If 220 people donate $50 each, we will get this house built by the end of the month. <p> Your help really will make a difference. The UN relief fund for Haiti spends $110 per day per person for housing earthquake victims. Do you realize that with this small private effort in Van, Turkey, every $150 will provide a wood house shelter for one person to get through the <i>entire winter</i>? That is an amazing investment. <b> Please help and ask one friend to help</b> so we can raise the funds within the next two weeks and save people from dying this winter. <p>Instead of forwarding a joke or youtube video today, please forward this link to a few friends with your personal appeal. We will post more photos as they are available. With disrupted internet and mail services, there is a delay in getting the photos of the finished house. <p> <b><h1><font color=red>How To Donate</font></h1></b> <font size=+1> (scroll to bottom of page or click <a href=vanearthquake.htm#donate>donate</a>) <p> We are not an NGO. This is a private relief effort among a group of friends. We know that a little money goes a long way when it goes directly to the people in need. <p> <table bgcolor=yellow> <tr> <td><FONT SIZE=+1 face=arial> There are four ways to <a href=vanearthquake.htm#donate>donate</a>): <ul> <li>PayPal (you do not need a PayPal account) <li>bank transfer <li>mail a check <li>send money using Western Union </ul> </td> </tr> </table> </font> </td> <td valign=top width = 450><font face=arial size=2> <img src = "images/ercis_woodhouse01.jpg" width=450><br> 6,000 buildings were destroyed, leaving 900,000 homeless in Van and Ercis.<p> <img src = "images/ercis_woodhouse02.jpg" width=450><br> This 8-room house was constructed in Ercis, Turkey, in one week. <p> <img src = "images/ercis_woodhouse03.jpg" width=450><br> Electical supplies, heaters, beds, and carpets were donated. <p> <img src = "images/ercis_woodhouse05.jpg" width=450><br> The mayor of Rize, Turkey, donated water tanks for the toilet and shower. <p> <img src = "images/ercis_woodhouse06.jpg" width=450><br> The house was completed Nov. 2011, only one month after the earthquake. <p> <img src = "images/ercis_woodhouse07.jpg" width=450><br> Seven families are now living in this finished house in Ercis, Turkey, thanks to a group of friends who did not wait for government help or foreign aid. They had a small idea and asked their friends to contribute. Despair is turning into hope and inspiring others. <b>Your small donation <i>will</i> make a difference.<b> </td> </tr> </table> <BLOCKQUOTE><H2><font face=arial color=#CC3300><b>Donate to Wood Houses for Homeless Earthquake Survivors</b></font></H2></BLOCKQUOTE> <p> <table border=0 cellpadding=0 cellspacing=15 width = 70% noborder> <tr> <td valign=top><font face=arial size=2> <H2><font color=#CC3300><b>Ercis and Van, Eastern Turkey</b></font></H2> October 28, 2011, by Amy L. Beam, <a href="http://www.mountararattrek.com/contactmountararat.htm">Mount Ararat Trek</a> <p> We ask all our friends to help us help the earthquake surviviors make it through the winter. Mehmet Bozboy, co-owner of Azur Hotel in Van, Turkey, and close friend of <i>Mount Ararat Trek</i> and <i>Murat Camping</i> in Dogubeyazit, Turkey, is not waiting for government help. He has organized a project to build a wood house in Ercis, Turkey, to help 80 survivors make it through the bitterly cold winter. <font color=#CC3300><b>One hundred percent of all donations will go toward building the wood house(s) in Ercis and Van with <i>no deductions</i> for administative overhead.</b></font> <p> <font face="arial" size = +1 color=><b>If you climbed Mount Ararat with us before, you already put your trust in us when you sent money via PayPal or a bank transfer. Please trust us again and help with $10 or $100 or more. The Kurdish people cannot survive the winter without immediate help from the international community. It is already cold and snowing in southeastern Turkey. How to donate is at the bottom of this page.</b></font> <p> When the 7.2 magnitude earthquake destroyed Ercis, with a population of 77,000 on the north end of Lake Van in southeastern Turkey, the Governor of Dogubayazit in the province of Agri contacted Murat ^ahin, owner of <i>Murat Camping Restaurant and Hotel</i> in Dogubeyazit, Turkey, to organize a rescue team. Murat and Sayim ^ahin are business partners with <i>Mount Ararat Trek</i>. Murat raced to Ercis with 8 others, including Apo, the cook for our Mount Ararat treks. They took a large generator used in the summer at camp 2 on Mount Ararat. Within 24 hours many other small rescue teams followed their initiative and began arriving. Murat and over 2,000 others worked day and night, first rescuing survivors, then distributing tents. Murat ^ahin retrieved 13 survivors from the rubble and many more bodies of those who died. More than 600 people died in the quake and over 4100 were hospitalized. Van city also suffered deaths and damage to buildings. <P> On November 9, 2011, a second earthquake of 5.7 magnitude struck Van, Turkey, resulting in over 40 additional deaths and buildings collapsing, including Hotel Bayram which was housing rescue workers and journalists. Many inside were trapped or killed. Now an estimated 80 to 90% of all buildings in Van are structurally damaged and will have to be repaired or demolished. Van, with a poplulation of 1.2 million people, is now empty. <P> On November 11, when I spoke to Murat on the phone, he had just come home to get some sleep and return to Van in the morning. He told me, "Now you cannot find 1,000 people in the city of Van. It is not safe to go inside a building. Van is having 50 to 60 tremors of 2.5 to 3.5 magnitude every day. People are sleeping outdoors or in their cars. It is snowing now and very cold." <P> Tragically, both Ercis and Van are no longer habitable. Although the government of Turkey is working hard at the relief efforts, the magnitude of the death and destruction is so huge that people cannot wait for government or NGOs to come to their aid. They must organize themselves and reach out directly to their friends which is why I have posted this webpage to provide information on how you, too, can help in a very direct way. <P> My friend, Mehmet Bozboy, of Van, Turkey, is part owner, with 3 brothers, of Azur Hotel in Van. Azur Hotel is where we put our trekking customers when they take a tour of Van and Lake Van. Azur Hotel is now closed along with all other businesses in Van. Mehmet took his extended family, including his parents, children, sisters and their familes, to Ankara where they will rent a house. They realize they must figure out a way to start life over. <P> In spite of Memet's personal shock and loss, he and a few friends have organized an initiative to build a wood house for survivors in Ercis. He had already started this emergency project before the second earthquake hit Van on Nov. 9. Construction will cost $8000 US. The house will have 8 rooms and will be able to house about 70-80 people for the winter. They have donated their own money to cover the construction cost. They are buying the wood from the neighboring country of Georgia where it is less expensive. A team of carpenters from Trabzon, skilled in building wooden houses on the Black Sea, are building the house. Different store owners in Dogubeyazit and elsewhere are donating the tools, electrical supplies and electricians, stove, and rugs for the floors. <p> Mehmet Bozboy was selling kilims and Persian carpets to our climbing customers at Murat Camping in the summer of 2011 while I was sending them to the summit of Mount Ararat. So, I know Mehmet well and am impressed with his honesty, integrity, leadership, and concern for helping others. <p> <font face="arial" size = +1 color=><b>Mehmet told me on the phone today, "By next week, people will be living inside this wood house. We just need to find another $1000 dollars. People cannot make it through the winter living in a tent. We hope to build this house as a model house for others to use as an example. If we can raise another $8000, we will build a similar house in Van, too."</b></font> <P> Please make a donation using one of the methods below. If you donate, please email me, <a href="mailto:amybeam@yahoo.com">Amy Beam</a>, with your donation amount, so I can maintain the accounting. Be assured all donations will go toward the intended purpose of building the wood house(s) for earthquake survivors. The more money we can raise, the more wood houses they will build. Mehmet Bozboy will provide photos which I will post on this web page as soon as the first house is completed. Mehmet has also been promised TV news coverage when the first house is built, as a model for others to follow.Please share this link with your friends, local media, and on TWITTER or FACEBOOK: <b>http://www.mountararattrek.com/vanearthquake.htm</b> <P><font color = red> We have been patiently waiting for the local Ercis government to establish a bank account for donations, but they must go through buraucracy with Ankara approval. Meanwhile, winter has arrived and we can wait no longer. </font> We ask for your trust and support in this private relief effort among a few friends. <p>As our friend, will you join us? Contact information is below if you wish to assist in any other way. <p><p>. <img src = "images/wood_house_project.jpg" width=400><br> Model of 8-room wood house being built for Ercis quake survivors <p> </td> <td valign=top><font face=arial size=2> <img src = "images/20111024_murat_sahin_quakerescue_t.jpg" width=400><br> Murat ^ahin lifts child from rubble in Ercis, October 24, 2011 <p> <img src = "images/earthquake14_ercis_destroyed2.jpg" width=400><br> Ercis, Turkey, 6,000 buildings fell down <p> <img src = "images/earthquake13_ercis_destroyed.jpg" width=400><br> Ercis is no longer habitable. <p> <img src = "images/earthquake3_vanhotel.jpg" width=400><br> Bayram Hotel in Van, Turkey, collapsed in Nov. 9 quake <p> <img src = "images/earthquake7_murat.jpg" width=400><br> Murat Sahin, Van search and rescue team working around the clock <p> <img src = "images/earthquake15_living_on_street.jpg" width=400><br> 600,000 homeless survivors need shelter to make it through the winter.<p> &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </td> </tr> </table> <a name="donate"></a><h2><font color=#CC3300><b>PLEASE DONATE GENEROUSLY TO BUILD THE WOOD HOUSES:</b></font></h2> <P><font face=arial size=2> You may donate money online with PayPal (US dollars only), by bank transfer, or mail. <P> <table border=0 cellpadding=0 cellspacing=15 noborder WIDTH=70%> <TR> <TD> <font color=#CC3300 size=+1 face=arial><b>PAYPAL</b></font> <br> <!-- Begin PayPal Logo --> <FORM ACTION="https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr" METHOD="POST"> <INPUT TYPE="hidden" NAME="cmd" VALUE="_xclick-gaming"> <INPUT TYPE="hidden" NAME="business" VALUE="amybeam@yahoo.com"> <INPUT TYPE="hidden" NAME="return" VALUE="http://www.mountararattrek.com/confirm.htm"> <INPUT TYPE="hidden" NAME="cancel_return" VALUE="http://www.mountararattrek.com/earthquake.htm"> <INPUT TYPE="image" SRC="http://images.paypal.com/images/x-click-but6.gif" BORDER="0" NAME="submit" ALT="Donate with PayPal, fast and secure"> </FORM> <!-- End PayPal Logo --> <P><font face=arial size=2> Click on the PayPal button to go to Amy Beam's payment page. I have not set up an NGO for tax deductible donations. Put "Turkey earthquake donation" in the description field. We will both receive an automatic notification of your donation. I will transfer all funds to Mehmet Bozboy in Turkey to be used for the Wood House for Homeless earthquake relief project. If you donate in one of the other ways below, please send an email to me so I can keep an account of all donations. <P> Amy Beam<br> US: 1 240 696 1905<br> <a href="mailto:amybeam@yahoo.com">amybeam@yahoo.com</a> <P>.<P></font> </TD> <td valign=top><font face=arial size=2> <img src = "images/20110513_Murat_Amy_Fahvzi_AzurOteli.jpg" width=400><br> Fahvzi Bozboy, co-owner Azur Hotel, Van, Turkey<br> Amy Beam, Mount Ararat Trek, Dogubeyazit, Turkey<br> Murat ^ahin, Murat Camping, Dogubeyazit, Turkey </font> </TD> </TR> <TR> <TD> <font color=#CC3300 face=arial size=+1><b>MAIL CHECK PAYABLE TO</b></font><BR> <table bgcolor=yellow> <tr> <td><FONT SIZE=2 face=arial> MEHMET BOZBAY<br> koyunpazar1 sokakno 77<br> samanpazar1<br> Ankara, TURKEY<br> </td> </tr> </table> mobile: 0090 535 739 0138<br> <a href="mailto:memet99@hotmail.com">memet99@hotmail.com</a> <p> <font color=#CC3300 face=arial size=+1><b>WESTERN UNION</b></font> <b></b><br> <table BGCOLOR=yellow width=400> <tr> <td><FONT SIZE=-1> Send money to any Western Union office in Ankara, Turkey, for Mehmet Bozbay, mobile: 0090 535 739 0138. Western Union will give you a PIN number. Email this PIN number to <a href="mailto:memet99@hotmail.com">memet99@hotmail.com</a>. Mr. Bozbay can go into any Western Union office in Ankara and collect your donation with the PIN number and his ID. </td> </TR> </TABLE> <p> <font color=#CC3300 face=arial size=+1><b>BANK TRANSFER TO</b></font> <table BGCOLOR=yellow width=400> <tr> <td><FONT SIZE=-1>FIRST NAME:</td><td><FONT SIZE=-1 face=arial>MEHMET</td> </TR> <TR> <TD><FONT SIZE=-1>FAMILY NAME:</td><td><FONT SIZE=-1>BOZBAY</td> </TR> <TR><td><FONT SIZE=-1>ADDRESS:</td><td><FONT SIZE=-1>BUYUK ASUR HOTELI<BR>CUM CAD NO:7 65100,VAN/TURKEY</td> </TR> <TR><td><FONT SIZE=-1>BANK NAME:</td><td><FONT SIZE=-1>GARANTI BANKASI</td> </TR> <TR><td><FONT SIZE=-1>BANK BRANCH:</td><td><FONT SIZE=-1>1206, VAN SAN0Y0</td> </TR> <TR><td><FONT SIZE=-1>CITY:</td><td><FONT SIZE=-1>VAN</td> </TR> <TR><td><FONT SIZE=-1>COUNTRY:</td><td><FONT SIZE=-1>TURKEY</td> </TR> <TR><td><FONT SIZE=-1>ACCOUNT TYPE:</td><td><FONT SIZE=-1>USD</td> </TR> <TR><td><FONT SIZE=-1>ACCOUNT NUMBER:</td><td><FONT SIZE=-1>9036619</td> </TR> <TR><td><FONT SIZE=-1>SWIFT CODE:</td><td><FONT SIZE=-1>TG BATRIS VA</td> </TR> <TR><td><FONT SIZE=-1>IBAN:</td><td><FONT SIZE=-1>630006200120600009096619</td> </TR> </TABLE> <p> <td valign=top><font face=arial size=2> <img src = "images/20111005_memet_bozboy.jpg" width=400><br> Mehmet Bozboy, co-owner Azur Hotel, Van, Turkey<br> <font color=#CC3300><b>Wood House for Homeless Project Leader</b></font> </font><P>.<P> </TD> <TR> <TD> <p> <font color=#CC3300 face=arial><b>MAIL SUPPLIES:</b></font> <br> <font face=arial size=2> The government is waiving duty on goods sent for the Van/Ercis earthquake survivors. In order to avoid duty, your packages and documentation MUST clearly state "Van/Ercis Earthquake Donation". <P> You may send donations by the post office or any courrier service to Murat ^ahin. He organizes the climbing groups for Mount Ararat summits. I trust my life with Murat, and you can trust him to distribute your donations to needy homeless earthquake survivors. <p> Murat ^ahin<br> Murat Camping<br> Dogubeyazit, Agri<br> Turkey 04400<br> mobile: 0090 542 437 3699<br> <a href="mailto:mt.ararat@hotmail.com">mt.ararat@hotmail.com</a><br> </font><P> <p> </TD> <td valign=top><font face=arial size=2> <img src = "images/20111110_murat_sahin_hardhat2.jpg" width=400><br> Murat ^ahin, search and rescue team, Van, Turkey, Nov 10, 2011 </font> </TD> </TR> </TABLE> <b>Please share this link with a friend and ask them to help.</b> </font><br> <h1><font face = "lucida calligraphy" color=#CC3300><b>Thank you ~ Te_ekkür ederim</b></font></h1><br> <font face=arial size=2> Webpage design by <a href="mailto:amybeam@yahoo.com">Amy L. Beam</a> </font> </font> <BLOCKQUOTE><BLOCKQUOTE><BLOCKQUOTE><BLOCKQUOTE> </BODY> </HTML>