Samantha Brown Perez was in Venezuela for about two months when her stay was extended longer than she expected.
Perez was about a 30 minute drive away from Caracas, Venezuela’s capital, when two back-to-back earthquakes of magnitude 7.2 and 7.5 hit the country’s north coast June 24. As of Tuesday, more than 1,900 are dead and tens of thousands are still missing.
Though she’s not from Venezuela, Perez was in the country to renew her visa, and she expected to receive the paperwork she needed June 25.
The collapsed buildings and devastation was unlike anything the Tampa Bay area realtor had ever experienced.
“The destruction is just on a level that I personally have never seen before,” Perez said. “In Tampa we get hurricanes all the time. But as someone said, hurricanes, you can prepare for and, essentially, up to some point, escape — an earthquake, you can’t.”
Separated from her husband and children in Tampa, Perez decided to use her situation to do her best to help those impacted by the quakes.
‘We didn’t know what was going on’
June 24 is a holiday in Venezuela, Perez said, and she was visiting the beaches of La Guaira on the country's north coast with her in-laws to enjoy it. They left a few hours before the earthquakes hit.
While driving to her sister in-law's apartment, she said the streets started moving.
“We thought it was an issue with the car because the car was moving,” Perez said. “We didn’t know what was going on — and then we realized what was happening.”
Though the area she was in was minimally affected, Perez said, they decided to stay with family closer to Caracas. There were no cell phone signals or power, she said, so they used a radio to get updates.
Even then, she said, there was a lot of uncertainty.
Helping out where needed
By the next day, Perez was out buying food with her in-laws to distribute in La Guaira, which was hit the hardest by the disaster. Since then, she’s been using donations to buy supplies to hand out while they wait to receive contributions being collected in the U.S.
“Some of those (donations) are going to take some time to get in here,” Perez said. “So we wanted to try to be a direct source of help here on the ground.”
Right now, she said they’re focusing on donating to the rescue and medical teams that are helping victims being pulled from the rubble. The equipment they need has a huge impact, but is expensive, she said, so it’s important to use donated money to buy those supplies, as more people will be able to donate food.
She’s made contacts with rescue groups and medical teams to find out what they need, and then try to get the equipment directly to them.
So far, Perez said they’ve been able to donate eight generators and other tools those groups have been asking for, and they’re looking into buying equipment to help set broken bones.
She said, in addition to international organizations and rescue teams being sent into the area, she’s seeing Venezuelans helping each other. And planes bringing physical donations are beginning to come in as well.
Everyone they’ve donated to has been extremely grateful, she said, and people are sharing supplies with others in need.
“I’ve been a part of the Venezuelan community for quite a few years now with my husband,” Perez said. “They’re such a beautiful group of people. I expected nothing less of them than for them to come together to work through what they’re going through right now.”
Helping from Tampa Bay
If you’re able to donate, Perez suggested finding a local donation center that can transport aid to Venezuela. No donation is too small, she added.
“We’ve had some people who sent $10 and said ‘this is all I have to give,’” Perez said. “That $10 covers more than half of the cost of a big box of canned tuna, or things like that. Every little bit counts.”
The Tampa Bay Latin Chamber, which Perez is the vice president of, is collecting donations for Venezuela. According to the chamber’s president, Diana Walker, they will accept donations throughout the month of July.
ALSO READ: Tampa Bay groups organize aid for Venezuela
Perez suggests donating:
- Can openers
- Baby formula and food
- Baby bottles
- Sunblock
- Medical gauze
- Sheets
- Towels
- Underwear
- Socks
- Shoes
Perez is also taking cash donations through Zelle, Venmo, GoFundMe and Cashapp to use for buying supplies in Venezuela. She is posting videos of what she’s doing every day to show how those contributions are being used, she said.
“We wanted to make sure that people saw where the money was being used and how it’s being allocated, so they know that it’s real,” Perez said.
While she’s not sure when she’ll be back in Tampa to return to her husband and children, Perez said, “the idea is to, while I’m here, help as much as possible.”
