After deadly earthquake, Philadelphia’s Colombian community mobilizes recovery efforts

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Amigo’s Colombian Bakery on Bustleton Avenue hummed with activity Saturday morning, as people streamed in and out of the Northeast Philadelphia business toting more than just a coffee and pandebono.

Dozens of people sorted through stacks of diapers, hygiene supplies and nonperishable food that will be sent to communities devastated by the 7.4-magnitude earthquake that hit western Colombia on Monday.

María Rodríguez had been at the bakery since 5 a.m., coordinating the first day of a weekendlong donation drive led by Acción Colombia, a nonprofit serving Colombian communities in Pennsylvania, Delaware and New Jersey, in collaboration with several local businesses.

Rodríguez, president of the organization’s governing board, said that the group responded as quickly as possible after the natural disaster, which has killed more than 280 people and injured thousands more.

“We’ve organized all of these logistics in less than three days,” she said. “No one really knows how it’s going to happen, but it’s like a domino effect: one person helps, another person helps, no one knows each other, but we’re all looking to see how we can make this possible.”

More than 20,000 Colombians live in the Philadelphia metro area, according to U.S. Census Bureau estimates cited by Neilsberg Research. Many of them have been affected by the disaster.

Rodríguez is from Cali, one of the hardest-hit cities where search and rescue teams continued to search for survivors Saturday. She said she is “devastated.” She has friends who were killed in the earthquake, and although her family members are physically safe, they are still facing material losses erasing “years of effort.”

Rodríguez said she was heartened to see the response from members of the local Colombian community and beyond showing their support.

“I’m very happy in the midst of the sadness because everyone is helping,” she said.

Roughly 100 people volunteered to work Saturday and Sunday in the donation drive, Rodríguez said, and members of the Venezuelan community in Philadelphia, who have been organizing relief efforts since two earthquakes struck their homeland in June, reached out to offer their support.

“We love them so much, they’re truly our brothers and sisters, and many of them have given us advice about how we have to act in this moment, because it’s not easy,” Rodríguez said. She noted that 200 boxes that the local Venezuelan community had collected for its own drive, which proved too costly to ship, will now be used for earthquake relief efforts in Colombia.

Colombia’s earthquake recovery will be ‘a long-distance race’

As of 10 a.m. Saturday, the drive had already collected around 50 boxes of supplies at the bakery drop-off, said Cristian Marín, a member of Acción Colombia’s governing board. The organization is planning to send donations collected this weekend to New York City, where the items will be shipped by plane to affected cities in the western part of Colombia.

This is the first phase of what will be “a long-distance race,” said Marín. The focus now is on getting urgently needed supplies to Colombia. As the country begins to rebuild, the organization plans to stay in touch with leaders on the ground in Colombia to continue to respond to the changing needs of affected communities.

Tens of thousands of homes were destroyed by the earthquake, according to the government of Colombian President Abelardo de la Espriella, who was inaugurated just days before the disaster. Thousands of schools, hospitals and community centers in more than 400 cities have also been damaged.

“These first and second weeks, there maybe is an initial enthusiasm and we all want to help, but we can’t forget from the third, fourth week onward that there are still many needs that will keep changing,” Marín said. “Hopefully we can also be there when the media attention suddenly drops, and we’ll be present all the same.”

Coming together to do something to help people in her homeland was a “heartwarming” experience for Johana Borda, a 36-year-old resident of Philadelphia’s Fairmount neighborhood who hails from Bogotá.

She came to help out Saturday after seeing Acción Colombia’s posts on social media.

“[It] doesn’t matter how old are you, where are you from — we’re here, we don’t know each other,” Borda said. “I don’t know anyone here … but it’s really good to feel that sense of community.”

She said stepping up with direct aid is necessary.

“I know that if we don’t do it for ourselves, we can’t trust just the governments or other people to solve this problem,” she said. “And we can do at least this, volunteer and [donate] at least a little bit, like $1, $5, like whatever you have, everything counts … We just need to be there for our people.”

Alfredo Rodríguez Ospina came to the bakery, which sits just a few minutes from his house, together with his 13-year-old daughter, who told him about the donation drive.

“Colombia needs our support,” he said. “We know that many countries and international organizations are supporting our country, but … there are still cities and towns that haven’t received donations, that haven’t received all of the help they really need.”

The need for support will continue as the country rebuilds and as Colombians at home and abroad cope with the emotional toll of the disaster.

“At this time, joining forces to support the Colombian people is what is most needed,” he said.

Where to donate in Philadelphia to Colombia earthquake relief efforts

Acción Colombia, together with local businesses including DAS Delivery, Mundotronix and Oblea Fusion, is collecting in-person donations at the following locations on Saturday and Sunday, Aug. 15-16.

Amigo’s Colombian Bakery

• 6216 Bustleton Ave., Philadelphia, Pa. 19149
• Saturday, Aug. 15 and Sunday, Aug. 16
• 5 a.m. – 3 p.m.

The Lighthouse Field/Oblea Fusión

• 101 E. Erie Ave., Philadelphia, Pa. 19134
• Saturday, Aug. 15 and Sunday, Aug. 16
• 3 p.m. – 8 p.m.

Malvern (close to Mi País restaurant)

• 477 Lancaster Ave., Malvern, Pa. 19355
• Saturday, Aug. 15
• 12 p.m. – 8 pm.

Organized by Daniela Newman

What to donate

All donated items must be new and unopened. Organizers are accepting the following:

• Food items
  • Canned food (chicken, tuna, sardines, beans, vegetables and fruit)
  • Rice
  • Cereal
  • Powdered hydration drinks

• Baby & hygienic supplies
  • Diapers
  • Baby wipes
  • Formula
  • Feminine hygiene products
  • Soap and shampoo
  • Toothpaste and toothbrushes
  • Deodorant

• Emergency
  • First aid supplies
  • Flashlights and batteries
  • Work gloves
  • Helmets
  • Face masks

• General
  • Pet food
  • Medium boxes
  • Packing tape

Where to donate money for Colombia earthquake relief

Rodríguez, from Acción Colombia, said the group is not accepting monetary donations but recommends people give to a fundraiser organized by Manos Visibles, a Colombian nonprofit  supporting relief efforts in the region.

Editor’s Note: Interviews with María Rodríguez, Cristian Marín and Alfredo Rodríguez Ospina were conducted in Spanish and translated for this article.