3 Awesome Ways You Can Help Mexico’s Earthquake Victims

Mexico is dealing with possibly the biggest humanitarian crisis in its history, and we need your help.

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After Mexico was struck by a deadly earthquake on September 19th, 2017, the Mexican people immediately rushed to the victims’ aid.

Without the government asking, thousands of civilians stepped forward and became an impromptu army of helpers. There were so many volunteers, the Red Cross actually had to ask them to stop showing up. It was incredible.

Neighbors and passerby formed human lines and began passing donated tools and emergency supplies to help dig victims out of the rubble. Ordinary people quickly set up spontaneous collections centers, shelters and even clinics in parks, plazas or their own homes. 

My children on their way to drop off supplies at their school’s collection center.

Families opened up their homes to people who had nowhere to sleep. They also provided free meals, blankets, coffee, and even outlets so passerby and rescue workers chould charge their cell phones.

My children’s school set up a collection center and my kids and I went over there to help out. 

And not just that. Public and private hospitals, phone and intternet providers, hotels, and restaurants all began offering services completely free of charge. Doctors, nurses, civil engineers, firefighters, police officers, rescue teams, and other professionals also worked double shifts for free. 

Collection center at my children’s school.

Bottled water and canned food quickly disappeared from supermarket shelves because so many people bought them to take to collection centers. Several stores began selling these and other emergency items at a discount so more people could buy them. There was no one selling $100 cases of bottled water.

Over the next few days, students and teachers from every school and university organized collection centers and brigades to take relief supplies to affected towns in the nearby provinces.

My children’s school took emergency supplies to the town of Jojutla in Morelos province. The people there have lost almost everything.

Collection center at a local university where we donated more supplies and clothes.

To be fair, the Mexican army, the Red Cross, and the Civil Protection Agency have all been doing their fair share and duty. But honestly, every single government and non-government agency would’ve been overwhelmed without the huge civilian effort. 

I gathered my children’s old clothes and made packages with them. Each bag contains clean underwear, socks, a pair of pants, a t-shirt, and a sweater or a jacket. 

We took these clothes to another collection center at a local university, and the students will take all the donations to devastated towns in Puebla province.

I made packages of clothes for children at the shelters.

How You Can Help Mexico’s Earthquake Victims

Despite this incredible effort, it will take months and perhaps even years for the affected families to rebuild their lives.

This earthquake, the quake of September 7th in Oaxaca and Chiapas provinces, and hurricanes Lidia and Katia, will all very likely trigger the biggest humanitarian crisis in Mexican history.

There are thousands of people who lost their homes, or their families, or their livelihood. It’s won’t be easy for them to get back on their feet.

As much as ordinary Mexicans are making heroic efforts to deal with the emergency, more aid is needed. Much, much more.

I’m asking you to help if you can. Even if it’s only a little. Even a small contribution can make a huge difference in someone’s life.

The next time, it could be you. You could lose your home to a hurricane, a tornado, a flood, a fire, or an earthquake. But you can be sure a Mexican would be ready to dig you out of the rubble with his bare hands. 

So give us a hand. It doesn’t take much.

1. Travel to Mexico

I believe this is the best way to help by far. Mexico’s tourism industry is the lifeblood of this country, and we need to welcome tourists now more than ever. All the major tourist resorts are fully operational, so make your reservations today. 

2. Make a donation

No matter where you live, you can help by making a donation to any of these organizations. They are all actively contributing to emergency relief and are committed to reconstruction efforts. 

Unicef Mexico

Mexican Red Cross

Global Giving Relief Fund

Fondo Unido Disaster Relief and Reconstruction Fund

Oxfam

Save the Children

Direct Relief

Project Paz

Impact Your World Assist Earthquake Victims in Mexico

Gael Garcia and Diego Luna’s Relief and Reconstruction Campaign

Relief for Marginalized Zones in Mexico- Xochimilco, Puebla, Oaxaca, Morelos

Shop for Relief!

The online store Shoptezuma has some very cool items on sale and the proceeds will go to Mexico earthquake relief.

Shoptezuma Nuestro Granito de Arena

The We All Grow Latina Network also has some very cute stuff for sale and the profits will go to Mexico and Puerto Rico relief.

#WeAllGrow4MXPR online shop for relief

3. Share this post

The least you can do to help is share this post and any others that contain donation links. As time goes by, rebuilding efforts will continue, and that’s when donations will be most necessary. So it doesn’t matter when or where you share the donation links, some good might come of it.

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How will you help Mexico’s earthquake victims?