DORAL, Fla. — Miami-Dade County-based nonprofit Global Empowerment Mission’s multifront response continued on Wednesday.
A 7.4-magnitude earthquake struck on Monday in Colombia. The 7.2 and 7.5-magnitude earthquakes hit on June 24 in Venezuela.
Francine De La Rosa, a GEM executive member, was at the GEM warehouse in Doral, where volunteers received a truckload of aid for western Colombia.
“We really need to double up because a lot of help is needed,” De La Rosa said.
GEM also announced partnerships in Colombia with two nonprofits: Motorrad Angels Foundation, a nonprofit that travels to hard-to-reach areas, and Fundación Solidaridad por Colombia, a Bogotá-based nonprofit founded in 1975 with offices in Medellin and Córdoba.
Spence Taylor, a GEM team member who experienced the earthquake on Monday in Bucaramanga, spent about a month in northern Venezuela, and he was working in the city of Pereira, where officials reported 79 dead.
“One thing that you see here that is fundamentally different from Venezuela is the Colombian people and the government is very strong. The response is actually very impressive,” Taylor told CNN. “So, you see a lot more first responders, you see people flooding in from the areas that weren’t affected.”
Taylor recently told CNN that GEM had teams going to Chocó, an impoverished region where the earthquake’s epicenter was, and there was a GEM team in Cali, where the mayor reported 74 dead. Taylor said teams were packing family kits.
“We are doing our best to source those here in Colombia. But right now, I would say to the Colombian diaspora, it is very helpful with cash donations,” Taylor told CNN.
The government’s official toll in Colombia had increased to at least 239 dead and 3,755 injured.
On Tuesday, Colombia’s first lady, Ana Lucie Pineida listed GEM in Miami-Dade as an authorized drop-off point. On Wednesday, Colombian President Abelardo De La Espriella asked donors to exercise caution.
“For those who want to help by donating, there are official channels and collection and gathering points; do not donate to politicians who only commit the crime of illegal fundraising of money, especially if they come from being associated with people involved in corruption scandals,” De La Espriella wrote on X in Spanish. “What a shame that there are people profiting from the tragedy; that must be investigated.”
GEM representatives asked the public for in-person donations of new camping gear, hygiene supplies, and first-aid kits with items that are not expired.
The warehouse is accepting donations from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. at 1850 NW 84th Ave. in Doral. For more information about how to donate to GEM or volunteer in Doral, visit this page.
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