Join the efforts of these young people

In the World Giving Index, Turkey always ranks among the bottom. In 2010, among 153 countries, Turkey was 134th; in 2011, it was 136th; in 2012, among 146 countries, we were the 137th; in 2013 and 2014, among 135 countries, we were 128th. In other words, our latest ranking was seventh from the bottom in the world. 

Even though the perception is just the opposite, even though we assume “we Turks are pretty charitable,” the sad truth is apparent. 

Three students, Aleyna Doğan, Sinan Onukar and Pınar Binay, seniors at Saint Joseph French High School in Istanbul, noticed that their peers were seldom participating in these types of projects, after they found out that giving and volunteerism at the social level was quite low. 

People around them were caught in the consumption frenzy; they were buying much more than they needed. They never thought of donating what they did not use; they had difficulty finding an intermediary or they were not sure whether the aid reached the correct people. Upon this, these young people shouldered the responsibility to make a sustainable difference and visible effect in their community.  

In a project they named “Elden Ele Yardım” (Handing on Aid) they started forming a bridge between those who need clothes and those who have more clothes than they need. They are holding routine talks with municipalities, nongovernmental organizations and companies and are trying to reach wider masses.  

They conducted a joint work with the “Dost Eller” project by the Beylikdüzü Municipality in Istanbul on clothes distribution and they sent their first batch of 250 pieces. With the Büyükçekmece Municipality, again in Istanbul, they cooperated with their peers and even younger ones where they had one-to-one interaction. They, with their young and younger friends, set up a stand inside a mall and some students who were in need were able to take home certain pieces they selected. Very recently, they cooperated with the Syria SÖZ Association, which is helping Syrian refugee children. They distributed clothes to 75 Syrian families who were in urgent need of them. 

These three young people explained, “We want to spread, especially among our peers, the sentiment of generosity and the culture of giving, which are rapidly dying in society. We want to form a segment ready to act with our principle of meeting specific needs.” 

This project awaits donations of clothing and footwear that have never been used or slightly used but in good condition. The more donations they receive, the more people they include in the project, the more they will come near their goal. For this reason, I call on you to join the dreams of these youngsters.  

Individuals, companies, institutions, schools, stores and more can all donate. Please contact eldeneleyardim@gmail.com.