The Turkish Philanthropy Funds (TPF), a New York City-based public charity dedicated to Turkish and Turkish American communities, has raised more than $11.1 million in support of disaster relief and humanitarian aid in response to the earthquakes on February 6 that devastated southern Turkey and northern Syria.

The largest fundraising campaign in TPF’s 16-year history includes contributions from 40,000 donors, as well as major gifts totaling $4 million from Giving Pledge signatory Hamdi Ulukaya, founder of Chobani, and Eren and Fatih Ozmen, co-owners of Sierra Nevada Corporation—each providing both $1 million in direct aid and committing to an additional $1 million in matching funds. As of March 14, TPF has distributed grants totaling more than $4.89 million to 37 local Turkish nongovernmental organizations (NGOs), making their earthquake campaign among the most consequential relief efforts by a public charity in the United States to date.

Grant recipients include Çukurova University, which was awarded $500,000 to help fund a rehabilitation center to treat children with amputated limbs resulting from earthquake-related injuries; Association for the Support of Contemporary Life (Çağdaş Yaşamı Destekleme Derneği—ÇYDD), which will receive $500,000 to assist female college students affected by the earthquakes; KAMER (Kadın Merkez Vakfı), which was awarded $100,000 to establish secure laundromats and shower cabins for women and girls in the city of Adıyaman; Educational Volunteers Foundation of Turkey (Türkiye Eğitim Gönüllüleri Vakfı—TEGV), which was awarded $170,000 to fund youth activity centers in container cities in earthquake-affected areas; and Needs Map (Ihtiyac Haritasi), which will receive multiple grants totaling $811,632, including $488,340 to help establish and equip a field hospital in the city of Erzin.

“The entire Turkish American community has come together to address this disaster. People are not only making contributions to our campaign but are also reaching out to their networks to gather support and help us get the word out,” said TPF executive director Şenay Ataselim Yılmaz. “Especially during disasters, giving back becomes a very personal matter…this has become a way for them to connect back home.”

For a complete list of recipients, see the Turkish Philanthropy Funds website.

(Photo credit: Voice of America/Onur Erdoğan)