Casa Venezuela launches new phase to deliver humanitarian aid from PR
- The San Juan Daily Star
- 21 hours ago
- 2 min read
By THE STAR STAFF
After the positive response of the Puerto Rican people and the island’s Venezuelan community, Casa Venezuela Puerto Rico announced the beginning of a new stage in its humanitarian mission to support Venezuelans affected by the twin earthquakes that shook the South American country on June 24.
“Solidarity has not ended,” said Sonia Cosme, president of Casa Venezuela Puerto Rico. “On the contrary, it is now entering a decisive phase: converting the thousands of items collected into effective aid and making it possible for them to reach the communities that are still facing the consequences of the emergency.”
In the new phase, the organization is concentrating its efforts on raising funds exclusively destined to defray the costs of classification, logistics, transportation and distribution of the aid.
After completing the main collection stage, the objective is to transfer the supplies received to Venezuela. For the moment, Casa Venezuela Puerto Rico will not accept additional donations of items.
“At Casa Venezuela we coordinated the first phase of aid together with the Department of State, under the leadership of Secretary of State Rosachely Rivera Santana,” Cosme said. “The collected items are being channeled to Venezuela thanks to the support of Cáritas, a Catholic Church organization that has a secure network for the distribution of humanitarian aid.”
Casa Venezuela Vice President Mary Carmen Díaz noted that meetings and conversations continue to identify safe mechanisms for transporting priority medicines and medical materials, as well as to raise funds for their transportation.
People interested in collaborating can make their donations through ATH Móvil Business, in the name of CasaVenezuelaPR, she said.
“We have held meetings with professional associations and institutions interested in contributing to the next stages of the humanitarian response, including the Physicians and Surgeons Association of Puerto Rico and the Mochileando Foundation, to mention a few, with the purpose of providing continuity to the humanitarian initiative and evaluating alternatives to address the most urgent needs in Venezuela,” Díaz said.
The magnitude of the solidarity mobilization has also been reflected in the countless initiatives organized in different parts of Puerto Rico, including community meetings, religious activities, cultural events and international caliber sports competitions, which Casa Venezuela said demonstrate that the humanitarian emergency has not ended.
The organization also recognized the many solidarity initiatives that have spontaneously emerged throughout the island. Various organizations, communities, companies and institutions established collection centers or developed their own mechanisms to channel aid to Venezuela.
“At this moment, the main challenge is not to collect more supplies, but to efficiently mobilize the thousands of items received so that they arrive as soon as possible to Venezuela,” Cosme said. “Solidarity does not end when a box is filled; it continues until that help reaches the hands of those who need it most. That is the commitment we assumed with Venezuela from day one and for which we continue to need everyone’s support.”