Well, I've been a stranger to blogging, but this is a good time for a come back. I want to take a minute to comment on the recent earthquake(s) and tsunami(s) in Chile and how it has affected our family. We're also on a quest to find a way to help our family, which I'll talk about in this post as well if you are interested in helping in any way (see below). I will be posting more over the next few days. With a newborn at home, I can only post in short intervals. On Saturday, February 27, 2010, a massive earthquake registering 8.8 on the Richter scale hit Chile. The epicenter was in the south of Chile, but Santiago (the capital where all of our family lives) registered 8.0 on the Richter scale. In addition, the south and the coastal area where my mother-in-law and sister-in-law live have experienced tsunami's and ocean surges that have devastated those areas even more. Since the earthquake, they have experienced over 130 aftershocks, many of which have been the size of a average earthquake, ranging from 4.0-6.9, which have done additional damage to the already weakened structures.
Fortunately, we were able to get in touch with our family within 24 hours of the quake and everyone is okay. Unfortunately, they have lost many material possessions and their homes have structural damage. Everyone has lost all things breakable: kitchen dishes, TVs, pictures, light fixtures/lamps, computers, wooden & glass furniture, etc. In addition, my brother-in-law, who runs two internet cafes (his family's income), lost some computers during the quake and others due to looting after the quake. He also lost merchandise from the stores in front of the internet cafes. Unfortunately, he can not do other work right now because he is in need of knee surgery. In a different, coastal town, where my mother-in-law lives, they also have suffered greatly. My mother-in-law's home is leaning and they are literally propping it up with boards to ensure that it doesn't collapse. Although many of my mother-in-law's things shattered and broke, there is fortunately a lot of water, milk, bread, and produce available because this is the season that she and her friend, Anthony, sell these items to people in the community. Since my mother-in-law is here with us, Anthony has been handling their little business. After the quake, Anthony has been driving down to the lower coastal areas affected by the tsunamis and surges and bringing them up the hill to get out of harm's way. He is also delivering milk to families with babies/children that haven't had milk for days, and distributing bread and produce to people without food. Many people who are misplaced are staying at my mother-in-law's house at this time.
My mother-in-law is here with us and had plans to go home this month after Tyler turns 6 weeks old. At this point, due to the severe damage at the airport, there is no hope of getting a flight back any time soon. We are grateful that she is here, out of harm's way, but it is also extremely difficult to be far away from your home and family at such a difficult time.
David and I want so badly to help our family and friends in Chile. David is crawling out of his skin to go to Chile and help in whatever way possible. Unfortunately we do not have the finances to be able to send money, so we have been working to come up with some other way to help them. So far, we have established an account called "Cabrera's Chile Relief Fund" at Bank of America, and we've also established a Pay Pal account for anyone who would like to make a donation to help us help our family and friends. In addition, our church is partnering with us by providing tax deduction receipts for anyone who is interested in making a sizable donation ($500+).
If you are interested in making a donation towards Cabrera's Chile Relief Fund to help us help our family and friends, you can click on the link below:
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