Edmontonians step up to help survivors of Venezuela earthquakes

A Latino restaurant in Edmonton known for its good deeds in the community is stepping up once again.

Esmeralda Leon, the owner of Sazón Venezuelan Experience, is focusing her efforts on helping survivors of back-to-back earthquakes that hit her home country last week.

“We’ve been here for about 28 years, but our heart never left Venezuela,” Leon said. “We feel every bit of what’s going on there.”

For every $20 donated, Leon says she’s giving away a freshly made empanada, hoping to make a small difference helping her people despite being away from home.

“Every little bit counts,” she said. “In a situation like this, there’s nothing else to do but help. We have a bigger camera up there, which is God, and we respect that.”

According to the United Nations, at least 1,700 people have died following the earthquakes of June 24, with thousands more injured. Experts say that is a significant undercount, as more bodies are hauled from the rubble every day.

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“They have rescued a lot of people but we’re taking about 50,000 people still missing,” said Samuel Romero, president of the Association of Venezuelans in Edmonton. “Priorities are changing each and every day. Priorities will keep changing on a regular basis and that’s where we need to keep our community united and together.”

Edmontonians with Venezuelan heritage tell CityNews they hope to see the greater community in Edmonton come together and help people in the South American country.

“You don’t know until you have somebody that close how it can hit you so hard,” said Eylyn Tzoumas, who has family in Venezuela.

Tzoumas says she learned about her friend and her family being trapped in the rubble from a video on Instagram. She says they were trapped for 24 hours before they were rescued by family members.

“The way they actually knew that they were alive it was because her phone was still working,” she said. “She called family members and said, ‘we are here and we’re alive.’”

Leon says she’s been overwhelmed with the community support. So far, she’s raised over $3,000 within days of launching the campaign.

“After this is when we’re gonna need more help,” the restaurant owner said. “There are kids that will be growing up without their parents, without their family, without stability. They’re gonna be vulnerable.”