In late Spring of this year, Kyle Kenney decided to do more. With devastation from the February earthquake in Turkey and Syria still filling the newscasts, Kyle raised funds to join one of the Tying Vines projects bringing aid to the area.
Kyle joined a group coming in from another part of the Middle East who were connected to the Tying Vines Walk With Me Project. Their team of 6 focused on building a workshop for container style homes for earthquake victims. Basically their job was to create an assembly line for building container homes. The leader of the team trained in welding spent the day welding the materials for the container homes while Kyle and the others “ brought materials, moved stuff, dug holes, set posts, attached sheet metal walls, and the roofing.” All of this was done in extreme temperatures under less than ideal conditions. The workshop was completed just before the leaders of the team departed. The container homes are able to be loaded onto a large truck and then transported to where needed in the area.
During his time in Turkey, Kyle also connected with a group helping Syrian refugees. These refugees are only able to work for very low wages or support themselves from whatever help they receive from the government. Kyle also met many of those who were helping the refugees and although they did not speak English he was welcomed with kindness and generosity. “They had a sincere love for the Lord and it was refreshing to see how He can lift people up who are in tough situations.” Many are waiting for permission to work or a visa from other countries with greater opportunities for work. Kyle and the people he was with spent time researching and discussing possible ways to help those who are stranded there without work and came to the conclusion that helping set up a small business in the area would be the best solution at this time. Many of the refugees have experience sewing and making clothes so that is the direction that they are going for the small business. They hope to raise funds for sewing machines and materials to get them started in hopes that they will be able to earn a little more than is provided by the government. Kyle returned to the US and is hoping to help get this started.
There is much left to be done. According to World Vision at least 15 million people in Turkey and Syria were impacted by this earthquake. There were over 55,000 killed, 130,000 injured, and millions displaced from their homes. In Syria, as of August 2023, approximately 265,000 people still need proper housing. “At least 2.5 million children in Turkey (including many Syrian refugees) and 3.7 million children in Syria need continued humanitarian assistance” reported UNICEF.
Please continue to pray.
As for Kyle, he is pursuing ways to keep helping and hopes to return in the future.
If you would like to donate to Tying Vines projects in the region please go to:
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