American 'eniste' joins US efforts to help quake-hit Turkish victims

By Servet Gunerigok

WASHINGTON (AA) – Volunteers are working tirelessly to sort and box donations pouring in for victims of earthquakes in Türkiye as relief efforts have continued at the Turkish Embassy in Washington, D.C. for the past week.

Among the volunteers is Scott Timmester, an American married to his Turkish wife, Zeynep. Turkish volunteers were quick to call him "eniste" when he joined them Saturday for a full day’s work.

"Eniste" is used to refer to the husband of one's sister or aunt in Turkish culture. He was also given a name tag with "eniste" to put on his chest, while volunteers had their first names written on theirs.

Timmester, who is in the US Navy, met Zeynep in southern Türkiye and was married in 2006.

He received a news alert of the earthquakes on his mobile phone but had no idea how big the quakes would have an effect at that point.

He was "shocked" by initial images of the destruction caused by the quakes that left nearly 25,000 dead and more than 80,000 wounded.

"I just couldn't believe how many buildings had collapsed, which obviously meant that there were going to be a lot of deaths, a lot of injuries," Timmester told Anadolu.

When he came to the embassy, he was not expecting to see more than 100 volunteers but was proud of the Turkish community and "everybody being here and working so hard" to join relief efforts.

Timmester was happy with the reaction of volunteers when they joined forces to help carry, sort and box donations.

"Everybody is also being very welcoming and friendly to me because I'm a bit of an outsider. It's a good environment and everybody's working hard – is happy to be a part of this," he said.

Timmester noted that everyone should realize that everything they are bringing is going directly to victims who are very much in need.

Despite working through the night, Scott said he is determined to help as long as relief work continues to make a difference in the lives of those affected.

"Donations in-kind actually really do help and I hope that more people will continue to donate and bring things down. We will be here to help pack the boxes," he added.

The Turkish government, along with local and international aid organizations, has been working since Monday to assist victims but the need for support is great in the face of widespread damage.

Zeynep, originally from Marmaris in southern Türkiye, said she got news of the quakes while driving. As one who has had experience with earthquakes, she became scared and had to pull her car onto the shoulder of a highway.

"Any disaster, whichever happens in Türkiye, saddens us, especially when we are away from our home country, I feel bad more," she told Anadolu.

Zeynep was emotional when she got to the embassy and saw the Turkish flag lowered for victims and donors overwhelming the building.

"I cried for some 10 minutes in my car. I was moved by both being away from Türkiye, feeling sad because I could not do anything and seeing many people gathering to help."

Zeynep said not only Turks are bringing donations but Americans and those from other nations are dropping off their bags or boxes.

"We want to show our love to brothers and sisters affected by the earthquakes," she added.

The embassy announced it would accept donations including blankets, bed chairs, floor mats, heaters, among other items – hours after two powerful earthquakes hit southern Türkiye on Monday.

To date, all diplomatic missions across the US have shipped more than 200 tons of humanitarian assistance to Türkiye.

Since Monday, members of the Turkish American community as well as American citizens have been dropping off donations in bags and boxes to help victims thousands of miles away.