The team behind Launceston Community Market were delighted to be able to support ShelterBox with a donation recently at a time when they are helping so many other people.

Crucial supplies from the international disaster relief charity ShelterBox are being distributed in Turkey and Syria to help people affected by the devastating earthquakes that have claimed more than 50,000 lives across the two countries.

The Cornwall-based charity has an emergency response team in Gaziantep – a large city in southern Türkiye and one of many left devastated by the earthquakes. Recently, more response team members have arrived in the city to bolster ShelterBox’s response efforts as the charity explores ways to scale up its response.

The freezing temperatures are presenting an immediate risk to life to people who are too afraid to return home, have no home to go back to, or in the area desperately seeking news of missing loved ones.

Head of emergency response at ShelterBox, Alice Jefferson said: “This is a hugely complex humanitarian response spanning two countries and one of the most challenging that ShelterBox and the international community have faced in the last decade.

“The numbers of people directly affected are numerically shocking – and we know that behind every statistic are people who need our help, including in very hard to reach, conflict affected regions.

“For some disaster-hit communities, family-sized tents are the best solution until people are able to start rebuilding their homes. In other disasters, heavy duty tarpaulins, ropes and nails are needed to create emergency shelter or to patch-up damaged buildings. ShelterBox regularly provides different combinations of emergency aid packages to disaster affected people depending on the situation. Items like thermal blankets, mattresses, kitchen sets, water filters and carriers, solar lights and mosquito nets.”

ShelterBox has an emergency fundraising appeal to help people affected by the earthquakes and other disasters around the world. For more information visit www.shelterbox.org.

Paul, one of the stallholders at the Market said they were particularly pleased to be able to help the internationally renowned charity “Shelterbox” based in Cornwall, especially at a time when people are suffering so severely from earthquake damage in the Middle East.

Launceston Community Market meets every Friday morning at Methodist Central offering a wide range of local produce and crafts, a warm and friendly environment, refreshments and they would welcome suggestions for the next local charity or good cause to help.