How Do I Send Care Package to My Family in Puerto Rico

If you take been following my blog for awhile, you lot will know that I lived in Puerto Rico for over 2 years. I moved dorsum to the mainland in March 2017, but I still accept quite a flake of  family and friends on the island. Information technology has been incredibly stressful and heartbreaking for me to sentinel the isle of Puerto Rico, my former home and my boyfriend Pedro's homeland, become leveled by Hurricane Maria.

Help Me Help Puerto Rico

It has been infuriating to see logistics and politics make it the way of relief
efforts. Communications are still down and I tin barely arrive touch with friends and family, but when I do talk to them, they tell me that supplies are low. Stores are empty. Banks are closed. The relief items are non making it to smaller towns.

El Yunque National Rainforest (very shut to where I lived) – Before & Afterward Hurricane Maria

I want to send supplies directly to families

While there are charities and organizations collecting donations, I want to accept a more direct approach. Pedro and I are working with a friend who also has family in Puerto Rico to collect donations for care packages that will be sent to communities throughout the island.This is important because, frequently, smaller towns do not go the same amount of attending and help as the metro surface area.

We have already begun the process of talking to friends and family unit to ask them exactly what supplies they and their neighbors demand. Each person we send supplies to will also be responsible for families in their neighborhood, which means our supplies will achieve far beyond our personal friends and family unit.

How you tin can donate to assist Puerto Rico

Update: I am no longer accepting donations, yous can scroll down for local charities that are notwithstanding accepting donations. I have added more links to charities. I've removed links to donate to me but delight check out the other charities that however need aid!

You lot can besides whorl downward to meet updates of how donations I received were used/distributed.

There are a few means yous can donate. If you want to donate cash, you lot can ship it to me via Venmo.I will share photos of receipts for items/aircraft costs.

If you want to donate greenbacks merely don't feel comfortable sending it direct to me, you tin also become through the police office I piece of work for. They have been kind enough to fix a donation folio here.(Link removed, no longer accepting donations) The coin is all going to the same place, but I totally understand if you would rather become through a business organisation.

If you would rather purchase items, you tin buy items off this Amazon Wishlist.(Link removed, no longer accepting donations)

Y'all can besides buy gifts that assistance Puerto Rico

Update: The proceeds from these shops are no longer beingness donated to Puerto Rico, but I can tell you that several hundred dollars were raised for PR through these shops!

A close friend of ours has dedicated her Etsy Shop, Owlr Designs, to Puerto Rico relief efforts. She has super cute stuff (such as the jewelry/change/key dish shown here) and takes custom orders. Now through October 15th, all proceeds from her store will go to Puerto Rico relief efforts.

I recently helped Pedro and his brother, Carmelo, launch and Etsy store, Trade Winds Drinking glass Shop. They were inspired by Owlr Designs, and decided to take profits from October-November 2017 and put them directly towards our care bundle efforts.

Donate to Puerto Rico specific charities

If you would prefer to go through a charity, please donate to organizations that are focused specifically on Puerto Rico, such as Unidos Por Puerto Rico  or the Hispanic Federation.

I as well received this list on local efforts from a friend in Puerto Rico:

Cheers for all your help!

Updates

I volition continue to add photos and updates of donations/items sent here.

Post offices are opening upwardly across the island, but only for package pickup. I have purchased some supplies but will not exist sending everything all at once for ii reasons:

1. This will be along recovery process. People volition need assist for months.
2. Post delivery is however a work in progress, I don't want to take a chance all the supplies beingness lost, and so I am sending test packages.

10/5/17

Donations received  to appointment: $665.00

Coin spent on Supplies to engagement: $275.25

Other donations received:12 pack C Batteries, 500 count Ibuprofen, 4 packs of baby wipes, ii packs of diapers.

Padfoot sends his love to Puerto Rico. These are just some of the supplies we purchased – many had already been boxed upwardly for shipment. Meet receipts for details.

Nosotros purchased first aid supplies in bulk and made our ain offset assistance kits that included booze swabs, Advil, stomach/diarrhea medicine, gloves, Neosporin, and a ton of bandaids.

Stomach medicine not pictured, I had to run to some other store for that the morning time subsequently nosotros fabricated these.

Receipts:

10/6/17

Donations received  to date: $665.00

Money spent on Supplies to date: $316.05

2 examination packages mailed to Trujillo Alto, Puerto Rico. A friend of mine in that expanse has been helping neighbors since the hurricane. I of her neighbors has a babe who is short on diapers and formula, and so I wanted to get those items to her right abroad. I included other items such equally children's medicine, tummy medicine, ibuprofen, granola confined, baby wipes, commencement aid supplies, and Brita filters. She is in an area that occasionally has water, so when it comes on, she can use the Brita filters to filter out equally much drinking water as she can before the h2o goes back off.

Shipping Receipt

10/vii/17

Donations received  to date: $665.00

Money spent on Supplies to date: $351.98

I ended up going back to the postal service office yesterday. During my outset trip, I was unable to send the batteries I had purchased and nearly cried when they wouldn't take the large box that contained a gas tin can meant for Utuado, Puerto Rico. Right now in Utuado, people have to stand in line for 10 hours to get gas, so I wanted to send an extra five gallon gas can to a friend there. I chosen several USPS lines and got all different answers about how to send batteries. In the end, I just followed advice from other people on the mainland who take mailed batteries to their families. I was able to get the batteries out Priority, merely the gas can had to take a slower road due to its size.

Hopefully by Tuesday I'll accept delivery confirmations from the Trujillo Alto and Utuado and I'll be able to transport more packages!

ten/19/17

Donations received  to date: $665.00

Money spent on Supplies to date: $351.98

Unfortunately, I don't have much of an update. All iv of the packages I sent are now marked every bit In Transit, Delayed, with no real details. I checked again this morning time, and these are the most contempo updates:

Communications are gettingslightly amend, and so I have been able to talk to a few more than people.Supplies are even so desperately needed. At this signal, I am torn between sending more than supplies knowing that there is in indefinite filibuster and waiting until the original 4 arrive before sending more items.  I'll let y'all all know what I determine.

Donations are still appreciated and volition exist put to good use.

Around ninety% of the island is still without power and most people don't accept running water. People take either lost their jobs or cannot work due to the conditions, so I know people volition continue to need support. We may be stuck right now, but, eventually, we'll be able to become supplies straight to people who desperately need them. I'1000 frustrated with the USPS, just I won't surrender!

10/26/17

Donations received  to date: $665.00

Money earned/donated through sales from Trade Winds Glass: $150

Money spent on Supplies to date: $374.23

Good news, photos, and plans for more packages. I'k budgeting the money the all-time I tin can, just donations are however appreciated every bit I expect to be sending a lot more than packages very before long.

The packages finally arrived!

The Trujillo Alto packages included supplies for this adorable babe, Enrique, who turned 1 this month. He thanks you for the donations that bought him formula, diapers, and babe wipes!

This is a text I received from my friend who distributed some items in Trujillo Alto. She works at a school.

She added that she is fine, but if I have anything for her students, she will gladly distribute. Currently I am working on getting a lot of English books together to send over, as they are very much needed, especially since the school and the students are still without electricity.I likewise want to transport more food supplies for kids like that pupil.  I'm going to try to get donations locally, only I besides dug through a bargain bin at a comic book store for some graphic novels. Receipt:

Communications are slightly better now, and so I take heard from a few more people with requests for items such every bit hygiene products and musquito nets. I'thou working with a friend who has a lot of physical donations but not a lot of funds to transport them. We will most likely team up so I can apply some of what I take left from donations to help with aircraft costs. Of grade, I will nonetheless need to buy any supplies that were not donated.

Post service is still very slow, but the demand for supplies is nevertheless dire. If you lot'd like to donate, recall y'all can either Venmo me directly @rease-kirchner or donate through the Law Office I work for hither.

xi/three/17

Donations received  to date: $665.00

Money earned/donated through sales from Trade Winds Drinking glass: $150

Money spent on Supplies to date: $418.12

I did a small shipment via Amazon today to see how fast/slow Amazon orders are. Receipts:

A couple friends collected these books and generously offered to pay for shipping. These volition go to a school in Trujillo Alto, where the kids still do not have electricity at the school or at abode.

I hope to transport more packages next week!

1/8/18

Donations received  to date: $640.00 (Updated, in that location was an issue with the exact number from the Law Office Donations, some came in the form on physical donations instead of greenbacks, so the full dollar corporeality, including sales from Trade Winds Drinking glass ended up being $640)

Money spent on Supplies to date: $518.10

Minor box sent via Amazon to Dorado, Puerto Rico on xi/viii/17 –

Nosotros ran into some issues. I worked with my friend Dee (From Owlr Designs) to pay for the shipping costs of some physical donations she received. Nosotros sent 4 boxes and spent $74 on shipping. Those packages were all lost in the mail. Dee has filed insurance claims for them so we can get at least the cost of shipping reimbursed.

Another issue is the situations of many of our contacts in Puerto Rico have changed. Nosotros don't have every bit many options for people who can distribute items to those in need. We currently accept some physical donations left to post off. We have spoken with family in Puerto Rico who accept tin can go the supplies to local centers, so we program to do that this calendar week and see where that leaves us with donation money. I will postal service photo updates every bit soon as possible!

3/iv/18

Donations received  to date: $640.00

Coin spent on Supplies to date: $709.35

Nosotros hit a lot of roadblocks, merely all supplies and money have been put to good apply! Nosotros packed upwards the rest of the supplies and dissever them betwixt Santuario de Animales de San Francisco de Asís Puerto Rico (an animal rescue association) and family unit in Moca, Puerto Rico, which is a small mount boondocks. Nosotros spent $85.25 on shipping.

Receipts:

We had a little over $80 left, so we split that money between two worthy causes and likewise added in some more of our ain coin.

Starting time, we sent $l ($40 from donations, $10 personal) to Santuario de Animales de San Francisco de Asís Puerto Rico. This organization does amazing work year round, but they have been working overtime ever since the hurricane. They also received 2 packages of supplies from u.s..

Second, we sent $100 ($twoscore from donations, $lx personal) to a man named Blen. Blen is an former friend of ours from Puerto Rico who was displaced by the hurricane. He works as a tattoo artist, and without power, he could not support his family. He went to New York to piece of work in some shops until the island's power stabilized, but, unfortunately, suffered a heart attack presently after arrival. He was forced to seek medical attention in the U.s.a., which is far more than expensive than in Puerto Rico. Plainly, he is also unable to work. He is simply ane of many Puerto Ricans displaced only the hurricane, and we hope to see him and other Boricuas become dorsum on their feet soon.

Cheers all so much for your back up!

ellsworthfichn1955.blogspot.com

Source: https://indecisivetraveler.com/help-puerto-rico

Share this post