I'm Venezuelan. I was born in Caracas and ever since the double earthquake people keep asking me if I was affected.

I never really know how to answer that.

Yes, I'm safe. My home is here in London. I have food, water and a roof over my head. But I'm Venezuelan, and people close to me have lost everything. So of course I am affected.

1.8 million people in Venezuela need humanitarian aid. The truth is that Venezuela is already starting to disappear from the news. And I understand how news works. There will be another story, another crisis, another thing people are talking about.

But for the people in Venezuela this doesn't stop when the headlines stop. People still need water. Hospitals still need medicine. Families have lost their homes and in many cases people they love.

What has been hardest for me is being here. And a big part of me wants to be in Venezuela right now, cooking, carrying things, helping to coordinate, doing something useful.

A friend called the feeling 'disorientation' and she's right. Your body is here, but your mind is somewhere else all the time. You feel guilty for being safe. You worry about the people you know and then you start worrying about everyone you don't know.

And whatever you do doesn't feel enough.

I donated what I could, but I still felt I needed to do more. So I started speaking to other Venezuelans and to people around me and realised many of us felt exactly the same. We wanted to help but we just didn't know how. So, we decided to organise a charity fundraising event on 30 July to raise money for Venezuela.

Healing Venezuela is a UK-registered charity working directly on the ground, helping hospitals access potable water, providing essential medicines and supporting mothers and children.

I don't think we are powerless. Organising this has reminded me that there are so many people who genuinely want to help. Sometimes we just need to find each other and give people a way to do it.

Every pound donated will go directly to the earthquake relief efforts. The details of the event are below. Many people attended a magical night full of music, food, dance and good vibe. We would have loved to see many more there, however if you were unable to attend, any contribution that you are able to make via this Just Giving page would make a big difference.

Join us for an evening of music, food and solidarity

We hosted a special fundraising evening at SOAS Student Union Bar on Thursday 30 July 2026, 6:00pm–11:00pm, bringing together the Venezuelan community and friends of Venezuela for a night that's as joyful as it is meaningful.

We had:

🎶 Live music and DJ sets

🍽️ Venezuelan food included in your ticket

📽️ Real stories from the ground, so you can see exactly where your support goes

🎁 A raffle packed with great donated prizes and sealed auction of art work donated by renowed artists.

Tickets start at £20 (including food).

You can still be part of it. Every donation, big or small, goes straight to relief efforts.

Every pound raised goes toward getting clean water, medicine and care to the people who need it most, right now.