A woman from north Belfast has been moved to tears due to the support received from a Go Fund Me page set up to help her husband and his family who have been sleeping in a tent after their home was destroyed during the recent devastating earthquake in Turkey.
Husband and wife Jade and Hüseyin Özbey met when she was on holiday in Turkey, the pair then fell in love, eventually tying the knot in October last year.
In an interview with Belfast Live, the Ballysillan native explained that on the night that the tragic earthquake struck the area she was on the phone with her husband, however, now their calls have been taken over by a sense of fear.
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"That night, we were both talking and he was telling me it was snowing," she said.
"Normally, I would go over at the end of January to Turkey. Last year I was snowed in and my flight was delayed for two days, so this year I said I would leave it until the end of February.
"Only for that, I would be there now. He was on Facetime with me, him and his five-year-old niece. I woke up at 5:30am and lifted my phone and seen an earthquake had hit. When I read where, I had a sick feeling. That's where he and his family are.
"At that moment, I didn't think it was going to end up the way it has. I sent him a message to ask what had happened and when it didn't deliver, panic started to set it. Nothing would go through to his phone, no connection at all. It was hours before I heard from him.
"When I saw his name come up on my phone, I was so relieved. Their house is gone, and they are living in a tent. There's two wee children, age five and seven months. They can't get anything. It is awful."
To help the family, Jade's sister Jaime set up a Go Fund Me page to help raise money for family over the coming days and weeks.
Jade says that the response to this has moved her to tears, with more than £2,000 having been donated so far thanks to the generosity of family, friends and strangers.
"I feel completely useless here, in Belfast. But I have to just keep going, and carry on," she told the publication.
"It is horrible that I can't be there with them in Adıyaman. I don't know what to do. When I try and ring him and don't hear back, I am so worried.
"When my sister said she was going to set up the Go Fund Me, I was unsure, because people don't have money. We are all getting things tight. She set the target for £1,000 and now there is over double.
“I am totally humbled and cannot believe the generosity people have shown. People who don't know us, haven't met my husband, they just want to help. I've been totally blown away by it. It has been unreal."
To donate to the Go Fund Me, head over to the page found here.
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