DENVER — Just two hours after the doors opened at Iglesia Ciudad de Dios in Denver, the entire front lobby was filled with donation bags Tuesday evening.
"This in just two hours. We’re talking about two hours!” said Marielena Suarez. “We have this amazing turnout.”
Suarez is with Papagayo, an organization helping run this donation drive, as well as others happening right now to help the hundreds of migrants who have arrived in Denver in recent weeks. The city said many of the migrants have come from Venezuela.
Suarez said because Papagayo works with Venezuelans, and – more broadly – Latino communities in Colorado, they are in a good position to help.
“We understand the culture, the background, where they’re coming from and what they went through,” she said. “Many people might know – Venezuela is going through a humanitarian crisis. So to see people coming all the way from there to here with nothing is something [that’s hard] actually understand.”
People can drop off donations on Tuesdays and Wednesdays, from 4-7 p.m. at Iglesia Ciudad de Dios at 5255 W Warren Ave. in Denver. The city offered this list of “urgently” needed items:
- Coats (men’s S and M, women’s M)
- Pants (waist 30-33)
- Socks
- Underwear
- Winter apparel (hats, gloves, scarves, boots)
- Children’s clothing for ages 10 and younger
“Literally what [the people] have is what they had on, some don’t even have shoes,” Suarez said. “We are a community-based state. We care for one another.”
Last weekend, Papagayo teamed up with Raices Brewing Co. to collect donations.
The organization will continue to facilitate the donation drop-off at the church. Anyone interested in volunteering to help Papagayo sort and organize can reach out to them at: papagayo.ven@gmail.com.
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