Coastal Georgia Veteran-led nonprofit funds earthquake rescue gear for Venezuela

POOLER, Ga. (WTOC) -As rescuers continue digging through rubble following Venezuela’s deadly earthquakes, a veteran-led nonprofit out of Pooler says it is working to help get life-saving equipment into the disaster zone.

Paul Herrera, a former U.S. Army soldier and disabled veteran, founded the Everything Lifesaving Foundation in 2024. Herrera said the nonprofit focuses on disaster relief and is now partnering with other organizations to support search-and-rescue efforts in Venezuela.

“We work as a community and we work better as a team as a coalition and that’s why all of us non-profits are coming together to make a difference,” Herrera said.

Herrera said the foundation is working with groups including A Hand From Above, Ruff Rescue Transport and Topos Aztecas, a Mexico-based search-and-rescue team that he said already has boots on the ground while his group works to clear visas.

“They’re boots on ground right now while we are getting our visas cleared,” Herrera said, adding that his foundation has been supporting that effort with equipment.

Herrera said the organization’s goal is to raise $75,000 or secure donated equipment — and he emphasized they are not asking for food or clothing.

“It’s also not feasible and also very expensive,” Herrera said. “This way, if finances or equipment — we have a long list of equipment.”

That list includes headlamps, helmets, ropes, jackhammers and concrete saws. Herrera said donations can also help cover fuel and support aircraft used to move people and supplies, along with communications equipment such as Starlink units.

“So right now financial donations help us get fuel, helps us get our aircraft going … it helps get the immediate supplies that we can immediately ship over there,” Herrera said.

Herrera said one of the biggest challenges is finding aircraft and pilots who can help move small teams and gear into hard-hit areas quickly.

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