LI Turkish Restaurant Owner Will Visit Quake Site: 'Whatever I Can Do'

WEST HEMPSTEAD, NY — As we watch the shocking images from Turkey and Syria, where tens of thousands were killed in a devastating earthquake, the disaster rises to a personal level for Maxx Oliver, owner of the West Hempstead restaurant Anatolia. He opened the Turkish/Mediterranean eatery in 2019.

Oliver emigrated from Turkey in 1999 and still has relatives and friends in that region of the world.

"We have some family members who are gone." Oliver told Patch he fears the worst: "We cannot get any news."

The timing is never good for an earthquake, but it happened at 4 a.m. as most people slept.

Oliver said, unfortunately, as the debris is searched, "you will know more tragedy."

He also has two kitchen employees who hail from southern Turkey, where the magnitude 7.8 quake struck last week.

Oliver isn't sitting on the sidelines — he created a donation drive through the Turkish Embassy for essential supplies. Additionally, he started a GoFundMe page to assist families, and plans to travel to the ravaged country this week to witness the destruction first-hand.

"I will see what they need for accommodations," Oliver said.

His generosity is already on display. Oliver learned of a 29-year-old woman and her two children, homeless since the earthquake. He plans to send money to the woman, "so she can buy some food, stay in a hotel and get a car," he said.

"Everything is gone, so I just like to help these kinds of people," he said.

Oliver's plane ticket is one-way, as he doesn't know how long he'll stay in Turkey. But, he anticipates it will be a month.

"I'll try my best. Whatever I can do," he said.

GoFundMe is a Patch promotional partner.