Origin
It was the cry, “Kimse Yok Mu?”-meaning “Is Anybody There?”-which kicked off a series of relief and aid activities presently carried out worldwide. That scream was coming under the wreckages of the earthquake on August 17, 1999 in Turkey. Those entrapped under the wreckages and who came to rescue were shouting to each other: “Is anybody there?”
Rushing to the earthquake zone, Samanyolu TV team and volunteers wouldn’t quit their charity activities even after recovery. Neither calls nor answers from helping hands wouldn’t stop as demands for aid were coming from across the country, which ultimately led to the broadcast of the TV program “Kimse Yok Mu.” The television program was aimed at getting the audience empathize the plight of unfortunate, needy, and hopeless people."
The TV program was soon to attract an ever-growing mass of audience. Having received countless on air phone calls by philanthropists to donate, the campaign went beyond a TV program. In a move to function as a bridge between philanthropists and the needy, an organization of aid network based on the TV program was founded in 2002.
Gradually increasing demands led the organization to grow and globalize. As a result, the foundation transcended the scope of TV and became an NGO. March 2004 is officially recognized as the establishment of Kimse Yok Mu and its first step towards being a “humanitarian aid and relief foundation” as globally referred to.
From then onwards, Kimse Yok Mu has adopted the mission to mobilize the philanthropy and channel it to wherever the call “Is anybody there?” is heard, no matter what ethnicity or religion it belongs to. Now a member of UN ECOSOC as a consulting institution, and with its 29 branches (as of 2012) and tens of thousands of volunteers in Turkey and 90 countries around the world, Kimse Yok Mu takes pride in its efforts to extend bridges between donating philanthropists and the needy.
In Turkey and Abroad
Although Kimse Yok Mu Foundation set out initially striving to address the question of poverty in Turkey, their efforts quickly expanded into the field of global aid and relief.
When the tsunami hit Indonesia in 2004, telephones of the newly founded Kimse Yok Mu Foundation kept ringing. “We want to see you help the victims, on our behalf” people said. So, the first global adventure by the foundation started off. In the very next year, the earthquake that hit Pakistan became a mournful reason for the foundation to organize the largest disaster relief campaign.
Having globalized this way, KYM’s mission continued with humanitarian aid campaigns organized for Palestine-Lebanon, Peru, Bangladesh, Sudan-Darfur, Georgia-Ossetia, Myanmar, China, Gaza and Haiti. On the other hand, the foundation reached people in countries worldwide to deliver aid by Turkish people in the periods of Ramadan and Eid al-Adha.
Besides disaster relief, KYM took action against poverty, drought and war in Sudan, Myanmar, and Syria by providing food, clothing, and healthcare to the refugees. Similar aid packages are still being delivered to Palestine, Chad, Yemen, Bangladesh, Uganda, Kenya, Sudan and Somalia.
Kimse Yok Mu Foundation accelerated its branching and networking efforts especially in 2006. Starting to open branches in the big cities of Anatolia, the foundation is launching yet another branch regularly.
Kimse Yok Mu Fields of Activity
Its consistently broadening fields of activity consist mainly of disaster relief, search and rescue, permanent aid, educational assistance, healthcare support, Ramadan and Eid al-Adha aid.
The foundation has a both domestic and global record of disaster relief aid including material and psychological support. It was on the scene in domestic regions such as Van, Batman, Diyarbakir as well as Haiti, Japan, Indonesia, and Myanmar globally.
Besides disaster relief, Kimse Yok Mu took action against poverty, drought and war in Sudan, Myanmar, and Syria by providing food, clothing, and healthcare to the refugees. Similar aid packages are still being delivered to Palestine, Chad, Yemen, Bangladesh, Uganda, Kenya, Sudan and Somalia.
For a long term support, it carries out permanent aid activities such as setting up orphanages, hospitals, water wells and schools in countries including Haiti and Sudan along with other east African countries. Schools and dormitories were also built mainly in the countries Pakistan, Sudan and Indonesia. In addition, aid activities in education have provided scholarships, stationary and education centers to quake victims in Van.
The foundation extended medical aid to people of Ethiopia, Kenya, Uganda and Somalia. Thousands of people were examined and provided necessary medical operations in those African countries in addition to individual health services in Turkey.
During Ramadan activities basic food aid boxes are delivered and iftar dinners are provided to people across the country and the world. Eid al-Adha activities also aim to make the feast even more meaningful by reaching out to the needy regardless of their religion and ethnicity.
In The Fight Against Poverty
Kimse Yok Mu Foundation, the main channel of aid and relief for the Gülen movement, seeks to fight poverty, one of the three greatest enemies of a society. The foundation, whose main and the only target is to fight against poverty and help building a more prosperous world for everyone is fed by a single source: Volunteers dedicated to do good deeds. To this end, principle of voluntariness lays the foundation of the Kimse Yok Mu operation system. All kind of aid activities as well as various national and international aid organizations distributions are carried out by volunteers of Kimse Yok Mu. Volunteers actively take charge in the process of all activities to be carried out by the foundation, from beginning to the end.
Sample Projects
| Ongoing Projects | Completed Projects |
| Ramadan Aid | Haiti Hospital Complex |
| Blanket and Bread for Syrians | Cataract Surgery |
| Rohingya Refugees | Aid for Gaza |
| Africa | Blanket for Bangladesh |
| Water Wells | Sandy Victims |
| Pakistan Ikbaliye Village | |
| Palestinian Orphans | |
| Sudanese Orphans | |
| Educational Assistance |
References:
- Three Greatest Enemies: Ignorance, Poverty and Disunity
- Kimse Yok Mu Official Website
- “Fighting Poverty with Kimse Yok Mu” Thomas Michel. Presented at “Alternative Perspectives of the Gulen Movement” conference, November 14-15, 2008, Washington D.C.
Gulen-inspired Hizmet Movement & Kimse Yok Mu serve selflessly to alleviate suffering worldwide
