In the face of tragedy Deportivo was there, in its place, ready to channel the solidarity of the people of A Coruña with the Valencian Community. Any forecast went off before the avalanche of people who approached Riazor to provide food, tools or belongings to help those affected by DANA.
The club announced This Saturday a total of 80 tons were collected: 70 of food, basic products and tools and 10 of clothing. Administrations, neighborhood associations and all types of groups have organized in recent hours to turn solidarity into an effective value, but few like Deportivo with its strength and its ability to mobilize.
On Saturday afternoon the queues of vehicles, some of them packed to the brim, gathered in a very long line in front of the Riazor stadium. waiting their turn to access the lower part of the Pavilion stands. They were located there volunteers from the Food Bank based in A Grela to collect everything.
People came on foot, obviously. “We couldn’t stop coming,” explained María Bello, who came with her children and non-perishable food. In the groups that formed, it was suggested that perhaps it would be more useful to donate tools such as rakes, buckets or wellies. that served to make the tasks simpler for those who clean and clear the mud. There was even timeto consider the initiative of Deportivo, which organized the entire operation, offered the stadium as a collection center and even mobilized two of its footballers, Mfulu and José Ángelwho collaborated on Saturday morning with the collection and classification of the merchandise for Valencia.
“We use football as a tool to contribute to social improvement,” they explain at the Real Club Deportivo Foundation.. And that mission makes sense in situations like the current one. “We are proud that the club has taken a step forward in a situation like this,” said María Bello. Not far from her three young people who were barely over twenty offered their donation. “We had to be here,” explained Hugo Varela, one of the most expressive, “but not only us but also the club. Deportivo has been able to be there and it is very nice that all of this has been put together through our team,” he said.
The influx of people surprised everyone. Full car trunks, supermarket carts full of water cans. As soon as word spread that in addition to food, utensils were needed to fight the mud, people became active in that sense. El Deportivo thanked him: “We are collecting basic products for those affected by DANA, breaking a historical record of solidarity. Tons of thanks to the hundreds of people from Coruña and sports fans who showed their solidarity once again!”, he wrote on his social networks. This Sunday we worked all day to release everything collected.
