Couple organizes Nepal relief effort

‘ Climb’ event is Saturday at Santa Cruz gym

SANTA CRUZ — When a magnitude 7.8 earthquake struck Nepal in April, killing more than 9,000 people and injuring 23,000 more, the news came like a bad dream to Santa Cruz residents Parvati Brown and her husband, Bhoj Rai.

The couple met during in the Bay Area in the 1990s after separately emigrating from their home country of Nepal, where both still have family. They come from villages each devastated by the first quake, and then left in worse shape after the magnitude 7.3 aftershock on May 12.

“I went into a full panic mode for the safety of my family back in Nepal as hundreds of images of the disaster flooded social media,” Brown wrote in an email. “The news only got worse as I learned that Kathmandu ( the capital) was not the only place affected and that my home district, Sindhupalchok, was one of the hardest hit. I was shaken as my dad described the situation in our village, confirming that all 70 houses in Badegaun ( Brown’s home village was at the epicenter of both earthquakes) had been destroyed, along with food supplies.”

In an effort to support relief efforts in Nepal, Brown and Rai have organized several fundraising events locally and in the Bay Area, raising about $ 15,000.

The next fundraiser, “Climb for Nepal,” will be 6: 30- 10 p. m. Saturday at the Pacific Edge Climbing Gym, 104 Bronson St. No. 12, Santa Cruz.

A donation of $ 10 to $ 20 is requested.