Help for those affected by the storm (Hurricane/Tropical Storm Harvey)
15I wanted to post this, here, but didn’t want it to get lost. I only have one item to post, now, but please, if you know of resources, feel free to add them here. It’s just such a sad business, for those affected, and for the rest of us, who can only watch and hope.
- 11 comments, 8 replies
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FRIENDS, please pass this to anyone in Houston area or any that was affected. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints along with the Catholic Charities, and numerous others, currently have a hotline available to submit work orders for specific need requests related to the damages and for cleanup efforts. There is no charge for these services. They are mobilizing thousands to come and help mucking out homes, cleaning etc. This has been done in many cities throughout the world. Last year 5000 were mobilized to Louisiana. It may take a week or two, but bishops in the area have already submitted an estimation of homes damaged and preparation is underway.
By calling the hotline number, a volunteer will take down the information you give, and what you need, and create a work order and then attempt to send a volunteer crew out to help. This includes removing carpet, cutting down tree limbs, etc.
Obviously there’s still difficulty getting crews into the neighborhood, but this will allow us to start the rebuilding process, and they will come as they are able. The volunteer groups will come from the LDS Mormon Helping Hands, Catholic Charities, Etc.
Hotline numbers:
800-451-1954
844-965-1386
(Not my words, although I did do some editing. I took it from elsewhere, with permission.)
@Shrdlu i would like to post this on FB - do you think it would be ok?
@annwat Of course it’s okay. That’s actually where it started. Post wherever you like; news of help and resources should be spread as far as possible.
Here in Tulsa, most of the radio and TV people are shilling for the Red Cross. I haven’t donated yet but I’m not that enamoured with the Red Cross. LDS and Catholic Charities sounds like a good place for cash. Thoughts?
@therealjrn I spent 30 years working with nonprofits. The Red Cross is top heavy and has had some scandals. They have only 3 of 4 stars on Charity Navigator. I’ve heard some pretty sad stories about Red Cross failings from first responders I knew personally who worked in disaster settings. They aren’t a bad organization, but they are not likely to be as effective with your money as leaner and more limber charities. Catholic Charities and LDS charities have excellent reputations, at least among my sources. Also Disaster Relief Ministry of Texas Baptist Men. Note that I am not religious, I am not speaking for any religious element of these organizations. These folks do good work and I have nothing but respect for them all.
@moondrake
@therealjrn
I have dealt with Catholic Charities.
They are there to do good. And they do it.
They don’t care what religion you profess to (if any), or whether you have interest in religion, or even if you are hostile to the idea of religion.
They will never inquire about any of that.
Anyone who requests services they offer gets the service. The only limiters are qualifying (depending on the service requested), and capacity.
I understand there are similar services available from Lutheran organizations and from some Jewish congregations.
@therealjrn I gave to LDR - Lutheran Disaster Response. http://www.elca.org/Our-Work/Relief-and-Development/Lutheran-Disaster-Response/
"Gifts to Lutheran Disaster Response, designated for “Hurricane Response – United States” will be used entirely (100 percent) for this disaster until the response is complete. "
We donated to Red Cross through Amazon. They match funds donated.
Red Cross isn’t perfect, but over 90% goes to the affected area.
100% of your donation will go to help if you click you want your donation to help the people of Texas. Mercuryone.org
Here’s the Charity Navigator list of organizations helping out those affected by Harvey.
https://www.charitynavigator.org/index.cfm?bay=content.view&cpid=5239
@moondrake Neither Charity Navigator nor Give.org list either ELCA/LDR or Mercury One [a charity started by Glenn Beck] as recommended charities - they are unrated on both sites.
In addition per the BBB site:
The following is a list of BBB Accredited Charities (i.e., organizations that meet the 20 BBB Standards for Charity Accountability) that are raising funds for Hurricane Harvey relief assistance. This list will be updated as additional relief efforts come to BBB WGA’s attention.
American Red Cross http://go.bbb.org/2wDag9S
AmeriCares http://go.bbb.org/2wCT8AZ
Church World Service http://go.bbb.org/2wD4THA
Direct Relief http://go.bbb.org/2wCOe7j
GlobalGiving Foundation http://go.bbb.org/2wCMHhp
Houston Food Bank http://go.bbb.org/2xLwGm5
Houston Humane Society http://go.bbb.org/2vIvCOm
Humane Society of the United States http://go.bbb.org/2vD3qwy
Islamic Relief USA http://go.bbb.org/2wCusZy
MAP International http://go.bbb.org/2wc4B9w
Operation USA http://go.bbb.org/2wMuu1p
Salvation Army http://go.bbb.org/292Li8W
Save the Children http://go.bbb.org/1ib5aah
United Methodist Committee on Relief http://go.bbb.org/2wD9dXw
United Way of Greater Houston http://go.bbb.org/2xGBfOw
Donate only to trustworthy charities, be cautious of crowd-funding efforts and “storm chasers”
August 28, 2017
Arlington, VA – The Better Business Bureau and BBB Wise Giving Alliance are advising people to help as much as they can in the Hurricane Harvey relief efforts, but to do so with caution and make sure their donations get to the people who need it most.
“The devastation caused by Hurricane Harvey prompts us to do what we can to help as soon as possible,” said H. Art Taylor, president and CEO of BBB Wise Giving Alliance (BBB’s Give.org,) “but donors need to be aware of some key cautions so that their generosity will get to those in need quickly.”
The National Weather Service reports that Hurricane Harvey has brought over 20 inches of rain to portions of southeast Texas and the volume of flooding is unprecedented for this area. And, another 15-25 inches of rain is anticipated in the days to come. As the impact of this storm on Texas communities is heart wrenching, many will seek to contribute to help those in need.
BBBs are already seeing crowdfunding appeals of a dubious nature, and in the days ahead expect to see “storm chasers” looking to make a quick buck off of clean-up efforts (bbb.org/storm). Consumers can report suspected scams to BBB Scam Tracker (bbb.org/scamtracker) or the Texas Attorney General’s hotline (800-621-0508 or consumeremergency@nag.texas.gov).
BBB Wise Giving Alliance suggests that donors keep the following tips in mind to help avoid questionable appeals for support:
Verify the trustworthiness of soliciting relief organizations by visiting Give.org to access free reports that specify if the charity meets the 20 BBB Standards for Charity Accountability.
See if the charity has an on-the-ground presence in the impacted areas. Unless the charity already has staff in the affected areas, it may be difficult to bring in new aid workers to provide assistance quickly. See if the charity’s website clearly describes what the charity can do to address immediate needs.
Find out if the charity is providing direct aid or raising money for other groups. Some charities may be raising money to pass along to relief organizations. If so, you may want to consider “avoiding the middleman” and giving directly to those that have a presence in the region. Or, at a minimum, check out the ultimate recipients of these donations to see whether they are equipped to provide aid effectively.
Be cautious about gifts of clothing, food or other in-kind donations. In-kind drives for food and clothing, while well intentioned, may not necessarily be the quickest way to help those in need – unless the organization has the staff and infrastructure to distribute such aid properly. Ask the charity about its transportation and distribution plans. Be wary of those who are not experienced in disaster relief assistance.
Understand crowdfunding. Keep in mind that some crowdfunding sites do very little vetting of individuals who decide to post for assistance after a disaster, and it is often difficult for donors to verify the trustworthiness of crowdfunding requests for support. If you decide to contribute via crowdfunding, it is probably best to give to people who you personally know that have posted requests for assistance. For more Give.org tips on crowdfunding, check out this Wise Giving Wednesday post.
Phases of disaster relief. Remember that every disaster has several phases – rescue, emergency relief, and recovery. Each part relies on public support and continuing funding for success. The need for donations doesn’t stop when the headlines do.
Recovery time line. For many communities, recovery will be a long-term activity that can take many months or years to accomplish, depending on the extent of the damage. Those truly concerned about helping communities bounce back will have many opportunities to help.
Disaster planning. Although it may seem obvious, no one wants to experience a repeat performance of a disaster. Areas that work toward recovery will probably also need to develop plans to better respond to a similar storm in the future. Even those that already had measures in place can find ways to improve based on experience.
www.austinpetsalive.org They are helping the lost and abandoned animals and desperately need any contributions.
@headcrash I just saw a report that Petsmart has donated $1 million to animal welfare organizations in the area. I saw another report that they’d donated 36,000 meals of high quality pet food, to shelters serving displaced and lost pets. Don’t know if those overlap, but a big high five for Petsmart.
Sending nurses to affected areas: http://www.nationalnursesunited.org/pages/rnrn-disaster-relief-fund
Coastal Bend Community, a local organization serving the coastal areas hardest hit: http://www.cbcfoundation.org/
Diapers and other baby supplies:
http://www.texasdiaperbank.org/
Food Bank of Corpus Christi:
http://www.foodbankcc.com/
The Montrose Center, a Houston-based LGBTQ center providing direct aid for those populations:
https://my.reason2race.com/DNicol/HurricaneHarveyLGBTQDisasterReliefFund2017
Also [from https://www.bbb.org/central-texas/charities-donors/tips-advice-for-giving/hurricane-relief-donations/]:
Be wary of claims that 100 percent of donations will assist relief victims.
Despite what an organization might claim, charities have fund raising and administrative costs. Even a credit card donation will involve, at a minimum, a processing fee. If a charity claims 100 percent of collected funds will be assisting hurricane victims, the truth is that the organization is still probably incurring fund raising and administrative expenses. It may use some of its other funds to pay these costs, but the expenses will still be incurred.
Just sayin’
I can’t resist. Some people are twisted.
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if you live in/around NW Ohio, many of the local credit unions are partnering with a group called Impact with Hope, to do a “Bucket Brigade”.
they have several lists of items for you to buy, fill a 5 gallon bucket with them, turn that bucket in at your local credit union, who then get them to the charity, who then gets them to the people in need.
http://www.superiorfcu.com/home/fiFiles/static/documents/NWOhio-CUs-BucketBrigadeFlyer.pdf
http://impactwithhope.org/what-we-do/the-bucket-brigade/
Some personal friends of mine are making kitchen stations all over, predominately serving impoverished areas and areas that are being highly overlooked. There’s even a system outlined for community members to communicate with them and request a kitchen station in their area please consider this if you are still looking for a place to donate.
https://www.generosity.com/emergencies-fundraising/altruistrelief-org-hurricane-harvey-response