When Hurricane Harvey hit the Gulf coast, our community, from the family down the street to the coffee shop community in Portland, didn’t hesitate to immediately take action to help families affected by the disaster.
We cannot thank everyone enough for their unbelievable support, from reaching out to ask how they could help, to making a donation, to helping spread the word on social media or for taking the time to volunteer in our warehouse and kitchen.
With the help from our neighbors, the Food Bank has been able to respond immediately by ordering, receiving and then shipping truckloads of food and supplies to food banks in the areas hardest hit by Hurricane Harvey and to our own partner agencies.
As of now, we have shipped more than 400,000 pounds of emergency food, water and hygiene products thanks to individuals and groups, from all over the nation as far as New York to California, who stepped up to help.
Special thanks to Intel, Horizon Bank, 7-Eleven, Willy Street Co-Op, Whole Foods Market, Irvine Company, Applied Materials, our Board of Directors, and the University of Texas at Austin for helping raise food and funds.
Additionally, 19 truckloads of product for disaster relief have been donated by EPIC Provisions, the Austin Diaper Bank, Support the Girls, Pacific Natural Foods, OpsUSA, Feeding America, Chef’s Cut Real Jerky Co., Feeding Texas, H-E-B, Northwest Arkansas Food Bank, Chobani Yogurt, Colomb Coffee, Straight from the Root, and the Maryland Food Bank.
Getting all the food and supplies to families affected by the storm wouldn’t have been possible without the hard work from our amazing volunteers who have donated 5,434 hours of their time just to help with our disaster response efforts.
Our product recovery staff and volunteers instantaneously shifted gears to prepare emergency food and hygiene boxes to distribute. After the evacuee shelter nearby in the MET Center opened, kitchen staff and volunteers worked hard preparing daily breakfasts to support families staying there.
Thank you Keller Williams Realty International, HomeAway, Health Alliance for Austin Musicians, Dell, Indivisible Austin, Google, Ruth Kaplan, Jim Van Winkle, Mike Hill and anyone else who walked through our doors to volunteer.
The road to recovery will be a long one and we still need your help to continue assisting the most affected areas and families who rely on us each week. To make the quickest and largest impact, consider making a gift to the Food Bank.
We are immensely grateful for everyone’s help and thanks is not enough. You are what makes this community great.
Food Bank Hurricane Harvey Disaster Relief from Central Texas Food Bank on Vimeo.
