I know that we are all anxiously following the devastating events in Houston right now.  I have a very personal connection as my daughter and her family live in Houston.  My daughter is a nurse and is on the emergency response team – she has been at the hospital since Sunday and has been describing the harrowing rescue efforts she has witnessed.

Many of you have asked how to help. Below are some suggestions.   When deciding how to give, I find it helpful to consult Charity Navigator, which is an American independent charity watchdog organization that evaluates charitable organizations in the US.

Organizations participating in hurricane relief efforts include:

• American Red Cross. To donate visit redcross.org, call 1- 800-RED CROSS or text the word HARVEY to 90999 to make a $10 donation.
• The Salvation Army: To donate visit www.helpsalvationarmy.org or call 1-800-725-2769.
• Catholic Charities USA: Visit catholiccharitiesusa.org to donate.
• GlobalGiving: visit https://www.globalgiving.org/harvey. Donors can also text HARVEY to 80100 to donate $10 to GlobalGiving's Hurricane Harvey Relief Fund. Message and data rates may apply. Terms: hmgf.org/t. Send a check by writing,"Hurricane Harvey Relief Fund" in the memo line and mailing it to GlobalGiving, 1110 Vermont Ave NW, Suite 550, Washington DC, 20005.
• Save the Children: www.savethechildren.org. Save the Children’s emergency response team is on the ground in San Antonio, Texas, working to meet children and families’ immediate needs
• Apple: The multimedia giant has set up a donation link directly on iTunes and App Store.Visit www.apple.com for more information. Donations will go directly to the American Red Cross.
• Hurricane Harvey Relief Fund. Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner established this fund administered by the Greater Houston Community Foundation to accept tax-deductible flood-relief donations. Checks and money orders can be mailed to the Greater Houston Community Foundation, while online credit card donations can be made at www.ghcf.org. Online credit card donations will be assessed a small fee by the credit card companies. Donors have the option of increasing their credit card donations to cover this fee. Wire-transferred cash will also be accepted.

Driscoll Children’s Hospital, which cares for Corpus Christi’s youngest and most ill patients, was directly in the path of Harvey. The hospital transported many of its patients out of harm’s way, but will likely will need funds to seamlessly continue operating its 189-bed pediatric facility.

Donations can be made online at www.driscollchildrens.org.

Even as relief organizations work to help large numbers of people, it’s difficult sometimes for them to provide for people with special needs. Portlight, which has provided inclusive relief to people with disabilities for twenty years—including in Hurricanes Katrina and Sandy—is working to ensure that people who require medical equipment and assistive technology have what they need after they evacuate, and to make sure that those same folks are able to get to safety. They accept donations via PayPal.

Direct Relief USA offers prescription drugs and other medical supplies to those who need it in emergency situations, and works with clinics and primary care doctors to ensure that people are able to get what they need when they need it. They’re accepting financial contributions.

Here’s a list of food banks in both affected areas and in places where those affected are likely to spend some time in the immediate aftermath of the storm (via the Houston Press):  All of these have links to donate on their site:

Houston Food Bank
832-369-9390
houstonfoodbank.org

Galveston Food Bank
409-945-4232
galvestoncountyfoodbank.org

Food Bank of the Golden Crescent (Victoria)
361-578-0591
victoriafoodbank.org

Corpus Christi Food Bank
361-887-6291
foodbankcc.com

Thanks for reading!