Texas Needs Your Help
How to help out Texans without water and food.
“Hey Taylor, what could a natural disaster even look like in Austin?”
“I don’t know, Jared. I guess there could be flooding or a tornado but that’s it.”
Six weeks ago Taylor and I had this exact conversation. We were brainstorming how to best get our house prepared in case of emergencies.
Little did we know the correct answer was winter snowstorm, sustained blackouts, and water shortages!
This last week has been one that we’ll never forget. It went from winter wonderland with beautiful snow forecast for the weekend to a cascading series of emergencies for the entire city, state, and many parts of the country.
We were lucky to retain power and water the entire time and took in five friends, a baby, and two dogs who were not so lucky. It’s been a chaotic week to say the least, but I’m grateful for how mild it has been for us compared to so many.
I’m not going to cover my normal topic in this issue. Instead, I’d like to focus on how you can help out with the disaster relief that’s so needed in many parts of Austin still.
The main needs right now are food and water. So many of the grocery stores are empty and the majority of the city is still on a boil water notice (if their pipes didn’t burst),
One of my favorite restaurants in town, Chi’Lantro, is donating meals all across town to those in need. It’s a $12 flat rate per meal and the meals are getting passed out to hospitals, shelters, nursing homes, and shelters.
If you feel called to donate you can email christine@chilantrobbq.com or Arnae@chilantrobbq.com. They will both be able to help you coordinate a donation. Every small bit helps. Investors Alley donated 40 meals and my mother, Jane Nations, also donated 40 meals!
The next area of serious need right now is water. The latest news is that homes could be without clean water for the next seven days.
Simply Rain Water is delivering cases of water to local restaurants for pick up from the community. It’s $10 a case and there’s no minimum order.
Here’s a list of other places where donations can be sent.
This event has been a real wake up call for me in many ways. I have never been through a sustained state of crisis other than Covid (and the snowstorm felt scarier than covid in many ways), and that’s likely true for most in my generation.
The best time to take action is now. Maybe it’s time for you to check in with your own preparedness levels…
Who knows, maybe those preppers are on to something.