[Nfb-idaho] thought everyone would like to see this. Our affiliate donation is mentioned. FW: [State-affiliate-leadership-list] Update on Our Puerto Rico Affiliate

Tue Sep 26 21:09:29 UTC 2017

From: State-Affiliate-Leadership-List [mailto:state-affiliate-leadership-list-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Norma Crosby via State-Affiliate-Leadership-List
Sent: Tuesday, September 26, 2017 12:33 PM
To: State Affiliate Leadership List
Cc: Norma Crosby
Subject: Re: [State-affiliate-leadership-list] Update on Our Puerto Rico Affiliate

Hello everyone,

Since we are talking about disaster relief, I wanted to give you guys another update from Texas. Last week was a slow week for requests, and I thought we might be turning a corner. Boy was I wrong. This week we have begun to receive requests from the Golden Triangle area of Texas, and Victoria folks have also started to call and email us. I'll give you a little bit of geography here. The Golden Triangle area sits on the gulf coast, and is made up of the cities of Beaumont, Port Arthur, and Orange. There are other small towns that surround these cities as well. The Golden Triangle is home to many of the oil refineries that pump petroleum products out to the rest of the country. Many poor people live in the area, and hundreds of homes were simply washed away by Harvey. I was talking to someone this morning who is praying that the government will simply tear her home down because rebuilding seems too hard and because this has happened so often in the area.

Victoria is about an hour and a half southwest of Houston, along Highway 59. You may have seen reporters saying they were in Victoria during the time the storm was making landfall. Victoria was on the dirty side of the hurricane, and the city and surrounding area was hit pretty hard. We are hearing from families that have simply lost everything, but you are used to hearing that by now. 

Although this continues to be a tough time, we have been so blessed by the outpouring of love and support from our Federation family. Affiliates are stepping up to adopt families, and that is particularly great because it allows us to build a personal connection with those we are helping. Our affiliates and the tiniest of chapters have been jumping in with wonderful, and much needed, donations. I hope I don't leave anyone out when I thank the latest folks to offer support.

Our Idaho, Pennsylvania, and Maryland affiliates have sent generous donations. Our Utah affiliate has adopted a mom who has a blind child with Down Syndrome. We have received more gift cards from Rhode Island, and I could not be prouder of how the Greater Providence Chapter has stepped up. They just keep on giving. 

I talked with Kevan Worley yesterday, and the Colorado Springs Chapter and We Fit Wellness are adopting the Grimaldo Family. This is a family who has not known us before, but they lost their home in the floodwaters a day after they buried their 19-year-old son. He died in a car accident just before the storm. They really need not only the monetary support right now, but they need that Federation love that we are famous for.

We have also received donations from the Johnson County Chapter of the NFB of Kansas. The Des Moines Chapter has also helped out, and our own Houston Chapter has sent us a $1,500.00 donation. The NFB of Illinois is sending a wonderful donation, and the NFB of Massachusetts is adopting Dwight Kendrick. Dwight is a blind guy who also suffers from COPD. He was living with caregiver prior to the storm because of his medical issues. Their apartment totally flooded, and they spent several weeks at a disaster shelter. They have since moved to a FEMA approved motel, which I am told is less than charming. We have sent initial funding to him as we do for everyone, and he and Amy Ruel will be getting together soon.

We have also been the recipients of many personal donations, and while I won't try to list names here, I can tell you that you all have generous people in your affiliates. Along with cash, people have been sending us loads of gift cards, and we love those. Yesterday, we received $100 in Uber gift cards from Juan Chang, who is Patti's brother-in-law. We appreciate Juan and all the other people who have shared their resources with us. Gift cards are a great way to help people out.

I don't know if these posts help you to understand how much your donations have meant, but I hope they do. Our affiliate has earmarked a chunk of money for this project, but we couldn't be successful at lending the support people need if it weren't for you guys. I hear stories every day that bring me to tears, but I am raised up each time by the thought that we have so many people helping us.

I know we need to help our brothers and sisters in Puerto Rico too. So, if you are feeling the urge to help, please feel free to shift your resources to them. We can never make everyone in Texas whole, but I think we have collected enough funds and earmarked enough that we can manage to continue our work for the next little while. The one area where I am still glad to have help is the adopt-a-family program. It has been a popular way for people to help, and if you feel your chapter or affiliate can help a little there, I'd be glad to assign you a family or individual. 

Otherwise, thanks to everyone who has already helped. Now, let's all pitch in for Puerto Rico. I can promise that Texas will be there for them.

Best regards,

Norma Crosby, President

National Federation of the Blind of Texas

1600 E Highway 6, Suite 215

Alvin, TX  77511

(281) 968-7733 (Main Office)

(281) 809-4860 (Fax)

ncrosby at nfbtx.org

On Tue, Sep 26, 2017 at 12:06 PM, Denise via State-Affiliate-Leadership-List <state-affiliate-leadership-list at nfbnet.org> wrote:

Alpedio,

You and the rest of our family are in our thoughts and prayers.

I know that many companies and nonprofits have been collecting items for Maria relief. It great to see the support and care from so many! 

 Denise Valkema

On Sep 26, 2017, at 12:18 PM, Cathy Jackson via State-Affiliate-Leadership-List <state-affiliate-leadership-list at nfbnet.org> wrote:

Good Afternoon Fellow Federationists

One of our members in the Kentucky Affiliate, Phil Seif, who is in the Air National Guard was deployed to Puerto Rico this past Saturday. He called home after arriving and spoke to his wife, Jane for a brief few minutes. He says the destruction is horrific. Electricity still has not been restored. If one is in an area where there is running water it is only available for a few short hours a day. Phil and the other first responders believe that the devistation is so great they will be in Puerto Rico for quite some time. 

Alpedio and our Federation Family in Puerto Rico we are praying for you.

Cathy Jackson, President

NFB of Kentucky  

On Tue, Sep 26, 2017 at 11:14 AM, President, National Federation of the Blind via State-Affiliate-Leadership-List <state-affiliate-leadership-list at nfbnet.org> wrote:

Dear Colleagues,

Hope you are doing well on this fine Tuesday. I wanted everyone to know that we have received a voicemail from Alpidio Rolon, but I have not yet connected with him directly. He is apparently doing fine—as well as can be expected—but obviously the communication infrastructure is very limited. I will continue to work to determine where we might best place resources to be helpful to blind people in Puerto Rico. However, we know from our experience in Texas and Florida that it takes some time for those communication channels to be established, and I suspect that will only be further stretched in Puerto Rico based on the infrastructure failures. 

I appreciate that Federationists continue to be prepared to help. As we establish what we might be able to do to assist our brothers and sisters in Puerto Rico, we will share that information. Please continue to communicate to our members that we are doing our best to establish those lines of communication.

I am sure our continued prayers and positive thoughts for our Federation family in Puerto Rico are sincerely appreciated.

Sincerely,

Mark A. Riccobono, President

200 East Wells Street, Baltimore, MD 21230

(410) 659-9314 <tel:(410)%20659-9314>  | Officeofthepresident at nfb.org

Twitter: @Riccobono

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