Even before its grand opening, the Buckner Children and Family Services of Houston campus was hard at work serving the community in the wake of Hurricane Beryl. Hundreds of cars lined up on Monday to receive much needed food, beverages and supplies from Buckner and other collaborators.
 
Each car contained a family impacted by the Category 1 hurricane, more than 2,500 people in total. Beryl made landfall south of Houston early July 8, and most of the parents and children from neighborhoods in Aldine and North Houston were without electricity for several days ... while some were among the 250,000 in Southeast Texas still without power a week later.
 
Hurricane Beryl’s winds exceeded 80 miles per hour, while its hard rain caused instantaneous flooding across Houston. The strong winds damaged power lines and cell towers throwing approximately 2.2 million residents into darkness.
 
And while Hurricane Beryl moved on and the flood waters began to recede, the power stayed out.

The impact following the storm

Esly Dubon, 31, is pregnant with her third child. She and her husband moved to Houston from California one year ago for his job with an oil refinery. Beryl was their first major hurricane, and Dubon was not prepared to be without electricity for a week and counting.
 
“It’s been hard,” she said. “The heat, especially inside a smaller house … It’s hard.”
 
Thankfully a neighbor allowed Dubon’s family to connect to their generator. The power is enough to run a window air conditioning unit in the parents’ bedroom, so the family is crammed together for now.
 
“My 3-year-old is definitely getting sick of being stuck in one room,” Dubon continued. “She will leave to go into her bedroom or the kitchen and return after just a few minutes drenched in sweat.”
 
Families in attendance at the distribution included clients of the Buckner Family Hope Center® at Northside, located on the new campus, as well as families with students enrolled at local schools, including Carroll Elementary, Aldine High, Jerry Keeble Early Childhood/Pre-K and YES Prep Northline.

And then there were those like Dubon who heard about the Buckner distribution from a friend or on social media.
 
Buckner staff and volunteers loaded cases of water, energy drinks, hygiene kits and cleaning supplies into the trunks of each car at the distribution.

“Seeing the community come together is amazing,” Dubon shared. “Something so small like a case of water is a saving grace.”

Shipping needed supplies from Dallas to Houston to serve vulnerable Houstonians

Much of the supplies arrived July 12 from the Buckner Center for Humanitarian Aid in Dallas, which maintains the inventory for domestic and international assistance. The aid is the result of financial and in-kind donations throughout the year.
 
“Disasters are unpredictable and chaotic, but disaster response and relief efforts need to be extremely well organized and systematic in order to be effective,” said Steve Watson, director of aid and assistance for Buckner International.
 
According to Watson, the first phases of disaster response are the emergency responders followed by the infrastructure repair crews and disaster response agencies and nonprofits helping to meet the immediate needs of people impacted. 

“Once the area is safe, infrastructure repairs are underway, and the needs shift from response to relief and then long-term recovery, that’s where Buckner comes in to support our clients and the surrounding communities,” said Watson.
 
“The best way to help victims of a disaster, like Hurricane Beryl, is for organizations with various specialties to collaborate in how they support the community.”
 
Collaboration was on full display at the Buckner distribution on Monday.

Organizations coming together to serve the community

In addition to the shipment coming from Dallas, several pallets of water and energy drinks from Southeast Texas companies were secured by the Buckner team in Beaumont and shipped to Houston, courtesy of U-Haul.
 
“We are overwhelmed with gratitude to our friends in Beaumont for answering the call and meeting the needs of our clients through their donation of water and sports drinks,” said Dior Burns, executive director of Buckner Children and Family Services of Houston, referencing the donation by Del Papa Distributing Company, Giglio Distributing Co., and BlueTriton Ozarka Water.

Families attending the distribution were also given hot meals provided by Tyson Foods, Inc. Serving the meals were Texas Representative Armando Walle and Texas Senator Carol Alvarado, who both came out to volunteer with Buckner.
 
Much of the news coverage of Hurricane Beryl focused on the heat and discomfort millions of Houstonians experienced as indoor temperatures soared into the 80s and 90s, but as Burns pointed out, the impact goes much further.
 
“Obviously the hot conditions were unsafe and miserable, but it’s the financial strain of having to throw away a week’s worth of groceries that will impact many of our clients down the road,” Burns said.
 
“We serve some of Houston’s most vulnerable families who might already struggle between paying bills, putting food on the table and purchasing household necessities,” she continued. “This past week has been extremely difficult for them physically and mentally, and now they are looking to the future and worrying about how to account for this unforeseen financial hardship.”
 
Dubon admitted the wasted food was one of the most difficult ways her family was affected. “I feel a little bit of heartbreak from throwing food out.”
 
The desire for hot meals was felt across the city. Clients of the Family Hope Center at Reed Road in South Houston were supported several days earlier with meals prepared by Mercy Chefs, Nova Church and Hope City. The collaborative meal distribution was coordinated by Love Has No Limits.
 
“It’s truly amazing to be a part of orchestrating so many people and organizations coming together with one goal – the recovery of Houston,” Burns said.
 
Moved by the volume of cars and the community’s needs, Texas Representative Walle reached out to Chief Nim Kidd with the Texas Department of Emergency Management to have additional pallets of water, ice and Meals Ready-to-Eat (MREs) delivered to the campus to allow Buckner to serve even more families.
 
The Buckner Children and Family Services of Houston campus at 6800 Sweetwater Lane will officially open on August 3 with a ribbon cutting ceremony and a back-to-school distribution.

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