The weather is clear and sunny in Houston and southeast Texas.
The waters have all receded in the majority of the areas.
The camera crews and reporters have mostly left the affected areas.
Hurricane Harvey was well over a month ago…all is good today, right?
Hardly!! Although Hurricane Harvey hit southeast Texas over a month ago, the area is far from fine. Yes, the water has gone down, and the reporters have left, but the devastation and damage from the storms is still being felt…and will be felt for many months, if not years, to come.
As evidence of that, I would invite you to take a look at a video clip below. The video was taken by one on our team who was down in northwest Houston just a few weeks ago…it shows piles and piles of debris lined up along the streets of a fairly high-end residential neighborhood. This is what businesses and families have been dealing with over the past month.
The Frisco Chamber of Commerce is working hard to help the Houston Northwest Chamber of Commerce and their communities. Barbara Thomason and her team at the HNWCC have a foundation (Help Northwest Harris County Businesses Recover) which is giving small grants ($350-$700) to local businesses and organizations to help with immediate needs such as:
- Deductibles on insurance claims, for those that had flood insurance.
- Business interruption losses are adding up…how many of you could not be working for a month or more and not be hurting?
- Many of the business in the community are working hard to hang on…but they do not have the resources to pay their chamber dues….to help the very entity that is working hard to keep them going. How will the local chambers survive without these dues?
There is an IMMEDIATE need to boost this fund with some additional contributions. I would challenge ALL companies/organizations, employees, residents in the area to consider making a small tax-deductible contribution to this fund to help those in need in Northwest Houston. All proceeds of this foundation go directly to those in need, and every dollar given is needed. Whether it is $5 or $500…it is needed and Frisco can help our fellow businesses one on one! And, if you cannot contribute at this time, please spread the word and encourage others to help. You can donate HERE. Please use #FriscoFriends in the comments area when you donate.
Recovery is happening and happening fast! But there is still much to be done. Don’t be fooled…just because the cameras are gone and it is no longer the lead story on the news, don’t think the need is not there. The Frisco Chamber of Commerce is a problem solver, but we need you…this is the time to step up and help!
As I close this out, I would just leave you with the following thoughts:
- Today, when you leave work and go home, be glad you had a tough day at work…be glad you had work and a desk/cubicle to work in!
- When you get home, be glad you had chores and laundry to be done at the house…be glad you have a cool, dry house to come home to!
- Be thankful for that drive in rush-hour traffic…be glad you have a working car/truck!
- Be thankful for all that we are blessed with here in Frisco…be glad your streets are not lined with debris and stacks of your and your neighbors’ personal belongings.
- Be grateful to be part of this great business community throughout Texas and beyond…be glad you can be the answer to someone’s prayer and help them get back to business!
