Making the Donation
This morning we made our way to our final destination: Grace Cathedral Church on Mesa Drive where Pastor and Lady Taylor had arranged for us to drop off the goods. For the past 10 weeks since the hurricane, Lady Taylor has been doing amazing work collecting and distributing goods to the surrounding community in need.
As we drove to the church, it was eye-opening to pass through the neighborhoods that had been devastated from the hurricane. Even though the hurricane has long been over and media coverage has ended, the damage is persistent. Cleanup is still occurring and it will take a long time for people to regain the same footing that they had before the hurricane. I'm so grateful that I was able to travel down with my donations and see how they would be of benefit.
Lady Taylor met us with three volunteers who helped to unload the UHaul. It took about half an hour to unpack everything from the truck and place it inside the church, where Lady Taylor would later sort through it all. I had only seen the donations that students had brought in before they had been packed, so when I unloaded the full amount of goods that was in the truck, including what my dad had added, I was shocked at how many items there really were. It was amazing.
The volunteers told us that during the hurricane, the water level in the streets was about four feet. Everybody was stuck inside and the entire church, and several surrounding neighborhoods, was flooded. The extreme heights of the water was due to the fact that there were so many bayous in the area, which crested and caused the excess water to run into the streets.
Eventually, our day was over and our next stop was the airport. The taxi driver who picked us up was pleasantly talkative and made good conversation during the ride. We told him what had brought us to Houston, and he began to tell his own story of the hurricane. He told us that he spent the first night in his car because he wasn't able to get back to his neighborhood. He eventually dropped his car in the parking lot and walked back to his house where he stayed for three days. He told us that he was only able to obtain one turkey sandwich because all the stores were closed and roads were flooded. The damage and destruction really went beyond anything that we could've imagined.
Lady Taylor met us with three volunteers who helped to unload the UHaul. It took about half an hour to unpack everything from the truck and place it inside the church, where Lady Taylor would later sort through it all. I had only seen the donations that students had brought in before they had been packed, so when I unloaded the full amount of goods that was in the truck, including what my dad had added, I was shocked at how many items there really were. It was amazing.
The volunteers told us that during the hurricane, the water level in the streets was about four feet. Everybody was stuck inside and the entire church, and several surrounding neighborhoods, was flooded. The extreme heights of the water was due to the fact that there were so many bayous in the area, which crested and caused the excess water to run into the streets.
Eventually, our day was over and our next stop was the airport. The taxi driver who picked us up was pleasantly talkative and made good conversation during the ride. We told him what had brought us to Houston, and he began to tell his own story of the hurricane. He told us that he spent the first night in his car because he wasn't able to get back to his neighborhood. He eventually dropped his car in the parking lot and walked back to his house where he stayed for three days. He told us that he was only able to obtain one turkey sandwich because all the stores were closed and roads were flooded. The damage and destruction really went beyond anything that we could've imagined.
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