{How to Help Hurricane Harvey Survivors – How, Where and What to Donate}

How to help survivors from Hurricane Harvey Houston

Alright, y’all, this is a time that we all need to come together as one and help all of the survivors and animals effected by Hurricane Harvey. I’m sure by now most of y’all are aware at how devastating this storm is and continues to be. Hundreds of thousands of people are stranded in their homes, thousands have completely lost their homes and on top of that, thousands of animals have their lives threatened as well. Shelters have been flooded and pets are being dispersed all over Texas to stay safe. This is by far one of the worst hurricanes we have ever seen so let’s band together and help those who are in need.

So I spent the weekend hiding from all the rain we got from Harvey, seeing the destruction in Houston was everywhere I looked. During times like these, I can’t help but follow the story and feel completely hopeless for those who are affected. I saw an Austin Pets Alive post on Facebook and knew I had to do something. I don’t have a boat or a helicopter to help rescue people from homes, but I knew I could help some of the displaced animals from shelter in and around Houston. Austin Pets Alive did a great job keeping everyone in the area up to date on supplies they needed so I headed straight to Target, filled up an entire overflowing shopping cart full of animal goodies and went straight to the shelter. To know that little bit is going to help out so much really warms my heart. Please consider donating, even if it’s just a small amount.

HOW YOU CAN HELP HURRICANE HARVEY VICTIMS

I’ve had quite a few people asking me what they can do to help the victims and survivors of Hurricane Harvey so I wanted to get a post in order that you can easily navigate to see what donations you can make. This should be a good resource if you want to help but aren’t sure where to start.

UPDATE – Donations are being turned away. Do not donate goods or supplies unless they are specifically asked for. Volunteers need to help victims not sort supplies. There is no time to process these items. They need cash donations.

DIRECT DONATIONS

If you are planning to make direct donations please make sure you look at lists of items that are actually needed. I have marked new additions as UPDATED that have AMAZON wish lists up for people to purchase goods to be shipped to each charity.

Mayor Adler is asking for people to make welcome kits for new Harvey arrivals to Austin. If you are in and around Austin, PLEASE consider going out and making some of these kits! You can ship these into Austin if you are outside of the area. I have listed everything below that should go in each kit. 

Watch this VIDEO for more information! 

KIT ITEMS:
– New Towel
– New Washcloth
– Soap
– Tissue
– Toothbrush
– Toothpaste
– Deodorant
– Feminine products
– Shampoo
– Comb
– A note of encouragement

ADDITIONAL IMPORTANT ITEMS:
– New Blanket
– New Pillow
– Wipes
– Baby bottles/formula
– Diapers
– Baby food

HOW TO CREATE A WELCOME KIT:
– Get a reusable bag(s) or plastic container with a lid
– Fill the container with listed items
Drop off at Hope Family Thrift Store

DONATE MONEY OR VOLUNTEER TO HELP EVACUATE PEOPLE

Cash is king… Some places are full or simply don’t have the infrastructure to hold donated products. Many organizations have specified that cash is preferred. Listed below are numerous organizations that are bringing food, water, and supplies to victims of the natural disaster.

American Red Cross is actively seeking donations of food and money to help Hurricane Harvey victims. They are also currently bringing volunteer forces from all around the US to help evacuate victims in flooded areas. To make a donation you can visit their websitecall 1-800-RED-CROSS or text HARVEY to 90999 to make a $10 donation.

Coalition for the Homeless of Houston/Harris County provides shelter and resources for the homeless in Houston and surrounding areas.

Global Giving – Make a financial donation, visit their website or text HARVEY to 80100 to donate $10 to Hurricane Harvey Relief Fund.

Heart to Heart International provides a crisis relief worldwide seeks donations to help the victims of Hurricane Harvey. They also have a Disaster Response Team that provided water, supplies and health kids to people in Corpus Cristi.

Hurricane Harvey Relief Fund – Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner has established the Hurricane Harvey Relief Fund that will accept tax deductible donations. The fund is administered by the Greater Houston Community Foundation, a 501(c)(3) public charity. To make adonation, visit the GHCF website.

Salvation Army Emergency Disaster Services helps provide food, water, clothing, cleaning supplies, and support to the victims.  You can also donate by calling 1-800-SAL-ARMY, texting STORM to 51555, sending a donation through mail or online at helpsalvationarmy.com.

Food banks throughout Texas are now accepting donations for the people affected by Harvey. You can donate money to Feeding Texas, a network of the state’s food banks. The Elgin Courier has compiled a list of food bank locations throughout the region that could need donations of food or supplies.

Texas Diaper Bank has started putting together disaster relief kits for families with young children. Make a donation on their website.

UPDATE – Austin Diaper Bank has an Amazon wishlist you can shop from HERE.

GoFundMe

GoFundMe has created a landing page for all Hurricane Harvey donations to be in one place. Donations benefiting everything from hurricane and disaster relief groups to animals and families in need. A full list of fundraisers can be seen HERE.

How to Help Hurricane Harvey Survivors and Animals: How, Where & What to Donate | hurricane Harvey victims | donating to hurricane Harvey survivors | helping animals affected by hurricane Harvey || Dressed to KillHOW TO HELP THE ANIMAL SHELTERS

You can also donate to animal shelters and rescue groups for animals that were left behind or being relocated. A number of those groups include SPCA of Texas, Austin Pets Alive!, Dallas Animal Services and the San Antonio Humane Society.

Austin Pets Alive! – Seeking families that can foster cats and large dogs. In addition to cash donations, the organization can also use in-kind donations like large plastic or metal bins with lids. Space for some items is limited so check with the organization first before you gather supplies. If you can help with fostering or in-kind donations, check out their website for details on what they still need. Keep checking their website as they update it multiple times a day on dogs/cats that are coming in, etc.

UPDATE – You can now shop the APA wishlist of items needed straight from Amazon. CLICK HERE!

UPDATE – Best Friends has deployed to Texas to rescue stranded animals. They also have an Amazon wishlist you can purchase from to donate HERE. OR donate cash on their website BestFriends.org.

SPCA of Texas – has also put out a call for foster homes to help care for the animals already in shelters and those coming from the Gulf Coast. You can sign up at www.spca.org/foster. The organization is also accepting financial donations and in-kind donations, including cat litter, litter boxes, towels, blankets, large wire crates, toys, treats, pet beds, newspaper and gas gift cards.

DONATE BLOOD

You can also donate blood since there were closures of blood banks in the affected areas. Check your local areas for blood donations that are occurring soon. You can’t claim a tax deduction for giving blood but it sure is a terrific way to help.  Here are a couple websites to check out:

Donating for Life

Carter Blood Care

I’m sure a lot of people have been seeing organizations advertise their shirts they are selling with all proceeds going to the Hurricane relief fund. I’ve listed a few of my personal friend’s companies that are selling shirts to provide donations to the victims and survivors.

Texas Humor – They are donating the net profits of your order to the Red Cross, Salvation Army, and other Texan organizations providing disaster relief

Josh Abbott Band – They’re donating 100 percent of the proceeds from the sales of their JAB Cares t-shirt to Hurricane Harvey relief.

The Shop Forward  The sale of each TEXAS FOREVER t-shirt supports The American Red Cross helping those affected by Hurricane Harvey.

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10 Comments

  1. Pam Dorrell
    August 29, 2017 / 12:37 am

    Thanks for collecting this great information to help the victims of Hurricane Harvey. I’m going to donate right now.

  2. August 31, 2017 / 4:45 pm

    Thank you so much for posting this. I did a post too but this is so much more comprehensive. Sending lots of love Texas’ way.

  3. September 1, 2017 / 1:19 am

    Thank you for sharing babe, you have the most beautiful soul. <3

  4. September 1, 2017 / 5:17 pm

    thank you for taking the time to put this together!

  5. September 2, 2017 / 5:45 am

    Prayers for Texas. Thank you for all of the helpful resources <3

  6. September 2, 2017 / 8:18 am

    Thank you for sharing it. It is a great post!

  7. September 2, 2017 / 9:17 am

    Thank you so much for posting this. Prayers and hope from Italy!

  8. September 3, 2017 / 1:35 am

    Thank you for sharing all of this information on how to help. I want to help as much as I can. I’m also sending love to all of those affected.

  9. October 1, 2017 / 11:54 pm

    What a powerful article – thanks for sharing!

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