They still need your help

Tais Avila, Front Page Editor|October 24, 2017

Texas National Guard soldiers arrive in Houston, Texas to aid citizens in heavily flooded areas from the storms of Hurricane Harvey. (Photos by Lt. Zachary West , 100th MPAD)

Texas Military Department

Texas National Guard soldiers arrive in Houston, Texas to aid citizens in heavily flooded areas from the storms of Hurricane Harvey. (Photos by Lt. Zachary West , 100th MPAD)

It is no mystery that natural disasters such as shattering earthquakes, massive hurricanes and scorching forest fires have have left a big impact on humanity these past few months. Hurricane Harvey flooded many parts of Texas and released  toxic waste into the environment. Then there was Hurricane Irma and Hurricane Maria, who cut through the Caribbean, Florida, Georgia, and the Carolinas. Several earthquakes hit Mexico and left many buildings in ruins. To add to the destruction, there have been fires throughout California that have destroyed more than 500 buildings.

These earthquakes and hurricanes left many families without a house and The Red Cross reports that thousands are still sheltered across the state. Together these hurricanes and earthquakes killed more than 200 people. The effect of all these disasters have been devastating, which is why we should support these families in their time of need. It’s one thing to say you support them, by voicing your opinion and say you ‘are with them,’ but it’s another thing to actually do something to actually help them.

Charity organizations like, Soles4Souls, The Salvation Army, Oxfam, and countless other organizations have been doing their best to help these people. Soles4Souls partnered with a multi campus church in Houston to host a landmark distribution of footwear to families in need. The Salvation Army deployed more than 90 feeding units to Texas and are accepting donations to help them. Oxfam is a global charity organization that is working on ending poverty and injustice; Oxfam America is helping the families in Mexico in the aftermath of the earthquake.

Many families were affected by these numerous disasters, even the families of some of the people we see very day here at school. Crystal Rivera, senior, has family in Mexico City, one of the epicenters where one of the earthquakes hit. When Rivera received news on the earthquake, she felt very devastated because her mother is from Mexico and the place that got torn down the most is where she was born. Rivera did not hear from her family for one week after the earthquake. During that week she was worried that something terrible had happened to them, especially because her grandmother, who lives near Santa Ana, went to go visit the family at the time. After a week of waiting, Rivera’s family received the news that everyone was okay and no one was hurt during the earthquake. Even though she does not know if her family’s house was destroyed, she knows of other houses that had to be rebuilt around the same area. “Put yourself in their place,” Rivera says, “over here we are very lucky that we haven’t gone through that, well we have, but as of right now. I think we all just need to help each other in these times.”

We need to help each other in these times of need, and little by little everyone can make a change.