Community rallies to aid flood victims in Texas
A Cape Coral City Council member is spearheading an effort in conjunction with a local community foundation to assist financially with the recent floods in Texas.
District 4 Councilmember Jennifer Nelson-Lastra, has established The SWFL Hearts for Hill Country Fund at Collaboratory in Fort Myers.
The fund supports relief and rebuilding efforts in Kerr County, Texas, following the devastating floods on July 4. Nelson-Lastra knows many people from Kerr County — and in Southwest Florida — who lost loved ones on that tragic day.
On July 4, while Nelson-Lastra was attending Red White & BOOM! in Cape Coral, her friends from the Hill Country area in Texas were texting her to let me know that they were OK.
“I wasn’t sure what they were meaning because I’d been at the event all day and hadn’t seen the news,” Nelson-Lastra said. “But when I got home, I realized that the Guadalupe River had flooded, and the water rose 26 feet. My heart sank, because I attended a camp along that river as a child, and I know there were many other camps like Camp Mystic located much closer to the river than my childhood camp.”
The next day, Nelson-Lastra’s friend and her husband, who live in Kerrville, Texas in Kerr County, reached out to her to ask how they could help and mobilize help locally.
“They asked me because they know my background is in non-profits recovery efforts from my years with Goodwill,” she said. “I recommended they find their local Salvation Army, and reach out to the leadership there as Salvation Army’s mission is emergency care. I told them to offer their assistance to mobilize volunteers, set up a triage area, and be able to provide hot meals for the workers and rescue recovery teams. At that moment, I decided I needed to do something locally to help my friends and former community who were affected.”
Nelson-Lastra reached out to Dr. Dawn Belamarich , the CEO of Collaboratory, and asked her if they could set up a fund locally so that the people of Southwest Florida – who had been reaching out to her on how they could help – had a secure way to donate money. On July 6, Nelson-Lastra reached out to the Hill Country Community Foundation CEO and set up a call between him and Belamarich.
“The funds will be directly transferred to that community foundation where the money will go directly to help the families and victims of this tragedy,” Nelson-Lastra said.
Belamarich added, “Though based in Florida, our hearts are with the Hill Country community during this time of crisis. Your generosity helps provide critical support to those affected.”
Other local businesses have also reached out to Nelson-Lastra to lend their assistance. Genevieve Bruno from Bruno’s Of Brooklyn restaurant in Fort Myers, reached out via Facebook and immediately set up a supply drop off area at their restaurant.
“I was able to get them a list of what was needed, including baby items, diapers, formula, first aid kit items, and cleaning supplies,” Nelson-Lastra said. “She has been collecting for over a week, and we have about one large box truck full of items. A marine company in Port Charlotte reached out to me last week as well, and they are also collecting and will drive the items to Texas.”
According to the Associated Press, at a news conference Monday, Texas state officials said 101 people remain missing, including 97 in the Kerrville area. The Federal Emergency Management Agency’s Urban Search and Rescue teams fully resumed operations on Monday, said Obed Frometa, FEMA Blue Incident Support Team information officer. According to officials, 132 have died as a result of the flood.
“Supplies and money are still needed to help those victims,” Nelson-Lastra said. “As well as the emergency recovery workers who were still trying to locate hundreds of missing people.”
Being from the Lone Star State, this tragedy has hit close to home for Nelson-Lasta.
“Sadly, my best friend from college lost her nanny and nanny’s child in the floods,” she said. “Also, our federal lobbyist, who helps us at the city of Cape Coral, lost her 8-year-old twin nieces as their cabin was swept away at Camp Mystic.”
Nelson-Lastra attended the University of Texas in Austin in the late ’80s and early ’90s, and lived in the Hill Country for 12 years after she graduated. She said she spent many summers floating the Guadalupe River and the Comal River with friends and family.
“That area is very near and dear to my heart because many of us from Austin would vacation there just to get away and experience the peaceful calm of the rivers in that area,” Nelson-Lastra said.
“The recovery efforts in the Texas Hill Country are going to be long and take a while, as we know from our own experience dealing with Hurricane Ian three years ago. Anyone who can help support these families and this community that was so severely affected I would encourage and pray that you do.”
Nelson-Lastra has put out a request for donations to the fund via social media for her upcoming birthday on July 25. She said she plans to collect funds through the end of the month, as well as supplies, and then send a truck as well as the funds to Texas.
Florida Sen. Rick Scott and his wife Anne, are also native Texans. Their office has donated many supplies and have advertised the fund set up through Southwest Florida on their social media outlets to encourage Floridians to donate.
“I wear a silhouette charm of my home state around my neck proudly in support of my former community,” Nelson-Lastra said.
To donate to the fund, visit www.collaboratory.org.