The fallout from the coronavirus pandemic has been felt across the Coastal Bend, which is why Corpus Christi Mayor Joe McComb is trying to get money to those who need it most.
Thursday the mayor announced that he, in a partnership with the Coastal Bend Community Foundation, is setting up his Disaster Relief Fund. Money from that fund will go to non-profits helping people affected by the COVID-19 crisis.
“You can see the need is there.,” said McComb. “We need to respond as a community, and we want to do that. It’s affecting a lot of people, it’s affecting a lot of our friends,” said McComb. "It probably affects more people than a hurricane.”
The fund’s purpose is to help those who are helping others during the crisis. The mayor set up a similar fund in the aftermath of Hurricane Harvey in 2017.
“He knows of the need, he knows we need as much support as we can get,” said Coastal Bend Food Bank Executive Director Bea Hanson.
Just like after Harvey, the Coastal Bend Food Bank is one of the charities the mayor’s fund will help. Last month, as the crisis started, the food bank doubled its distribution.
“We have seen a lot of people that have never used our services,” said Hanson. “They’ve had to come to us because they lost their job unexpectedly.”
Hanson says the food bank also faced a $100,000 budget shortfall, adding the warehouse is only a third full.
“We have been using whatever we already had in the warehouse, but it is going fast,” said Hanson.
While the mayor has asked several potential sponsors for large donations, he asks for the public’s help as well. Anyone wishing to donate can visit the donation page on the Coastal Bend Community Foundation’s website.
“No donation is too small or too great,” said McComb. “The sky’s the limit and the more you give the better it is because the demand will be tremendous.”
In addition to the food bank, other charities eligible for the fund include the Amistad Community Health Center, Bethune Early Child Development, Catholic Charities of Corpus Christi, Coastal Bend Wellness Foundation, Hope House, Metro Ministries, Family Counseling Services, Good Samaritan Rescue Mission, HALO Flight, Mission 911, Mother Teresa Shelter, New Life Refuge Ministries, Nueces Center for Mental Health and Intellectual Disabilities, Ronald McDonald House, The Ark Assessment Center, Salvation Army, Timon’s Ministries, Wesley Community Center, Women’s Shelter of South Texas, and The Purple Door.
The mayor’s Hurricane Harvey fund raised more than a million dollars, he’s hoping people and businesses are as generous this time.