As Sherry and I discussed on this week’s podcast, we’ve both been deeply affected by the devastation Hurricane Maria brought to Puerto Rico. It’s hard to watch anywhere, but having been on the island just a few months ago celebrating our ten-year anniversary makes it especially heartbreaking to see this place we love struggling.
The news has shown how the loss of electricity, clean water, fuel, phone service, and food has created dire conditions across Puerto Rico. A friend whose husband works with FEMA recently returned from the island and was stunned by how steep the recovery will be, largely because of widespread power outages. Hospitals can only run on generators for so long, and with fuel scarce they’re forced to postpone surgeries and watch medications lose effectiveness when refrigeration isn’t available. He even estimated that many children might be out of school for up to a year. It’s difficult to grasp the scale of the crisis.
We made an early donation to United for Puerto Rico because we wanted to feel like we were doing something, but we still lay awake at night wishing we could do more. To take action, we reached out by email to companies we’ve worked with recently — podcast sponsors, collaborators, and others — asking if they would consider donating as well. We’d never tried something like this before and weren’t sure what to expect, especially knowing many organizations were already committing resources to Harvey and Irma relief.
We’re thrilled and humbled to share that we’ve raised $12,000 so far. All donations were directed to relief efforts through United for Puerto Rico, and we’re incredibly grateful to the companies that responded immediately and generously. Below are the organizations that contributed via our outreach*
DAP Products | Shades of Light | The Annie Selke Co. | HANDy Paint | Sabrina Soto | Delta Faucet
Universal Furniture | Cardboard Safari | Grove Collaborative | West Elm | Wohven T-Shirt Subscription
*Many of the companies we contacted were already donating through other channels; their absence from this list does not indicate a lack of willingness to help.
If you’d like to help as well, you can donate to United for Puerto Rico. Even a small contribution from many people can add up to a significant, potentially life-saving difference for those affected.
Thank you all for your support. <3