Figures and teams from across the country are pitching in to help.
For the past week, Hurricane Harvey has left much of the city of Houston underwater. The flood waters have destroyed homes, displaced families, and killed at least 30 people so far. While Houston police and emergency response teams have been hard at work providing assistance to victims, athletes and sport organizations across the country have pitched in through creative ways to aid relief efforts.
For starters, Houston Texans’ defensive end JJ Watt started a crowd funding effort through YouCaring.com with the initial goal of raising $200,000. Two days later, that fund has reached $5 million.
$4 MILLION!
New Goal: $5 Million.https://t.co/SR6DmnNbyM pic.twitter.com/HRffs6YcrD
— JJ Watt (@JJWatt) August 30, 2017
That amount has included hefty donations from sport industry figures like Chris Paul and Tennessee Titans owner Amy Adams, who personally donated $1 million.
Meanwhile, the head coach of the University of Houston men’s basketball program Kelvin Sampson devised a plan to supply those who lost their homes and possessions with clean clothes. This included a tweet asking any team at the college or high school level to donate shirts and shoes.
#HoustonStrong #ForTheCity #GoCoogs pic.twitter.com/aAlkkcNqnE
— Coach Kelvin Sampson (@CoachSampsonUH) August 28, 2017
The response has been incredibly positive with well over a hundred teams and programs putting together boxes or pledging to do so.
With football season scheduled to kick off this weekend and baseball season still in full swing, several athletic events were postponed while a few were relocated. The best example of this was the series between the Houston Astros and Texas Rangers. With the Astros unable to play host, the Tampa Bay Rays stepped in and allowed the series to be played at the covered Tropicana Field in Tampa.
Welcoming our friends from Texas to Tropicana Field today!
TICKET INFO // https://t.co/V5BKzlMikh pic.twitter.com/K1NrBG2bMk
— Tampa Bay Rays (@RaysBaseball) August 29, 2017
All proceeds from tickets, concessions and parking from Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday will be donated to Hurricane Harvey relief efforts.
Baylor University is providing a similar service for the Sam Houston State vs. Richmond game scheduled for Friday night. The school has decided to let the two schools play their game at McLane Stadium in Waco, Texas free of charge with free admission for fans as well.
Additionally, Baylor is reportedly offering free admission to their own home opener on Saturday night with free food for families affected by the storm.
📝 HELPING OUT HOUSTON: Bears Lending Hand to Hurricane Survivorshttps://t.co/2RqeDTfLkC pic.twitter.com/lWGXsFWrL0
— Baylor Athletics (@BaylorAthletics) August 30, 2017
The lesson to take from this unfortunate situation is that there is always some way to help, wether that be as an individual or as an organization. If you want to help, you can find some way to devote your time or resources to those who really need it.
At Front Office Sports, we’ve set up our own page where you can donate to Hurricane Harvey relief efforts, which you can find here. Join us and the rest of the sport industry in aiding the people of Texas and Louisiana.
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