By Sara G. Stephens, Editor-in-Chief, Houston Family Magazine
The people of Houston are overwhelmed with gratitude to the kind souls worldwide who want to help us in the wake of Harvey’s destructive force. We understand that helping is healing.
At this stage of the recovery process, the best way for people to help Harvey victims is to donate money to some of the relief groups that are well organized to distribute resources in an effective and efficient manner. The following is a compilation of some of these organizations, along with links to their pages where donors can learn more about the groups’ support efforts and strategies.
We encourage donors to research any charity before donating.
General Relief
| The Greater Houston Community Foundation | operates a Harvey relief fund created by Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner. |
| GlobalGiving | has launched a campaign to raise funds to be used for immediate needs of food, water and shelter. When these needs are met, the funds will be allocated to long-term recovery efforts. |
| United Way of Greater Houston | oversees a disaster relief fund that will require far more resources to assist in the Harvey aftermath. |
| The Center for Disaster Philanthropy | has created a Harvey relief fund focused on “addressing the greatest needs and gaps in funding that may be yet to emerge.” |
| GoFundMe | has created a landing page where  people wishing to help can find all campaigns related to helping with Harvey recovery. |
| The Salvation Army | feeds residents and provides food and water to first responders.
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| Send Relief and Southern Baptist Disaster Relief | is providing relief work. |
| Samaritan’s Purse | is accepting donations as well as volunteers for Harvey disaster relief for the coming months.
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Blood
| American Red Cross | |
| Carter BloodCare (local) | |
| South Texas Blood & Tissue Center (local) |
Shelter
| Coalition for the Homeless of Houston/Harris County | provides updated information on shelters with available beds. |
| Airbnb | the online hospitality service now has an urgent accommodations site, allowing lodging providers to open their homes to evacuees from the storm or find shelter themselves. Service fees are waived for those who check in by Sept. 1. |
Food
| Feeding Texas | is a statewide nonprofit that works alongside state and federal relief efforts. |
| Houston Food Bank  | consider donating money, rather than food, so resources can be distributed strategically, based on current needs. |
| Galveston Food Bank | consider donating money, rather than food, so resources can be distributed strategically, based on current needs. |
| Food Bank of the Golden Crescent (Victoria) | consider donating money, rather than food, so resources can be distributed strategically, based on current needs. |
| Corpus Christi Food Bank | consider donating money, rather than food, so resources can be distributed strategically, based on current needs. |
| Southeast Texas Food Bank (Beaumont) | consider donating money, rather than food, so resources can be distributed strategically, based on current needs. |
| Food Bank of the Rio Grande Valley (Pharr) | consider donating money, rather than food, so resources can be distributed strategically, based on current needs. |
| Brazos Valley Food Bank (Bryan) | consider donating money, rather than food, so resources can be distributed strategically, based on current needs. |
| Central Texas Food Bank (Austin) | consider donating money, rather than food, so resources can be distributed strategically, based on current needs. |
| San Antonio Food Bank | consider donating money, rather than food, so resources can be distributed strategically, based on current needs. |
People With Disabilities
| Portlight Strategies | facilitates projects involving people with disabilities, including post-disaster relief work. |
Kids
| Save the Children | is providing relief supplies and services to help children and families in shelters and other victims of Hurricane Harvey. |
| Texas Diaper Bank | provides partner agencies with diapers and goods for babies, children with disabilities, and seniors. |
Animals
| The SPCA of Texas | is organizing evacuations of pets in Texas and offers information on pet-friendly housing for evacuees. |
| Austin Pets Alive! | seeks donations, as well as people who can adopt animals. The organization is running out of storage space for all the donated supplies and encourages financial donations at this point. |
