Help for HawaiiÂ
Stamford-based Americares is among the organizations that have swung into action in response to the devastating Maui wildfires, deploying an emergency team.
At press time, Maui County officials reported the fire has taken at least 106 lives (with some 1,300 people missing), injured dozens and destroyed or damaged some 2,200 structures.”¯Officials warned that the death toll could rise as multiple fires on the island are still burning. On Aug. 10, President Joe Biden approved an”¯emergency disaster declaration, authorizing the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to provide support and federal funding for the recovery.
“Thousands of families are in need of assistance, including many who, sadly, lost their homes in this tragic disaster,” said Americares Director of U.S. Emergency Response Mariel Fonteyn.
Mainland-based Americares emergency response experts arrived in Honolulu Aug. 11 to make their way to the hardest hit communities. The team is assessing the needs of local health-care facilities, coordinating emergency shipments of medicine and relief supplies and working with local and national organizations responding to the crisis.
At the same time, Americares is sending hygiene kits, first-aid supplies and other critically needed items to partner organizations in Hawaii. The health-focused relief and development organization is also prepared to provide emergency funding to help restore health services for low-income and uninsured residents in affected communities.”¯
Americares has professional relief workers ready to respond to disasters at a moment”™s notice and stocks emergency medicine and supplies in warehouses in the United States, Europe and India that can be delivered quickly in times of crisis. The organization responds to more than 30 natural disasters and humanitarian crises worldwide each year, establishes long-term recovery projects and brings preparedness programs to communities vulnerable to disasters. Americares has responded to some of the worst wildfires in the U.S., including the 2017 California wildfires, the 2018 Carr Fire, the 2020 Apple Fire and the massive 2020 wildfires that scorched swaths of the West Coast.
Since its founding more than 40 years ago, Americares has provided $22 billion in aid to 164 countries.”¯
Donations to”¯Americares U.S. Disaster Response Fund”¯will support its response to this emergency. To donate, visit”¯americares.org/usdisasters
Meanwhile, ”¯PXG, a company dedicated to developing golf equipment and apparel, has announced a $1 million donation to”¯Team Rubicon, a veteran-led disaster relief organization. The funds will support Team Rubicon”™s ability to provide support in Maui.
By pairing the skills and experiences of military veterans with first responders, medical professionals and technology solutions, the organization mobilizes highly trained teams to have the greatest effect possible. ”¯
“Team Rubicon quickly coordinates and deploys trained military veterans, first responders and civilians as volunteers for disaster relief efforts,” PXG Founder and CEO Bob Parsons said. “We have witnessed the dedicated volunteers who make up its ranks fall in to embrace and empower devastated communities. Today, we look to bolster their efforts in Maui and help their boots on the ground to do what they do best.”
“In the past 10 years,”¯Team Rubicon has built a dedicated team of over 1,000 Greyshirt volunteer leaders in Hawaii,” added Art delaCruz, Team Rubicon CEO. “Currently, we”¯have boots on the ground and”¯are in close communication with local authorities and emergency managers to offer our immediate help in shelter setups, food distribution, donation management and distribution and staff for the local Emergency Operation Center. We are extremely grateful to our partners at PXG for their unwavering commitment to supporting those in need.”
Over the years, Team Rubicon has supported the communities of Hawaii with fire mitigation projects and operations on several of the islands.”¯In May, volunteers conducted a wildfire mitigation operation in Honolulu at the request of Hawaii Firewise. Team Rubicon last supported the island of Maui with a storm response in December 2021.
This isn’t the first time that PXG has supported Team Rubicon. Following Hurricane Harvey in 2017, PXG’s commitment of $1 million helped fuel Team Rubicon’s immediate response. The donation also helped kick off a pilot “Rebuild” program committed to reestablishing 100 homes in the Houston area. Similarly, PXG’s $1 million donation for Hurricane Irma relief funded much of the Team Rubicon response.”¯
A committed partner, PXG also supported Hurricane Florence relief efforts and, through an innovative “Essential Face Mask” campaign led by President and Executive Creative Director of PXG Apparel Renee Parsons, helped raise awareness of Team Rubicon’s Neighbors Helping Neighbors Covid-19 initiative.
PXG supported relief efforts in Louisiana in 2020. Within hours of Hurricane Laura making landfall, Team Rubicon was on the ground working to clear roadways to help first responders.”¯In the hours and days following, Team Rubicon deployed more Greyshirts to Louisiana and Texas, ultimately resulting in more than 800 volunteer deployments between the two states during their response work. In the wake of the storm, PXG”™s Parsons traveled to Louisiana to see Team Rubicon”™s efforts in action and evaluate the devastation in-person. As a result of the visit, PXG and The Bob & Renee Parsons Foundation donated $2 million to support the needs of the Louisiana community.”¯
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