How to help the Texas flooding victims

Anytime a tragedy hits, Texans are really quick to help each other step up. One organization helping coordinate some of the recovery efforts in Central Texas already is the Community Foundation of the Texas Hill Country. And joining us this morning is the CEO, Austin Dixon. Hi there, sir. Hello, good morning. So your organization raised $150 million after last year's flood disaster. I'm curious, how far did that take in recovery efforts? Was that enough? We were able to deploy well over half of that in a 12-month period, repairing and rebuilding homes, supporting mental health across our region and the state, and helping rebuild little league fields and public parks, supporting small business. And of course, those emergency needs short after the disaster. But the current flooding is a regional disaster that's bigger than even one county. And so we've set up the Texas Hill Country Flood Relief Fund to support communities across the Hill Country that have experienced evacuations, displacement, business disruption, and a lot of people without homes right now. Yeah, I think a lot of people after last year thought, okay, that was a once-in-a-lifetime storm. But here we are again, and the heaviness of this happening again. I keep seeing it over and over. I know Buckwild Rescue, the owner there, she said, it feels like we're being kicked when we're already down. And she said in one post that it's hard to even see a way forward right now. I think that's where you guys come in. You can understand that feeling, but also you're there to help too. And that's part of being Texas strong. Absolutely. The Hill Country in Texas is resilient and strong. And sure, it does feel like a gut punch, and we're definitely set back. But this is a disruption and an interruption, but it is not the end of the story. We will pursue solutions to recovery, and we'll work really hard and get the job done. And donations are going to be used thoughtfully, quickly, and with highest efficiency to help people get back on their feet again. And so while today, this week is a hard week, I'm also optimistic about what we build next. Yeah. I'm curious, when you now look at some of these spots that you're now rebuilding where you've already rebuilt, like the Centerpoint Volunteer Fire Department, for example, you could hear in those firefighters' voices yesterday, when I'm watching the video, he's like, well, here was our new refrigerator. Here was our new washer and dryer, our new walk-in cooler that we had. How do you weigh what to do in situations like that? At what point do you say, yeah, maybe rebuilding isn't what we need to do. Maybe we need to move things. Yeah. In that specific example, they do have future plans to move to higher ground, and so some of those replacements were just to keep things operational while they build their new facility. But it's absolutely a question for civic leaders, city and county and regional leaders across the area is, what can and cannot you do in certain areas? The role of philanthropy is really to support people with emergency needs and to support long-term human recovery needs. But it's really up to our government officials to determine what is able to be repaired or replaced and where. And that's where you guys come in. Donations really needed right now. Here's the QR code, and make sure your money goes exactly where it is needed most. You scan the QR code, you donate. They've made it super easy. We have a link on our website, fox4news.com as well. Austin, thank you for the work you're doing and the long road you got ahead. We appreciate it. Thank you for having me.