As I sat down to write my post this morning, all I could think about are the fires currently raging around Austin. Many fires surround Austin, including the huge Bastrop fire. Thousands of acres are burned, hundreds of homes are destroyed. Yesterday, family driving through town said they could see smoke in literally every direction. I have friends who have lost their home, everything they owned. And yet another fire has come up, this one in Austin proper. It’s just horrifying. The authorities are doing everything that they can, but the perfect storm of relentless drought, low humidity, and high winds are proving to be too much. The only silver lining I can see is that according to the local paper, no fatalities have been reported.

I am sending my thoughts out to the people who are affected by this, and hope you all can do the same.

If you would like to help:

The American Red Cross of Central Texas is accepting monetary donations.

If you are in Central Texas, the Capital Area Food Bank is accepting non-perishable donations at their headquarters.

 

The following locations are accepting clothing donations:

• Old Wind’s/Dollar General Store, 210 Main St, Smithville, TX
• Zion Church, Drop off Rundell Business Park, 704 Hwy 71 West, Bastrop TX
• St. Vincent de Paul South Congress Store, (512) 442-5652, 1327 South Congress Ave, Austin, TX
• St. Vincent de Paul Yager Collection Center, (512) 238-6737, 18 West Yager Ln, Austin, TX