Minneotans helping ‘Harvey’ victims

Minneota is doing its part to assist the victims of Hurricane Harvey, one of the most powerful hurricanes to hit Texas in over 50 years.

A bucket will be placed at the Bug Hut throughout Boxelder Bug Days for anyone willing to donate to those that lost their homes and belongings in Houston and other parts of Texas. The five churches in Minneota are all planning to assist Texas in some way in the aftermath of the storm.

Hope Lutheran Church’s Mission Endowment Fund, which allocates 20 percent of its proceeds each year for global outreach, will match any donations from the churches and the donation bucket up to $4,000.

“Thrivent Financial will also match any donations we come up with,” said Scott Josephson, a longtime chairman of Boxelder Bug Days. “So if someone donates one dollar, it could be multiplied four times with all the matches.”

Thrivent Financial initially offered to match any donations up to $500,000 across the nation, but recently upped the ante to $3 million, according to its website. Thrivent’s offer runs until Dec. 31, 2017 or until amassing $3 million in donations.

To put that into perspective, if an individual donated $1 into the Bug Hut “bucket”, it would turn into $2 with Hope Lutheran’s matching bid, and then eventually into $4 with Thrivent Financial’s match.

“We will also be taking offerings at the community worship Sunday morning (10 a.m.) during Boxelder Bug Days,” noted Josephson.

St. Edward Catholic Church will hold a second offering Sunday for the victims of Hurricane Harvey.

The church is also collecting supplies to be sent to Texas. Hemnes Lutheran Church and Bethel Fellowship Church will also all be taking part in the Hurricane Harvey relief efforts, with the money they accrue also being matched by the Hope Lutheran Mission Endowment Fund and, in turn, by Thrivent. St. Paul’s Lutheran Church will be taking part in the Lutheran Disaster Relief program next week through Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA).

Hurricane Harvey lingered off the coast as a tropical storm for days, inundating flood-prone Houston. The storm brought five days of rain, totaling close to 52 inches, the heaviest tropical downpour ever recorded in the continental United States.

The death toll from the storm stood at 50 as of Sunday and the storm affected nearly 60 counties in Texas. The Texas Department of Public Safety said more than 37,000 homes were heavily damaged and nearly 7,000 others were destroyed.

There were also tens of thousands homes that sustained minor damage. Around 325,000 individuals have already sought federal emergency aid in the wake of Hurricane Harvey. The waters started to recede late last week and officials will now be able to assess the damage much better.

Anyone wishing to donate should write their checks to Boxelder Bug Days and include Hurricane Harvey on the memo line in order for the committee to properly deposit the checks and properly transfer the money through the Hope Lutheran Endowment fund and Thrivent Financial.