Hurricane Harvey and H-E-B

When we left for Florida last week, Hurricane Harvey was threatening landfall in Corpus Christi, where my husband has relatives. Of course, like everyone at the time we were relieved to hear it was going to miss Corpus ... and then horrified at the havoc wrought upon Houston by the never ending rainfall. We were relieved to find that my husband's Houston-based relatives were not in danger but the flooding in such familiar areas is really surreal to people who know it well.

While we donate and help however we can (my charitable avenue is Catholic Charities), let's not forget the power of prayer. God will help in ways we cannot foresee.

May God, the Lord of mercy and compassion, protect all who are still in danger, and bring to safety those who are missing.

May He care in a special way for those who were already homeless, or without support and resources, before this disaster.

We pray in thanksgiving for the first responders who are risking their lives to save others at this very moment.

We include in our intentions the everyday heroes reaching out to help their neighbors in need, those who, like the Good Samaritan, cannot walk by a person in need without offering their hand in aid.

Amen.

Cardinal Daniel DiNardo, Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston

Speaking of tangible aid, I found this video heartwarming. H-E-B is a Texas grocery store chain which is much beloved throughout the state. Certainly, I love their Central Market which is near my house. So I was happy to see how much a part of the community they are.