TEXAS – During a news conference with Texas Gov. Greg Abbott on Thursday, it was announced a $40 million commitment to support victims of the July 4 floods in the Texas Hill Country.
Abbott was joined by Austin Dickson, CEO of the Community Foundation of the Texas Hill Country, Hunt ISD Superintendent Luci Harmon, and other federal, state and local officials, as well as business, community and nonprofit leaders.
Earlier this month, Kerr County officials named all of the 117 flood victims. Two victims remain missing, officials said.
Dickson said the Community Foundation has committed $40 million to a new housing fund to help families displaced by the floods.
The fund will provide temporary housing assistance, including for families to temporarily stay in Airbnbs, make repairs and rebuilding through local nonprofits and builders, RV repairs and replacements, and case managers to assist families through recovery for the next 18 months or longer.
“This fund is about more than rebuilding houses; it’s about restoring hope and dignity for Hill Country families,” Austin Dickson, CEO of the Community Foundation of the Texas Hill Country, said. “We cannot do this alone, and we are grateful for the extraordinary collaboration of our partners and the generosity of donors who are stepping up in a remarkable way.”
The $40 million commitment will be allocated geographically–based on needs assessments and state/federal disaster data–as follows:
- 50% to Western Kerr County
- 40% to Central Kerr County
- 10% to Eastern Kerr County (including,)
In addition to the $40 million housing commitment, the foundation has granted $16 million to more than 50 local nonprofit organizations in the first 45 days of recovery.
That support has helped more than 700 families with emergency assistance, supported over 200 small businesses, and funded 17 volunteer fire departments and local school districts, including Hunt and Ingram, Dickson said.
The Community Foundation’s long-term response is organized into four categories: housing, mental health and well-being, economic recovery, and quality of life and long-term recovery needs.
The foundation’s board of trustees has also appointed a local advisory council made up of community leaders with experience in housing.
“In my experience as governor, I’ve never seen a community or a foundation respond faster, literally getting resources donated to the people who need it the most,” Abbott said. “Today, with this announcement, $40 million is going to go directly to help people actually get back into their homes. We have so many generous people here in the state of Texas who have supported that effort. Thank you to everyone involved in the process of making sure that this community receives these funds and gets back into their homes as quickly as possible.”