Hurricane IKE

As Hurricane Ike headed toward the Galveston coast Bay Area Turning Point received news that the shelter location was under mandatory evacuation.  It was critically necessary to evacuate 72 women and children residing in the Shelter. They moved to other shelters throughout the greater Houston area and to other cities. Women who had their own transportation were given gas and travel money so that they could evacuate and reach their destination safely. Bay Area Turning Point staff members worked through the Thursday before the hurricane, delaying their personal evacuation, until all shelter clients were safely relocated.  Some employees even traveled with the clients to the other shelters and stayed with them there until they could “return home”.

Once Ike had passed, it left behind damage that required immediate attention to return the Shelter to a safe place.  The privacy fence needed to be rebuilt, roofing and sheetrock needed repair, the facilities needed to be cleaned and the food and living supplies needed to be replenished.  Our community partners stepped in to help.

Rubin Gilmore organized the fence project, working with volunteers and agency staff.  We had forty-five volunteers help us repair the fence and clean-up the shelter.  When the CEO told our community that we needed assistance, their response was immediate.  Companies, local churches, agency board members and caring individuals brought meat, dairy products, paper products and baby care supplies.  Please help us thank the shining stars in our time of need:  LyondellBasell Industries, Star Toyota, Target, St. John the Theologian, Valero, Boeing, and Sisters of Charity of the Incarnate Word.  The individual donors who responded are such a number that it would not be feasible to mention each one.  Volunteer Houston, Volunteer Bay Area, and United Way sent volunteers to help us clear debris and clean the Shelter.  Even while coping with their own damages and recovery, people joined us to help prepare the Shelter to re-open on September 23^rd.  It is a rewarding sight to see the look on a persons face when they receive help, but it is equally rewarding to see the joy and enthusiasm of the person in the role as a giver.  Volunteers and donors not only supplied us with the help needed to get a critically needed resource back on-line, they inspired and motivated us by their joy in making that goal happen quickly.  The feeling of gratitude Bay Area Turning Point has for our community partners is indescribable.

 As the Bay Area moves forward from Ike, Bay Area Turning Point begins a very important month.  October is Domestic Violence Awareness month and Bay Area Turning Point will be involved in many community activities to help raise awareness about Domestic Violence.  We not only want to provide recovery solutions for survivors of domestic violence but we want to work with the community to facilitate violence prevention strategies to end domestic violence and sexual assault all together.  Domestic Violence awareness month will also be a time to honor and provide healing to those women in our Shelter who were brave enough to seek help and begin to rebuild their lives.

To show your support for Bay Area Turning Point during the month of October you can participate in fundraisers which support our organization.  On October 12^th at 2pm the Church World Service is sponsoring the CROP Walk in Clear Lake Park. The CROP Walk is an annual charitable walk and fundraiser for the local community.  Donations and non-perishable food items will be collected to benefit local charities, including Bay Area Turning Point. If you enjoy a game of tennis or golf, Bay Oaks Country Club is holding the ClubCorp Charity Classic hosting a tennis tournament on October 24^th and a golf tournament on the 25^th.  To find out more details and register go to www.clubcorpcharityclassic.com.  Bay Area Turning Point will also be raising awareness for Domestic Violence at various Chamber of Commerce meetings in the Bay Area.

If you would like to discover more ways you can become involved with Bay Area Turning Point call us at 281-338-7600. Bay Area Turning Point provides shelter; individual therapy; support groups; children’s services; legal/court advocacy and accompaniment; and prevention and education workshops to the community.  To learn more about our organization visit us online at www.bayareaturningpoint.org. If you are anyone you know is a victim of domestic violence or sexual assault please call our 24 hour hotline 281-286-2525.