We sent Rick Browne to Houston to work with OBR and report back. As you know, we donate 5% of all memberships to OBR and we are among their largest donors. His first dispatch:
arrived here at the airport and 2:30pm and immediately went to the OBR site, found Stan Hays and he gave me a tour
the parking lot is filled with huge piles of #10 cans of vegetables and fruit, huge stacks of bottled water, wood, propane and other fuels, an six huge smokers in the central area under tents, around the entire perimeter of the parking lot are about a dozen other barbecue pits, from all over the country, all cooking up pulled pork or chicken, or roast pork or turkey
the main group takes the pulled pork and loads it into plastic bags, which they put into igloo coolers and send out to various locations so the food can be given out, also today they packaged up over 500 meals (pork slice, green or baked beans, slice of bread and sealed the individual meals into small containers, these were shipped by an Apache helicopter to Beaumont (which is still underwater and without drinking water) and Lockport
earlier in the day a larger Chinook helicopter took loads of clothing, diapers, medical supplies, and other-non food items to several spots around Houston
The work was non-stop from the time I got there until 7:30pm when the last of the dinners were sent out, then they immediately began prepping 600+ pork butts for tomorrow, putting on rub and putting them into the rotating carousal smokers, they will pull the meat tomorrow early and get ready to send it out to dozens of locations around Houston
tomorrow I hope to get on one of the Chinooks to follow OBR food to these stranded cities, and get images of the food being dropped off
then on Wed I hope to go out to several locations and interview and get pics. of residents getting meals from OBR
In my 40+ years as a photojournalist covering major disasters (earthquakes, forest fires, riots, tornadoes, hurricanes, etc.) I have never seen an organization so compassionate, caring and professional about getting food and supplies to those affected by the disaster
50,000 meals in one day!! by my count they’ve already passed out more than 100,000 meals since they arrived here, and there are many thousands more to come
will talk to you tomorrow and probably do another report like this. but right now I’m about to pass out from exhaustion so heading to bed
arrived here at the airport and 2:30pm and immediately went to the OBR site, found Stan Hays and he gave me a tour
the parking lot is filled with huge piles of #10 cans of vegetables and fruit, huge stacks of bottled water, wood, propane and other fuels, an six huge smokers in the central area under tents, around the entire perimeter of the parking lot are about a dozen other barbecue pits, from all over the country, all cooking up pulled pork or chicken, or roast pork or turkey
the main group takes the pulled pork and loads it into plastic bags, which they put into igloo coolers and send out to various locations so the food can be given out, also today they packaged up over 500 meals (pork slice, green or baked beans, slice of bread and sealed the individual meals into small containers, these were shipped by an Apache helicopter to Beaumont (which is still underwater and without drinking water) and Lockport
earlier in the day a larger Chinook helicopter took loads of clothing, diapers, medical supplies, and other-non food items to several spots around Houston
The work was non-stop from the time I got there until 7:30pm when the last of the dinners were sent out, then they immediately began prepping 600+ pork butts for tomorrow, putting on rub and putting them into the rotating carousal smokers, they will pull the meat tomorrow early and get ready to send it out to dozens of locations around Houston
tomorrow I hope to get on one of the Chinooks to follow OBR food to these stranded cities, and get images of the food being dropped off
then on Wed I hope to go out to several locations and interview and get pics. of residents getting meals from OBR
In my 40+ years as a photojournalist covering major disasters (earthquakes, forest fires, riots, tornadoes, hurricanes, etc.) I have never seen an organization so compassionate, caring and professional about getting food and supplies to those affected by the disaster
50,000 meals in one day!! by my count they’ve already passed out more than 100,000 meals since they arrived here, and there are many thousands more to come
will talk to you tomorrow and probably do another report like this. but right now I’m about to pass out from exhaustion so heading to bed
Comment