I have been away from Steemit for a bit.

Not on purpose though, it's just gotten so busy for my family and myself lately due to assisting our friends and family who are suffering the affects of Hurricane Maria which devastated the island of Puerto Rico (as well as some other Caribbean Islands), back in September.

Ever since the storm, many Boricuas (Puerto Ricans) who live on the island have had to deal with no running water, contaminated streams and rivers, no electricity, and no food (over 80% of the food crops were destroyed). Besides the high winds from the storm, floods as well as mudslides have decimated homes, farms, and businesses. Due to the territory status of the island and the antiquated Jones Act, which prevents other countries from aiding the island directly, Puerto Ricans are suffering greatly.

As a result, many of the Puerto Rican Diaspora throughout the world are scrambling to help their family and friends back home. From fundraising to physically delivering basic supplies to those in need, Diaspora Puerto Ricans and supportive allies are tirelessly rallying to fill the void left by red tape and government bureaucracy.

Many houses were destroyed during the storm and, as of this post, hundreds of thousands are still without electricity and/or running water



Once lush trees are slowly recovering months after the storm



A huge boulder that fell from the side of the mountain barely missed this house

Awesome Allies

After chatting with fellow members on the YouAreHOPE Discord Server at: https://discord.gg/zkTeKeS , members quickly asked how they can help those in Puerto Rico who are affected by the storm, as a result, 10,000 Organic, Heirloom Seeds in 30 Food Varieties were donated by @sircork and @topkpop donated to the gofundme set up by the grassroots group that I am a part of, Voces Del Barrio. With these and other wonderful donations, we were able to send supplies, seeds, and food as well as hand deliver much needed items like solar panels and water filters to the families in need in the hardest to reach areas of the island.

Baby food for the little ones



Basic essentials and toiletries



Live saving seeds for small farms and home gardens



All taped up and ready to be shipped from the mailbox store


We are expecting to send more supplies and volunteer on the island in the coming months, so stay tuned for updates!

₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪
10, 000 Thank you's for the generous donations from:
@sircork
@topkpop
YOU are HOPE!!
₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪


And if you are interested in donating please visit @youarehope:

"YouAreHOPE brings Help, Opportunity, Purpose & Empowerment to disadvantaged people worldwide via our Agents of HOPE, in-country steemitizens, who work as boots on the ground to deliver food, water, clothing & more with the help of our generous community & the borderless power of the STEEM cryptocurrency on and across the transparent STEEM blockchain. @YouAreHOPE was founded by Steem Witness @SirCork in October, 2017." source

If you like this post please feel free to upvote & resteem!

Join the @thealliance and @steemusa today- both wonderful and supportive Steemit communities!