Hurricane Harvey devastated thousands of homes across the Houston area. Now, Thanksgiving has come and gone, yet evidence of the storm still litters driveway after driveway in some neighborhoods in Katy.
Talking about the loss is still hard for Meghan Flanagan, who lives in the Canyon Gate subdivision with her teenage daughter.
“Everything was gone. Mold reached 48 inches, so basically everything was gone. It was devastating to see an entire lifetime of things…you just have nothing,” she said.
A new non-profit, called the Harvey Housing Recovery Project, stepped in to help.
The group was created by Fort Bend County residents whose mission is to rebuild local neighborhoods.
“The neighborhood we’re in is called Canyon Gate. There were 720 homes in this neighborhood and they all flooded. The floodwaters came up and it sat for seven days, so the mold crept up and most of these homes had the sheet rock cut four to six feet,” said Kristina Bozoarth, the president and founder of HHRP.
The non-profit is completely volunteer and donation driven.
HHRP volunteers worked through the Thanksgiving weekend to finish work on Flanagan’s house.
“We have taken her to a point where it’s manageable for her to finish the rest of her repairs herself, and the FEMA money she has remaining will allow her to do that,” said Bozoarth.
The Harvey Housing Recovery Project is still working on several other homes.
“It’s very humbling to be able to ask and receive help. It’s amazing how many people I’ve seen in and out of the home that don’t know me or my daughter, but they come out to spend their free time doing physical labor,” said Flanagan.
For more information about the Harvey Housing Recovery Project click here.