Building Community Resiliency: Our Disaster Response Journey 

Beginning on May 2, 2024, severe weather and flooding hit the northeast Houston region, including northeast Harris County and Montgomery County. While the impact of Hurricane Harvey was more widespread geographically, hundreds of households experienced similar levels of rainfall amounts and flood levels as that historic event. And as hurricane season approaches, climate researchers at Colorado State University, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), and the National Hurricane Center are all predicting that we have a well above average chance of major hurricanes – yes, hurricanes with an “s” – making landfall along the US coast and the Caribbean this year. Upper limit predictions say we could see 33 named storms, including 12 hurricanes, 6 of which are major.  

In addition to this concerning forecast, we know that the historic and anticipated impacts from disaster are significant for the Houston region. According to data from Understanding Houston, the three-county region of Harris, Fort Bend, and Montgomery counties have experienced 26 federally declared disasters in the past 40 years. In the same region, 3.4 million (58%) people live in a census tract with at least medium to high social vulnerability, meaning they face socio-economic circumstances that make them more likely to experience harm from disaster and less likely to be able to access the resources they need to recover.  

This data and context highlights the critical importance of disaster preparedness in our region, which is why Greater Houston Community Foundation (Foundation) and United Way of Greater Houston (United Way) have formed the Greater Houston Disaster Alliance. This philanthropic partnership aims to catalyze public and private partnerships and strengthen year-round preparedness, ensuring our region has the systems and network in place to respond rapidly, equitably, and effectively during times of disaster.  

Thanks to the generosity and leadership of Enbridge and Phillips 66, the first three years of this important work has been funded and we are working every day to accelerate disaster recovery and reduce repeated harms caused by disaster.  

A history of disaster response

Greater Houston Community Foundation has a long history of serving as a resource and collaborative partner during great hardship, helping donors provide immediate and long-term disaster relief to Houstonians in need. In addition to partnering with donors, we partner with businesses looking to provide financial assistance to employees who have experienced losses from federally qualified disasters. Although previous years brought many hardships for the greater Houston region, it also allowed us to work collaboratively with those around us to create a long-lasting impact.  

Over the past 20 years, the Foundation has administered nine independent disaster or crisis relief funds, granting more than $214 million to local, trusted nonprofits to provide relief and assistance to disaster survivors. None of this would have been possible without: 

• past elected leaders like Mayors Bill White and Sylvester Turner and Harris County Judges Ed Emmett and Lina Hidalgo,  

• local philanthropic and corporate leaders who catalyzed action, including Arnold Ventures, CenterPoint Energy, Houston Endowment, and Phillips 66, just to name a few; and  

• community leaders who supported fundraising and grant strategy like LaMecia Butler, Tony Chase, and Y. Ping Sun. 

Time and time again, public and private leaders have come together to help Houston recover. The Foundation has been honored to support this critical work for our community.  

While both the Foundation and United Way of Greater Houston had built reputations as local leaders with an incredible capacity to activate critical resources during times of crisis, the duplication often led to confusion among the community. Donors perceived our efforts as overlapping, and nonprofits were uncertain about which fund to seek support from. 

Building partnership during disaster recovery

While we began collaborating during the recovery from Hurricane Harvey, the Foundation and United Way have worked intentionally to build its partnership over time. This was solidified during the COVID-19 pandemic through our first joint fund in Houston, transitioning from individual efforts to collective action and standing together to help our community during unprecedented times. 

With the appropriate governance and structures in place, the two organizations partnered again to activate a joint Winter Storm Relief fund in 2021 in partnership with then-Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner and Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo as well as an amazing team of volunteer leaders supporting fundraising.  

The impact of these two collaborative joint funds was incredible –nearly $40 million raised across both disasters was distributed to almost 150 nonprofits, benefiting 240,000 adults, children, and seniors during these crises. Additionally, from the initial distribution of the COVID grants to the first round of Winter Storm grants, we decreased the turnaround time for committing funds to nonprofits from 24 days to 4 days, helping us serve our most vulnerable neighbors as quickly as possible. 

As we concluded active work on these funds and looked at recommendations from third-party evaluations, both organizations recognized the opportunity – and need – to focus year-round attention on disaster preparedness in the Houston region, therefore forming the Greater Houston Disaster Alliance (Disaster Alliance).  

Thanks to this partnership, the Disaster Alliance has identified an approach for every disaster: manmade or natural, widespread to hyper-local. The Disaster Alliance, in consultation with local elected officials and community leaders, will establish a joint fund for future disasters when the scale reaches a significant threshold. In the instance of hyper-local disasters, like the recent river flooding in northeastern Harris County and Montgomery County, the Disaster Alliance will work to connect donors with nonprofits who are actively responding.  

Strategy and scope of work

The Center for Disaster Philanthropy recently released its 2023 State of Disaster Philanthropy report, which showed that $2.5 billion (more than 82%) of domestic disaster funding went to immediate disaster relief and response in 2021, with less than 10% of resources going to long-term recovery, preparedness, and resiliency efforts. This data underscores the need for strategic disaster philanthropy focused on strengthening preparedness, and long-term recovery. While immediate response and relief is always critical, the Disaster Alliance’s focus in these essential areas will allow us to build a more resilient region and reduce the repeated harms caused by disaster – particularly on our most vulnerable communities.  

Through this data evaluation and engagement with our local nonprofit network, three strategic goals emerged for the Disaster Alliance: 

• Raise and deploy funds as quickly as possible, with a focus on supporting timely recovery for our most vulnerable neighbors. 

• Increase equitable access to resources during and after a disaster. 

• Catalyze public and private collaboration to strengthen our region’s resiliency.  

Building momentum: how we’re ready 

In the first year, the Disaster Alliance was focused on building its infrastructure by: 

• Hiring two full-time staff members. 

• Engaging our local government leadership to align on roles and expectations. 

• Establishing the Disaster Recovery Council, a year-round governing body that approves grantmaking strategies and recommendations, ensures the operational readiness of the Disaster Alliance, and provides accountability and transparency to stakeholders and the community. 

• Building tools and processes needed to become operational and stand ready to lead the private philanthropic response for our region during times of disaster.  

• Re-engaging with nonprofit partners and improving the grant application process so that we can disburse funds quickly in the future. 

As part of our one-year anniversary, the Disaster Alliance will host a resiliency workshop for local nonprofits to inform future program design, implementation, and evaluation.  

In year 2, the Disaster Alliance will facilitate working groups to help refine our region’s program and technology responses to disaster in a few key areas:   

• Home repair 

• Navigation 

• Emergency financial assistance 

We also anticipate offering trainings, workshops, and learning forums to nonprofits. Additionally, we aim to establish data partnerships that can quickly assess community needs and gain insights into service landscapes and investment patterns, identifying areas that have historically been underserved.  

With over 35 years of combined experience in disaster philanthropy, supporting nonprofits in response, relief, and recovery, the Greater Houston Disaster Alliance stands ready to support our neighbors during times of crisis, in partnership with our local leaders, funders, and the nonprofit community.  

It’s not a matter of if, but when. How can you help?  

As we brace for the inevitable next disaster, it’s crucial to recognize that preparation is vital to effective recovery. Here are actionable steps you can take to contribute to our collective resilience:  

• Sign up for local alerts to receive timely information about impending disasters and resources. 

• Create your own home preparedness plan and keep survival kits fully stocked.  

• Subscribe to the Foundation’s Insider Update newsletter to stay updated the Foundation’s community impact efforts, including the Greater Houston Disaster Alliance.  

To learn more about the Foundation’s disaster and community impact efforts, contact us today connect with us to start a discussion. Discover how Enbridge and other clients have partnered with Greater Houston Community Foundation to effectively support their community’s needs. 

More Helpful Articles by Greater Houston Community Foundation: 

• Press Release: Two Leading Houston Nonprofits Launch Greater Houston Disaster Alliance With $1.5 Million Funding from Enbridge and Phillips 66 

• High-Impact Grantmaking Journey: Investing in Economic Mobility

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