This story originally appeared in the Polk County Enterprise on July 20, 2025
Over the past few weeks, much of the focus in Texas has been on the tragedy and recovery around the floods in Kerr County. An organization in Livingston is doing their part to help where possible.
When disaster strikes, Center of Hope has a response ministry that partners with the offices of emergency management. Whether the tornado in the Onalaska area or the flood from Beryl last year, the center receives donations from private carriers. It can be a grocery store chain or the Southeast Texas Food Bank in Beaumont. Items are collected and then distributed where needed.
"After the floods and after Beryl last year, we ended up with a lot of stuff on pallets," Center of Hope Disaster Response Lead Mike Fortney said. "A lot of it is flood response gear. It is materials, it is supplies, it is cleanup stuff and cleanup kits, and we were anxious to get it into the hands of the folks down there. It has been a problem being able to get a semi-sized truck down into the area, but we have had a local person that is a great supporter of the Center of Hope arrange the semi."
Last week, Center of Hope put the word out to churches and have been working with contacts in Hill Country to determine what is currently needed. Financial donations were collected and a list was released on social media for the items most requested.
For those in Polk County that have donated money, Fortney said those funds go into stores where those in need or organizations can pick up supplies. The cash that is leftover goes to boots on the ground or responsible organizations.
"We won't retain any of that money," Fortney said.
The jobs of arranging a semi-truck, arranging the supplies needed, and getting it on the road has taken around a week. They also needed a plan in order to get a truck into an area where it could be received.
"We focus on Polk County, but when we have a surplus and others have a need, if we can figure out a way to get it there, we will get it there."
Center of Hope has partnered with other ministries in the area, like in nearby Boerne, which are delivering goods to impacted points by the truckload. The disaster response lead said there has been a need for small and more expensive items, giving an example of insect repellent that can be priced around $6.
Though only open on Tuesdays and Thursdays to the public, someone is at Center of Hope each day of the week working toward the organization's goals.
"I would say added workload — but it is not, this is what we do," Fortney said. "I would say every day since the fifth or sixth of July, we have been working this. It is not 24 hours per day, but it is lining up a truck, getting a donation list out, receiving donations, and it is the absolute least you can do when people are in the situation they are in the Hill Country.
"In the military, we have a phrase called 'running toward the sound of the guns.' The folks that run this place here at Center of Hope are good people, lovers of the Lord, and understand what He has told us to do and how to serve Him and others. There is no committee that meets. If it is something we can do and we have the resources to do it, we just do it. We will continue to help if we see a need down there.”
Though the center is depleting its disaster response supplies, Fortney said he does not worry about the next time they are needed.
"I fully expect this community to keep responding with donations. I have been all over this country in many different communities, and I've never been around a group of more giving people than this. I fully anticipate stuff to keep coming in and then we will just have to figure out how to get it down there."
