" As you will have heard by now, the Bahamas were catastrophically hit by hurricane Dorian last week. For days, families outside of the Bahamas, including mine, were unable to reach loved ones. When we finally were able to make contact, we were told that a close relative’s body was found. He was last seen saving a child by putting them in a tree and then running off to save someone else. While this tragic loss has been felt throughout our family and community, his case is far from unique. Many have died already from the Dorian, and the death toll is bound to keep going up if we don’t mobilize and help FAST.

 

Evacuations have been slow due to the U.S. randomly changing the requirements for Bahamians to enter the the U.S. (Bahamians used to be able to travel to the U.S. with a passport and a police record, but they are now being told that they need to have a visa to travel). 

 

Folks are in need of water and medicine, at the bare minimum. The situation is similar to Katrina in the immediate days after. There's no centralized effort on the islands to get supplies passed out so it's up to us for now. This is why we have started this GoFundMe campaign to provide DIRECT support to our family and community on the ground in the Bahamas. A team of folks who want to get supplies, doctors, nurses, plumbers and carpenters out there is spearheading the campaign. Please donate and circulate this GoFundMe as much as possible to help us finance these relief efforts. For more information, please DM @rebraconte on Twitter or Instagram" 

​

- Rebecca Paris