A little thread: maybe my very first friend (we’ll call her S) I ever made that I keep in touch with now, 30 years later, lives in Sulphur, LA.

Sulphur is about 12 miles from Lake Charles and was heavily damaged from Hurricane Laura.

S is a teacher in Sulphur. She and her husband have 3 kids.

According to S, every 3rd house on her block was heavily damaged; somehow theirs was spared. The 1st pic is on her street & split in half. S is staying in Houston until water and electricity are restored in her area.

97% of the schools in Calcasieu Parish school district are heavily damaged with already poor cell service. The kids have been out of school since March and now without a basic infrastructure, there’s no eta when they’ll return. Below is their high school.

It’s a hugely helpless feeling being across the country and not knowing how to help. I asked that S send me links to orgs or gofundmes *that she can vouch for* and I will be sending them out as soon as she send them.

My circle is small but mighty.

Tens of thousands of people are homeless. Several of S’s own friends are now homeless. FEMA is unhelpful right now and she doesn’t know if this is getting the national attention it deserves.