BEAUMONT, Texas — Animal rescue volunteers are partnering with H-E-B for our furry friends in the aftermath of Hurricane Laura.
The Houston Humane Society and the Humane Society of Southeast Texas partnered with HEB to bring pet food to Beaumont in the aftermath of Hurricane Laura Sunday, Sept. 14.
Anyone who drove up could get food for their fur babies, but they did have to stay in their cars and volunteers brought the pet food to them.
"As the community of Beaumont returns and sorts through the aftermath of Hurricane Laura, we want to be there to help," event organizer Angelina Saucedo said in an emailed statement.
Volunteers still had to adhere to CDC guidelines for COVID-19 and wear face masks.
The pet food giveaway was from noon to 2 p.m. Sunday at the Humane Society of Southeast Texas in Beaumont.
"Houston Humane Society reached out to us, and they brought down some food for our community so that people who are struggling to provide for their pets right now can come and pick up some food," Humane Society of Southeast Texas foster coordinator Breeana Porter said.
"Anyone can come and pick up food and we also have a share program year round as well so anybody in the community that is needing assistance feeding their pet can always come by," she said.
Both programs are donation-based. The humane societies are always looking for more donations so they can do more events like this one, organizers said.
Each bag of food came with coloring pages for children teaching them how to be responsible pet owners and a homemade toy for their dog, Saucedo said.
"We are here to help Hurricane Laura victims," Houston Humane Society volunteer Katie Fine said. "We know that a lot of families were displaced with their pets or affected in some way by Hurricane Laura and we wanted to find a way to come out and help."
The Houston Humane Society brought 6,000 to 7,000 pounds of pet food to Beaumont for this giveaway, she said. Normally, the volunteers distribute pet food a few times a month, usually around Houston.
"But when a natural disaster happens, we will go other places as well," Fine said.
"For over 115 years, H-E-B has contributed to worthy causes throughout Texas and Mexico, and we continue to support our community as strongly as ever," the grocery store chain said in an emailed statement.