Photo Cred via @TGShoots_
For two weeks in August, residents in Gary, Indiana, were without power and had limited to no resources.
The devastation had received little media attention, but work was still underway to help those in need. Houston native and rapper Trae Tha Truth recounted his firsthand experience helping the people of Gary, Indiana.
“It’s been very, very impactful on me, as far as just understanding that there are a lot of people out there who truly need help. There are a lot of people who feel lost and forgotten,” Truth told Unapologetically Eclectic. “You see situations where the light company and some of the agencies aren’t necessarily trying to help them the way they need. But the good thing is they have a great mayor, a great community, and a lot of people coming together to make things happen.”
Truth, alongside his nonprofit organization, Angel By Nature, and his relief ranch, Relief Gang, has had boots on the ground since day one. “I was there when everything first happened, and even since I’ve left, I work on it daily. I had to leave, but I’m going back,” he explained.
“I communicate with people there every day. We’re working on getting different things done, and I’m just staying in communication with everybody daily.” He added, “once the cameras are gone and the attention is gone, people tend to leave. And then the community gets forgotten and I don’t want that to happen.”
Although, this has been a devastating time for Gary, Indiana, the residents were happy to see people like Trae Tha Truth there helping out.
“For that moment, nobody was thinking about how bad their house was or everything they were dealing with,” he said. “We were bringing the right energy and giving them an opportunity to breathe a little. People were just happy to see help coming.”
Bishop Odestress McCoy Jr., and his wife, First Lady Mary Ann McCoy, who lives in a neighboring town of Hammond, Indiana, have been providing families with care packages from their food pantry.
“We’ve given away food, products from Amazon, clothes, and more, ” Bishop McCoy said. He also stated that because of how many people were affected by the storm, they unfortunately were forced to cut back on giving out supplies because they were running low during that time.
“We had to cut back from one week to two weeks and now it’s once a month. It’s devastating but we’re grateful that other communities, churches, and people have stepped up and assisted with this,” the Bishop continued.
First Lady McCoy added that the city of Gary looked like something she’s never seen before. “People were walking around, and it was so dark that you couldn’t see your hand in front of you.”
Trae Tha Truth wasn’t the only one providing for the people. Social media sensation Keith Lee and his family also had boots on the ground, gave out care packages to multiple families, and urged his followers to do what they could to help.
Since then, power has been restored, but help is still needed, and ways you can help. You can follow Trae Tha Truth’s organizations: Angel By Nature and Relief Gang.
https://www.instagram.com/angelbynatureorg
You can also donate to the Apostolic Church of God’s Love’s food pantry located at 5549 Sohl Avenue, Hammond, Indiana, 46320.
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