Bush foundations to donate to recovery effort
Two former first ladies have pledged $2 million toward education, libraries
The foundations of former first ladies Laura and Barbara Bush have pledged a combined $2 million to help support education in schools and public libraries after Hurricane Harvey.
The Laura Bush Foundation announced Monday it would dedicate nearly $1 million for school grants for campuses affected by Harvey and other storms through the 2017 Disaster Relief Initiative. The Barbara Bush Houston Literacy Foundation on Monday pledged $1 million to public libraries and to purchase supplies and books for classroom teachers and students in Houston.
Laura Bush, the daughter-in-law of Barbara Bush, said it was an obvious decision to contribute after witnessing the devastation wrought by Harvey and other storms.
“We are committed to rebuilding school libraries that have been damaged during this year’s hurricane season so that our nation’s children have the resources they need to be successful in the classroom and beyond,” Laura Bush said, according to a news release.
Both foundations will also raise funds to help rebuild schools and community libraries damaged by hurricanes Harvey and Irma, as well as help mobilize volunteers.
Eager to help
It’s not the first time one of these foundations has come to the aid of stormravaged schools.
In 2006, the Laura Bush Foundation’s Gulf Coast School Library Recovery Initiative gave nearly $6.5 million to school libraries affected by hurricanes Katrina and Rita. The foundation said in a statement that with its goal to raise additional funds to combine with the initial pledge, this year’s Disaster Relief Initiative will provide larger grants to schools in Texas and across the southeastern United States.
Former first lady Barbara Bush, who calls Houston home with former President George H.W. Bush, said she was called to help the region after seeing the selflessness displayed by Texans and Houstonians during the storm.
“As heartbroken as George and I were watching Hurricane Harvey engulf our beloved Texas with unprecedented floodwaters, so too were we moved by the selfless heroism of the first responders and neighbors who risked their own safety to help others,” Barbara Bush said. “Seeing Texans reaching out and coming together is why I am so proud to join Laura and her foundation to equip our child care centers, schools and libraries with resources they need to help children and their families continue on the path to recovery.”
Former presidents unite
All the living former U.S. presidents recently joined together in an online campaign, OneAmericaAppeal.org, to raise money for those affected by hurricanes Harvey, Irma and Maria. The idea for the joint appeal arose from discussions between George H.W. Bush and his son George W. Bush, both of whom live in Texas, but was immediately embraced by former Presidents Bill Clinton, Jimmy Carter and Barack Obama, according to a spokesman for the elder Bush.
The campaign, titled “One America Appeal,” allows individuals, foundations and institutions to make tax-deductible donations to assist a specific recovery effort or all three of them.