Two Men and a Truck’s Pensacola office is joining with "Truck 4 Texas," in taking supplies to flood victims in east Texas. The items were collected in part by students at local Catholic schools.
The idea began with an eighth grade student at St. Paul’s Catholic School in Pensacola. Matt Knee, the Executive Director of Catholic Charities of Northwest Florida, says it mushroomed from there to four other schools.
“St. Paul, Sacred Heart, Little Flower and St. John the Evangelist School,” said Knee. “Each of the schools have been talking with each other, and organizing through St. Paul’s Catholic School to receive donated items, and then partnering with Two Men and a Truck to do the delivery.”
The truck from Pensacola will meet up with others making up the ‘Convoy of Hope” in Texas, then distribute the items to those needing them the most.
“Basic essential items – toiletries, diapers, pet food, water,” said Knee. “What they’re trying to steer clear of is clothing. They’re asking not for any clothing to be donated at this time. Convoy of Hope has been overwhelmed with the amount of donations of clothing.”
“The amount of people and support that I’ve got in the warehouse right now, it’s unbelievable; we have a general store here of multiple supplies that are going to be going to Texas,” says Greg Miklos, owner of Two Men and a Truck in Pensacola.
His motivation for helping victims of Harvey springs in part from personal experience.
“Being involved with Hurricane Floyd and [Tropical Storm] Dennis back in [1999] in Kinston, North Carolina, where we received over 40 inches of rain in less than five days. So I know what going on there,” said Miklos.
The first truck with supplies is scheduled to leave Pensacola sometime next week for the roughly nine-hour trip to Houston, and Miklos says in the coming days they’ll make as many trips as needed.
“We’re going to get these items there,” Miklos says. “And if we have to take a truck a week through the upcoming weeks, we’ll do that.”
Back at Catholic Charities, Matt Knee is quick to mention that they are not going this alone.
“Catholic Charities USA, the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, as well as all of the parishes in the Catholic Diocese will be doing second collections to send monetary donations to the victims over there.”
Disaster relief has long been part of the service of the Catholic Church, and its community. So helping storm victims in east Texas fits in well with that call.
Until the trucks leave, the Truck 4 Texas crew will need some helping hands to load up what people bring in -- again, no clothing needed or wanted. Matt Knee with Catholic Charities adds that, as always, cash works pretty well, too.
“We will be sending 100 percent of the monetary gifts we receive over to the right organizations that are on the ground,” said Knee. “People are also able to donate through their local parishes, through Catholic Charities USA, and the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops.”
Residents can drop off items at St. Rose of Lima in Milton; St. Paul Catholic School and Church in Pensacola, and at Two Men and a Truck on East Texar Drive, where owner Greg Miklos awaits.
“I’ve compiled a list on our Facebook page – Two Men and a Truck Pensacola – so if people would go to that,” said Miklos. “I routinely give daily updates of what’s going on inventory-wise, where we’re going. And there’s a list on there of collection sites that we’ve compiled over time.”
Other help is coming from the Pensacola area as well, including teams from the Pensacola Bay Baptist Association; and Marine Corps Osprey aircraft based in North Carolina, which are now staging aboard NAS Pensacola.
