Editorials

Early last month, Hurricane Gustav blew into the Gulf Coast and threatened the homes and lives of our fellow Texans. And then, right on the heels of Gustav, came Hurricane Ike, a devastating storm that caused millions of dollars of damage and took the homes of many living along the coast.

As part of the State's Emergency Response Plan, Tyler's role in responding to this emergency situation was to shelter residents from Beaumont who were forced to leave their homes, not once -- but twice.

In both incidents, separated by less than a week, our community came together and opened nearly two dozen shelters to house the more than 3,300 evacuees.�Many of our local churches opened their doors to evacuees, and their volunteers spent hundreds of hours caring for residents from our sister city.

I would like to thank the following churches who stepped up to provide shelter to those in need: Bethel Baptist Church, the First Baptist Churches in Tyler, Lindale and Troup, Green Acres Baptist Church, First Christian Church, Mt. Carmel Baptist Church, Lindale First Methodist Church, Jacksonville Baptist Church, Jacksonville Methodist Church, Mary Magdalene Church, St. Louis Church, Central Baptist Church, Colonial Hills Baptist Church, Southside Baptist Church, Southern Oaks Baptist Church, Friendly Baptist Church and Pollard United Methodist Church.

Also, a heartfelt thank you to the following organizations and people who offered the use of their facilities that were used as shelters: the Old Nursing Home in Troup, Arp High School, East Texas State Fair, University of Texas Patriot Center, Flint-Gresham Volunteer Fire Department, Tyler Junior College, John Kaufman and the Whitehouse YMCA.

During each of the storms, Tyler's 2,340 hotels rooms were at capacity and many of you took families into your homes to provide them safe harbor. All told, it is estimated that Tyler sheltered more than 6,000 evacuees during each storm. This is an amazing response for a community of 108,000 people.

The outpouring of help from our faith community, our local non profits, city staff, businesses, and the citizens of Tyler and the surrounding area showed the generosity of spirit and resiliency of East Texas. It is by joining together as a community that we are able to achieve so much.

The Emergency Opera-tions Center established to respond to both storms was testimony to the collaborative culture in our community. Representatives from Smith County, the North East Texas Public Health District, the Texas State and National Guard, the Red Cross and the city of Tyler worked side-by-side 24 hours a day to ensure that the needs of the evacuees were met.

So many agencies in Tyler stepped in to help when it was needed. The American Red Cross-Smith County Chapter, the Smith County Volunteer Fire Department, the Food Bank of East Texas, Salvation Army, Meals on Wheels, PATH, the United Way, Operation Blessing, Texas Baptist Convention, East Texas VOAD, Goodwill, 211 of East Texas, St. Paul Children's Foundation, Habitat for Humanity of Smith County, Smith County Champions for Children, the Church of Christ Benev-olence Center and many others were instrumental in caring for the evacuees and meeting their needs.

Several organizations including Brookshires, Carrier, Summit Industrial Products, Suddenlink, Target, AT&T, Verizon, Don's TV, Wal-Mart, Express Personnel, Tyler Taxi, Grace Community Church and the Cleaning Company provided donations that helped make the evacuees in our shelters more comfortable. They gave big-screen televisions, free laundry service, shuttle service, free cell phones and long distance, snacks, pillows, basketball hoops, toys, air conditioning units and much, much more.

I would also like to extend a special note of appreciation to the many city of Tyler employees who stepped out of their regular duties to assist in extending a caring hand to the evacuees. Without their selfless assistance, Tyler would not have been able to meet the responsibility given to us by the state of Texas.

I appreciate all that our community did to care for the evacuees from Beaumont during their time of need. I have witnessed so many selfless acts of kindness by our residents in the last month that it has, once again, reminded me of all the things I love about East Texas. To each of you who took part in helping our fellow Texans, I pray your life was enriched. Thank you for opening your hearts and lending your hands.

(Mayor Barbara Bush)