HeadKnowles :: Hurricane Relief :: #Dorian

 A little background info; what started out as a small group of people on the Facebook page HeadKnowles, founded by Lia Head and Gina Knowles, has now become a movement fueled by people eager to give back. We have managed over $2M in relief funds Hurricane Joaquin relief in 2015. Once again in 2016, we established a committed group of volunteers who worked tirelessly to assist those devastated during Hurricane Matthew for Ragged Island, North Andros, Grand Bahama and New Providence. In that effort, which is still ongoing, we have managed over $4mil to date. 

UPDATE: Because of the record-breaking success in fundraising, we were awarded Foundation Status by The Bahamian Government to continue to fundraise and manage to the best of our ability.  Check us out at www.headknowlesbahamas.com to find more info to make you love us!

That said, the road ahead to restoring and rebuilding our communities after Dorian, both short-term relief and sustainable relief in these islands is a great undertaking and we need your support to accomplish this. Victims need food, water and other essential supplies to survive during this time. We need building materials and gas for the planes and boats that are transporting supplies to the islands, in order to help put their lives back together. We cannot do any of this without monetary funds to support our efforts. The money we receive will go directly to purchasing these essential supplies and we will provide our donors with financial statements to account for every dollar donated. Donors will be able to see with all transparency that their money is being used to get our Northern Island communities what they need.  Money will be withdrawn to Lia Head-Rigby's personal bank account and forwarded promptly to the HeadKnowles bank account for use.

We have teams on the ground in these islands who will begin immediate assessments once the all clear is sounded. We do fully support the efforts of The Bahamas Red Cross and Nema, however, we are in the position to mobilize immediately and not await the lengthy time frame that government has in place. We are in contact now with volunteers who have put 30 planes and over 1,000 boaters in place for distribution of persons and supplies once it is safe. Having learned from our past efforts, we have arranged for local water distributors in Grand Bahama and Abaco to provide free water so we don’t have to waste precious funds transporting this heavy but absolutely essential necessity. 

We are also partnering with various organizations in Florida and our other islands as collection for food, water, clothes, toiletries etc. This is so we can concentrate on moving essential supplies like generators, tarps, chainsaws and rebuilding supplies which is where we need your help the most. So we would be ever so grateful for your donation, as we can get the supplies out to those devastated and washed out communities in Abaco, Bimini and Grand Bahama, first. 

We are asking the public for help towards the following items that can help people immediately for The Abacos & Grand Bahama: 

#• Generators :: Tarps :: ChainSaws
#• Air mattresses 
#• Portable stoves :: Butane canisters
#• Toiletries, including female sanitary products 
#• Mosquito repellent 
#• Water filtration devices • Matches 

We encourage you to take a few moments to Google HeadKnowles and our Facebook group to see what happens when people come together to help one another at a time when it is needed the most and the great work that you can be a part of. We are, after all, one people, united in love and service. 

Yours sincerely, 

Lia & Gina and the team