Hurricane Harvey—a category four hurricane—hit the Gulf Coast of Texas on August 25th.

Over the course of four days, Hurricane Harvey brought 40 inches of rain and winds of 130 miles per hour. Over 32,000 people were forced to evacuate their homes and seek shelter.

In response to the storm, universities all around the country began pledging their support to the recovery effort. The University of Oregon added itself to that list on Monday, August 28.

Oregon’s Equipment Operations offered its support by collecting new and lightly used clothing from student athletes and staff to donate to those affected by Harvey in the Houston area.

“We had seen that people were being rescued from their rooftops,” Aaron Wasson, Director of Equipment Operations at Oregon said. “And all they’re taking are the clothes are on their back. They’re losing all their clothes and shoes. We’re out here in the northwest getting ready for a football game and we’ve got to do something, we can’t just sit here and watch.”

On Twitter, the Oregon equipment staff challenged other university equipment operations across the country to follow suit. Hearing back from schools such as Penn State, Stanford, Villanova and Nevada, the response has been overwhelming.

“This lets us use our platform as equipment managers to call out the other equipment accounts around the country to do the same,” Wasson said. “From that point on it has really grown. It’s humbling to see the response.”

As of Wednesday, Oregon will be donating 70 boxes weighing over 2,000 pounds. Wasson attributes the huge support from student athletes and staff to the generosity of the community.

Staff and Student-Athletes donated over 2k lbs in product for Hurricane Harvey relief. 4 pallets on their way to @UHEquipment #HoustonStrong pic.twitter.com/2DTvKJs8AX

— Oregon Equipment (@Ducks_Equipment) September 6, 2017

“I think that’s the culture here at the university,” Wasson said. “When we see people that need help, we step up.”

Although Hurricane Harvey made landfall over 2,000 miles away from Eugene, the storm’s immense impact hit close to home for a few Ducks.

Redshirt sophomore Sean Killpatrick grew up in Pearland, Texas—a city where the hurricane raised water levels up to front yards, flooded over 100 streets and instituted numerous flash flood warnings.

Killpatrick thinks the support from the equipment staff is an essential step in the recovery process facing Houston.

“I like it when universities take the time out to get community involvement to help folks out,” Killpatrick said. “It’s a great thing that Oregon is participating, along with other universities, to donate and reach out to Houston.”

Along with Killpatrick, senior Arrion Springs contributed clothes to Oregon’s Equipment Operations donations.

Springs, who comes from San Antonio, Texas, agreed that Oregon’s donation efforts are meaningful to the people of Houston.

“The city of Houston has given a lot to the country,” Springs said. “So, it’s good everyone is giving back as much as they can.”

After football season ends, both Killpatrick and Springs would like to return to their home state and help with the recovery process. The players firmly believe that Houston will recover over time.

“Houston has very strong individuals,” Killpatrick said. “They will come out and help one another and get things rolling. They’ll figure out what plans they need to solve the floods and get everyone to safety.”

“You know, Texas, we will bounce back faster and better than ever.” Springs said.

Follow Maggie Vanoni on Twitter @maggie_vanoni

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