Firethorne Provides Volunteers for Hurricane Relief Today

(Left to right) Volunteers at the FEMA POD at the KIPP Academy are Chelsea Eaton, Lexie Cawley, Micaela Fox, Kelley Baldwin, Robyn Dumas, Sara (last name not available; she was not with Firethorne) and J.D. Thomas.

Katy, TX ­ September 18, 2008. . . . Five carloads of volunteers from Firethorne, a residential community in Katy/Fulshear, answered FEMA’s call for volunteer workers today to help distribute food MRE’s (Meals Ready-to-Eat), bottled water and bags of ice to Houstonians impacted by the devastation of Hurricane Ike. According to Firethorne Director of Marketing Janet Burkett, the 28 volunteers included high school students who worked this summer as “guides” at the Firethorne Visitor Center. The group was stationed at a newly opened FEMA Point of Distribution (POD) at the KIPP Academy, 9634 Mesa Road in East Houston. .

“We weren’t in Ike’s path in the Katy/Fulshear area and just wanted to help out those who were in harm’s way,” said Burkett. She noted that the students who had summer jobs at Firethorne were off of school this week due to the hurricane and jumped at the opportunity to help their fellow citizens. “Everyone was on time at our Katy meeting place at 7:45 a.m. and we drove 42 miles to be at our POD in East Houston at 8:15 a.m.,” she said. Burkett noted that Houston City Council Member Jarvis Johnson was ecstatic when the more than two dozen Firethorne volunteers arrived. “He said they couldn’t have opened the POD without our help.”

Firethorne is a 1,400-acre master-designed community that combines the vibrancy of West Houston with the small-town charm of Katy/Fulshear. It is strategically located on FM 1463 near the crossroads of the 1-10 West corridor, Westpark Tollway and the Grand Parkway.

For info call 281-395-1440, ext. 115.

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