The recipients were selected by a 12-member board made up of six representatives each from Harris County and Houston. Harris County Judge Ed Emmett said the goal was to distribute money to reputable organizations that could be trusted to quickly get it to the people most in need. Each group is tasked with coming up for the best way to spend the funds based on needs in the communities they serve. For example, many of the assistance ministries that received funding provide shelter assistance, rapid rehousing, employment assistance, and medical and transportation needs to their communities. "The last thing we wanted to do was set up a whole new bureaucracy to judge people's needs," Emmett said. "We have organizations out there that are already doing that. They are set up to provide direct assistance to families, and that’s why working through them makes the most sense." About 60 percent of the recipients were small organizations with annual budgets of less than $5 million, said Tony Chase, who co-chairs the board along with Harris County Budget Chief Bill Jackson. Chase said the board wanted to make sure nonprofits that specialize in housing were funded first, including Houston Habitat for Humanity, New Hope Housing and several groups that work with the homeless. More than 100,000 donors contributed to the fund. The average donation was less than $80, Chase said. Top donors included Aramco Services Company, Citgo, Hess Corporation and the Houston Endowment. The goal is to distribute the rest of the money over the next 9-12 months, Chase said, and the committee will continue to meet with groups in the community to determine how the funding can best be distributed. The next round of disbursements could be announced by November. People can continue to donate to the fund at https://houstonrecovers.org/.A full list of the 28 recipients pic.twitter.com/DquiDn5Ool
— Community Impact CYF (@impactnews_cyf) October 3, 2017
