For a moment, imagine your home without electricity. Not for an hour or a day, but for weeks. Then months. Four months to be exact. That's the case in rural areas of Puerto Rico since Hurricane Maria hit last fall. Nearly half a million people, American citizens by the way, are still without power. Four months without lights, without washers and dryers, cell phone chargers, power for cooking and refrigeration, never mind TV and internet.
Salvador Gomez Colon considers himself lucky - his San Juan home has had power since the early days after the hurricane. When the 15-year-old learned just how devastated the island's rural areas are, he started a crowdfunding campaign on Generosity. The campaign has raised almost $120,000 to date, which Colon uses to buy solar powered lamps and hand-cranked washers. He has distributed over 1400 lamps to folks who are (literally and figuratively) powerless, some with phone charging capability, with 1600 more ready to go. With the help of corporate donations, he has secured over 300 hand-cranked washers for distribution too. Time Magazine named him one of the most influential teens of 2017.
This story calls to mind a couple things - our society's terrifying reliance on the infrastructure of electricity, water, etc., and our unconscionable neglect of our fellow Americans.
No comments:
Post a Comment