A MAJOR DISASTER JUST HIT HOUSTON. 100 MPH WINDS. HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS WITHOUT POWER. SEE BELOW AND GO HERE TO HELP US DELIVER RELIEF TODAY. --GARY

I don't usually reach out on Sunday, but the city of Houston is facing a MAJOR DISASTER with hundreds of thousands impacted and WE NEED HELP.

The storm has been officially categorized as a "derecho" with 100 MPH straight line winds that blew right through the heart of Houston, our nation's fourth largest city. As of this morning, more than 360,000 utility customers are still without power, and power is not expected to be restored until late next week at the earliest.

This is a major health and safety issue impacting hundreds of thousands in the Houston area that is compounded by an extreme heat advisory with heat indexes reaching over 100 degrees this week.

+ + We urgently need HELP in Houston...

Mercy Chefs is on the ground in Houston and we are already serving meals. Our first meals were delivered YESTERDAY EVENING. But the need is so great that I must immediately double or even triple this deployment.

As I write, we are mobilizing multiple mobile kitchens to Houston. We are already partnering with a local church on a plan for food distributions from multiple locations. Our team is also working with local officials to provide hot meals across three school districts.

This is a four-alarm, "all-hands-on-deck" Mercy Chefs deployment. That means we need the help of every Mercy Chefs friend across the country.

Can you help me today as we respond to this massive health and safety crisis in Houston and provide hot meals to those in need? Go here:

The greatest concern is the widespread power outage combined with the heat. Most of the grocery stores near our location don't have power. They have signs: "no refrigeration items available." The shelves are empty.

I must expand our relief efforts immediately to involve multiple mobile kitchens and multiple locations. We're bringing in food by the truckload. We are deploying mobile kitchens, chefs, and team members from across the country to help in this massive effort.

I will be arriving this evening and will be providing you more updates.

For now, please help!

God bless,

Gary LeBlanc, Mercy Chefs