On Sunday, July 2nd, New Moms Transformation Center in Austin, along with much of Chicago’s West Side, experienced extreme flooding. Initial flooding in New Moms’ basement was exacerbated by an electrical fire connected to our building. ComEd and the fire department disconnected the power for the repair, which stopped power to the sump pump. We took in several inches of water which dislodged a water tank in our pump room. The tank broke away from a pipe, filling our basement with more than 6 feet of water.
The end result was a catastrophic failure of all systems in the building. The building continues to be under a complete power outage with significant electrical damage, an inoperable elevator and HVAC system, computer servers lost, and many historical documents destroyed.
Our first, and most important concern is the well-being of the young families who live at the Transformation Center.
Our amazing staff quickly worked to find safe and stable housing for families living in this building. Our team is providing food and essentials, cash assistance, transportation, and on-going coaching and support. The families that live at the Transformation Center have all experienced homelessness in the past. Ensuring they are housed and supported is critical as we work to make the building livable again.
Our expected loss may be as high as $500,000, and we are waiting to hear what will be covered through insurance. We are anticipating at least $100,000 of unexpected costs that will not be covered by insurance. The essential support for our families has already surpassed $50,000.
We are reaching out to you, our community of support, to come around us as we wade through these flood-related challenges. We need financial & volunteer support.
- Give a gift HERE
- Sign up to volunteer HERE
- Create your own fundraising page HERE
Click here to learn more about New Moms and the flood recovery process on our blog.