St. Louis Cardinals: Hurricane Maria relief for Puerto Rico

Like many in the United States, the St. Louis Cardinals woke up to the news of Hurricane Maria slamming into the island of Puerto Rico.

Early Wednesday morning, Hurricane Maria made landfall in Puerto Rico, bringing torrential rain and hurricane winds of up to 155 MPH. The island of 3.3 million people is not only home to my family and me, but also to one of our most beloved St. Louis Cardinals, Yadier Molina. Due to Hurricane Maria, the island does not have any power, and curfews have been placed in order to keep citizens safe.

Hurricane Maria will also make an impact in the Dominican Republic, home to the other St. Louis Cardinals like Carlos Martinez, Juan Nicasio, Alberto Rosario, Sandy Alcantara, and Magneuris Sierra. The hurricane is expected to affect the northern parts of the Dominican Republic as it turns its sight towards the islands of Turks and Caicos.

For those of you who have never been to Puerto Rico, it’s not very big, nor is it very wide. It takes about four hours to drive from one side of the island to the other using the main highways. So in a more realistic sense, think of the drive time between Kansas City and St. Louis. Now put 3.3 million people in between there. Now you can get a sense of the real danger Hurricane Maria posed to Puerto Rico.

Hurricane Maria left widespread damage across the island and has even left the island with little means of communication. As of the time of this writing, I still have not been able to call family to check on them because there is no service on the island. It is a desperate situation for many.

Here is some footage of what it was like during the hurricane:

For many, normalcy will not come. The island will be without power for many months, and I fear the economic impact will be felt for years to come on an island with so many financial troubles already. While I could not do anything to stop the hurricane from coming, there is something I can do now.

In light of what has happened, I am beginning a relief effort in hopes of donating money for Hurricane Maria relief efforts in Puerto Rico and the other islands affected by this terrible storm. Yadier Molina’s wife, Wanda, has set up a GoFundMe campaign that can be found right here.

As of today’s game, I will donate $1 for every single, $2 for every double, $3 for every triple, and $4 dollars for every home run the St. Louis Cardinals hit in their remaining eleven games. I would like to challenge each and every St. Louis Cardinals fan to join me in this campaign to aid the people in need at this time. I would also like to challenge my fellow Redbird Rants writers to also join me in this campaign as well.

In the spirit of Hispanic Heritage month across MLB, I think about the late, and great, Roberto Clemente, who was also from Puerto Rico. As great a ball player as Clemente was, he was an even better humanitarian. He died in a plane crash en route to deliver supplies to Nicaragua after an earthquake.

I would like to challenge MLB and the St. Louis Cardinals to also consider donating to relief efforts for the victims of Hurricane Maria. After all, #SomosSTL.

Next: Advocating for Dakota Hudson

Please consider donating to a relief effort. If you choose to donate to Hurricane Harvey or Hurricane Irma victims, it is still to a great cause. Thank you for your support. Go Cards!