As you probably already know, Hurricane Harvey hit southeast Texas earlier this week. One of the hardest hit cities was Houston, Texas. Flooding has taken an enormous toll on the citizens of this great city. Federal, state and city officials have been working effectively together to provide relief to thousands upon thousands of citizens. However, it simply was not possible for these first responders (police, national guard, paramedics…) to rescue everyone who needed help.

Who stepped in to help? Everybody. So many stories were uncovered about neighbors helping neighbors or people coming from neighboring cities who owned boats.  Below you can view just one story of an ordinary person stepping up to do something extraordinary in these difficult times. You can finds hundreds of similar clips.

Joe’s Perspective: To me, this is America at its finest. It is humanity at its finest. When people tell you that this country is divided or that blacks, whites and browns can’t get along, don’t believe them. That’s just Facebook spreading hate and 24/7 news channels drumming up ratings. What I saw in these clips is people of all colors working together to help people. I didn’t see black people only helping other black people. I didn’t see any “for whites only” boats. I saw compassion and kindness. I saw bravery and courage. I saw neighbors helping neighbors… and it was beautiful. I’m not sure why we need catastrophe to be our teacher. I don’t know why we need disaster to remind us what’s important in life.

Your Turn: When you see stories like this, what are your thoughts?