With devastating floods from Tropical Storm Harvey affecting thousands of people on the gulf coast of Texas, the Central College men’s and women’s basketball teams are among the many programs across the country joining in to help the victims.

University of Houston Head Men’s Basketball Coach Kelvin Sampson sent out a challenge to basketball coaches of all levels across the country to send t-shirts, shoes and other gear to Houston to provide for those in need. Dutch women’s basketball coach Joe Steinkamp took notice and started gathering program T-shirts, alongside Men’s Coach Craig Douma.

“More than anything, we saw the tweet from Coach Sampson calling out for help,” he said. “There’s a lot of people in need and we wanted to help in any way that we could.”

“I felt it was really important for our team to do something positive in response to this catastrophe,” Douma said. “It’s a small gesture and I wish we could do more but this is easy for us to send something that will be useful for the people there.”

The hurricane hits close to home for several members of the men’s team, as three players are Texas residents. The mother of Houston native Andre Johnson was unable to leave her home due to the torrential flooding on the streets around her.

For more information on how to help, please go to the University of Houston’s website http://www.uhcougars.com/genrel/082817aaa.html.