Chicago Nonprofits Rally to Help Gary After Deadly Storm

When 99 mph winds tore through Gary, Indiana on August 11, they didn't just knock out power lines. They tested whether communities could come together when the lights went out.

For nearly two weeks, more than 20,000 Gary residents sat in sweltering darkness. The derecho storm brought winds comparable to a Category 2 hurricane, snapping 300 distribution poles and uprooting century-old trees across the city.

Senior citizens lost access to breathing machines. Families cooked perishable food at parks to save what they could. Parents couldn't charge phones, and businesses sat shuttered.

That's when Pastor Corey Brooks got the call. His Chicago-based nonprofit, Project H.O.O.D., has deep ties to Gary, just across the state line. "Just because the infrastructure failed the people of Gary, it doesn't mean that we humans can't come together and help one another," Brooks said.

His team loaded up trucks with produce, hot meals, soap, shampoo, toothpaste, and other essentials. They weren't alone. Dozens of nonprofits and churches from surrounding communities drove into Gary, bringing relief to neighborhoods that had been sitting in literal darkness.

Volunteers handed out food to families who had lost everything in their warm refrigerators. They brought supplies to elderly residents who couldn't leave their homes. They showed up day after day, even as the power restoration dragged on far longer than anyone expected.

The Ripple Effect

What started as an emergency response became a powerful reminder of what neighbors can do for neighbors. While utility crews worked to restore 300 damaged poles and repair transmission lines using standard engineering protocols, the human network filled the gap.

The volunteers didn't wait for official channels or government responses. They saw need and they moved. Gary residents who had been struggling in isolation suddenly had hot meals, clean water, and the knowledge that people cared.

Project H.O.O.D.'s presence in Gary stretched back years before the storm, through events and community work in a city that has faced decades of economic challenges. When crisis hit, those relationships became lifelines.

NIPSCO has now restored power to 99% of affected customers. But the real restoration happened in the streets, where volunteers proved that the strongest infrastructure isn't always made of poles and wires.