KC Harvey Relief Effort

Dear Friends:

Our prayers go out to those affected by Hurricane Harvey and its catastrophic flooding along the Gulf coast. Amid that terrible devastation, we should all pause and be grateful for our own good fortune. But as we do so, the sheer magnitude of this disaster and the suffering it is causing should kindle in all of us a desire to reach out and help those in such desperate need. And the need is great; preliminary estimates suggest damage will exceed $125 billion, making this the costliest storm in U.S. history, and dwarfing Hurricane Katrina in 2005.

To that end, the employees and partners at Meara Welch Browne and Ingram’s Magazine and Show-Me Publishing, Inc. have made a contribution for the Hurricane Harvey relief efforts. Many have asked how they, too, might make a tax-deductible contribution to this cause. If you’d like to help those who were so hard hit, we can serve as a channel to get funds—quickly—where they will do the greatest good. This will show others what can be done when the business community in Missouri and Kansas comes together to help others in need. Ingram’s Magazine and Meara Welch Browne jointly organized and collectively raised and delivered nearly $500,000 in past storm-relief efforts—approximately $100,000 to the American Red Cross in September 2005 for the “KC Katrina Relief Effort,” about $100,000 in May 2007 for the “KC Greensburg Relief Effort,” and more than $250,000 (including an extraordinary cash gift of $200,000 from a generous KC donor to Ronald McDonald House) in May 2011 for the “KC Joplin Relief Effort.”

The Salvation Army and the American Red Cross have responded, as they have done in so many situations. If you would like to make a contribution, you may send your check payable to either “Salvation Army” or “American Red Cross” with a memo “KC Harvey Relief Effort” to:

c/o Meara Welch Browne
2020 West 89th Street, Suite 300
Leawood, KS 66206

We, in turn will pool your checks with our contributions and deliver them personally to the local offices of the Salvation Army and the American Red Cross. We’ll then provide individuals, corporations and organizations a receipt of their tax-deductible donations. Remember, contributions of $250 or more at one time to one organization require a written receipt from the organization, with specific wording if anything was received in exchange for the donation, to substantiate your contribution before you file your tax return. Cancelled checks will suffice for contributions of less than $250. Should you have any questions, please call Meara Welch Browne at 816.561.1400 or e-mail info@meara.com or give your friends at Ingram’s Magazine a call at 816.842.9994 or e-mail JSweeney@Ingrams.com.

Throughout the world, Americans have always been generous in providing assistance to those in need. We hope you will join with us now in reaching out to our fellow Americans to help them pick up the pieces of their lives. Please Contribute the “KC Harvey Relief Effort.”

Thank you for this consideration.

Your friends at Meara Welch Brown and Ingram’s Magazine.