February 21, 2018

Six months ago, Hurricane Harvey caused devastation to communities in Houston and along the Gulf Coast. It was personal for all of us at Texas Mutual, as nearly 100 of our employees work in our Houston office and many of our policyholders were directly affected. We've seen the courageous stories of strength in such a devastating time and we know that many communities are still on the road to recovery.

We felt a responsibility to help our policyholders affected by Harvey, and so we created a first-of-its-kind grant program. Watch how Texas Mutual created the $10 million Harvey grant program to quickly distribute funds to policyholders in need:

More than 1,100 businesses received a grant from Texas Mutual and we distributed a total of $10.6 million. Businesses were awarded nearly $10,000 each on average and were able to use the funds for payroll, building repair, equipment repair or replacement, and more. Read one policyholder's story.

Timing was one of the most important factors for the grant program. Keep reading to see how it all came together.

• Friday, August 25, 2017
  Hurricane Harvey makes landfall in Texas. A mandatory evacuation was not ordered and an estimated 17,000 people required rescue. More than 30,000 people were displaced and thousands of homes were flooded.
• Monday, August 28, 2017
  Texas Mutual communicates how it will continue to serve those affected by Harvey. We offered a grace period for premium payments for anyone affected by the hurricane. We knew that injured workers still needed care, so they were exempt from seeing a network provider. Our Dallas and Austin regional offices stepped up to support business functions from the Houston office.
• Saturday, September 2, 2017
  Hurricane Harvey dissipates. Rescue efforts continue across the region and many homes and businesses are without power. Residents used social media to coordinate water rescues with personal boats and equipment.
• Thursday, September 7, 2017
  Texas Mutual President and CEO Richard Gergasko assembles the executive team to discuss how to help our policyholders affected by Harvey, and they collectively decide on a grant relief program, a first of its kind for the company. The program was designed to quickly distribute much needed funds to businesses in need. The board swiftly approves $10 million in grant funds.
• Tuesday, September 12, 2017
  Texas Mutual announces its Hurricane Harvey Grant Program, with applications opening 24 hours later.
• Wednesday, September 13, 2017 at noon
  Grant applications open. Texas Mutual receives more than 400 applications within the first two hours.
• Thursday, September 14, 2017
  Texas Mutual prints and mails the first check from the Hurricane Harvey Grant Program to a Texas Mutual policyholder.

Texas Mutual's Hurricane Harvey Grant Program by the numbers:

• $10,618,497 distributed
• 1,107 total applications approved, a more than 97 percent approval rate
• 57 percent of applicants did not receive any other significant form of aid

We know that our policyholders are the backbone of Texas' economy, and we have a responsibility to support the resiliency of this great state. The Harvey Grant Program was a first of its kind for Texas Mutual, and was created from the vision of our executive team. We thank our agents who helped to make the program possible by cosigning their clients' applications to confirm sustained damage.

While recovery continues in the Houston and Gulf Coast region, Texas Mutual continues to stand with those affected by Harvey and live by our #TXMforTexas values.