A group in Chicago is working to jump-start struggling businesses in hurricane-ravaged Puerto Rico. Rafael Malpica-Padilla is with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America and says at first, his largely Puerto Rican congregation in Chicago focused on gathering goods to ship to the island.
But that’s expensive and logistically difficult. Now, they’re raising money in Chicago and using it to buy supplies from small businesses in Puerto Rico.
Malpica-Padilla says his family on the island just got access to running water this week and that many others there are still without power and basic goods. He plans to travel to Puerto Rico to offer more help next month.