Hurricane Harvey

If you are from the local South Texas area chances are you have heard of Morgan Faulkner and Brittany Tupaj.  They help run the Texas Surf Camps that many of the local children have attended throughout the years.  But what you may not know about Brittany and Morgan is how much they have given back to the local community.  They helped support camps for children with disabilities.  When a family may not be able to afford surf camp, they have always offered discounts or even waived fees.  When SALTworld was raising money to build a dining hall for children with disabilities in Tanzania, they were the first people to arrive at the children’s bake sale.  When our nonprofit was raising money to help sustain one of the only kindergarten programs in Sambarai (Tanzania), they always donated items to our silent auction and April fundraiser.  For our upcoming trip to Turkey (Autism Outreach) and Israel (Crisis Outreach) this December they donated clothes for the children.

In addition, Port Aransas residents Morgan Faulkner and Brittany Tupaj worked for years to fulfill their dream of opening up an affordable smoothie, juice, and food store for their local community.  Although it’s a popular tourist destination, it’s very limited in terms of healthy food options.

In January of 2017, Morgan and Brittany opened The Island Market Smoothie and Juice Bar in Port Aransas which was affixed below their residence.  Just 7 months later, Hurricane Harvey, a category 4 hurricane, completely flooded their shop thus destroying their home and business.  An estimated 5.5 feet of floodwater from Hurricane Harvey destroyed everything inside.  The store is not insured because of the elevation being below the flood line.  They don’t know if or when they’ll be opening back up.

This couple has done so much for the Port Aransas Community between the Texas Surf Camps and The Island Market as well as supporting international projects that bring much needed education to those in need.

We hope you will join us in helping them rebuild their business and home.  To donate select “Project in Need.”  All donations are tax deducible and 100 percent of your donations will go directly towards this project!