Hurricane Harvey Help From Chicago Charitable Drives Continues

CHICAGO (CBS) -- There have been many offers to help victims of Hurricane Harvey, from sending water and food, to clothing and money.

But two other charitable drives in the Chicago area caught CBS 2's eye: for paint and prose.

CBS 2's Lauren Victory has more.

From pails of old paint to barrels of renewed beauty, a Schaumburg non-profit is adding Hurricane Harvey victims to its pallet of donations.

"One of the last things you need is paint, most people forget how much paint you are going to need in every facility to make the place look like it did before the storms," said Chris McCarthy, found of Earth Paint.

The first Earth Paint shipment to Texas will be worth $25,000. That is 1,000 gallons, two or three weeks of work.

It is a labor of love.

"We're recycling the paint properly and all of our employees are special needs adults," McCarthy said.

Earth Paint is hosting a paint drive on Sept. 23 in Palatine. Anyone with unwanted paint in their basements/garages is encouraged to drop it off and it will get recycled and passed on to Harvey victims. You can also drop off paint every Thursday between the hours of 9 a.m. and 1 p.m. at their warehouse in Schaumburg at 509 E State Pkwy. More information can be found at earthpaint.org

But the efforts do not stop there...

Students in Richton Park are helping victims of Harvey.

The students held a fundraiser on Thursday that bought more than 15,000 water bottles. The donation was facilitated by Marjorie's Love Senior Meal Foundation. The group is headed to Texas with that big water load and food. They are looking for help with cots and blankets for another trip next week. More information can be found on the foundation's Facebook page.

In addition the Southland College Prep students wrote 3,500 letters of support to soon be sent South.

One student told CBS 2 she hopes her letter reaches a freshman to show that someone the victim's age cares.

Administrators said they are working to coordinate that and future fundraisers with Houston's school district.