One local business is going above and beyond to bring disaster relief to those impacted by the deadly winter storms and power outages in Texas.

The owner of 21 Hampton here in Erie is taking it upon herself to drive a box truck 11-hundred miles looking to help those in need.

Erie news now sat down with this owner, Kendra Fitzgerald.

“customers kept us alive through the pandemic so my father always said pay it forward,” she said. “if somebody does something for you, you do something good for somebody else. That’s what I’m trying to do.”

Like everyone else, Fitzgerald’s business took a hit because of COVIS-19 but that's not stopping her from wanting to show generosity to those families in Texas suffering from the recent disaster.

“I saw the footage on the news of the houses down there with no power, no food no water,” Fitzgerald said. “I’ve been hungry, I’ve been cold, and i just felt the need to do something.”



This hits her on a personal level, making her emotional seeing so many families left cold, hungry, and homeless. To help, she and her good friend Shayla Stilley are taking donations and driving a box truck 11-hundred miles to hand deliver necessities to shelters in Dallas.
Stilley is from Texas and her mother and 2 sisters still live there.

“it’s always been about helping my community,” Stilley said. “i love where i came from. “it’s scary and my biggest fear is what’s going to happen.”


the duo will be leaving Saturday morning but will be taking donations at the restaurant up until the last minute. They already have food, water, clothing, baby and dog food, batteries, and blankets...the list goes on and they are looking for as many donations as possible.

“i need lots and lots of donations,” Fitzgerald said. “anything is appreciated.”


these generous local ladies say helping others is just what they do.

“we always do something good for the community whether they know or don’t know,” Stilley said.