Look, I know maintaining a directory doesn’t sound like much. But think about what you’re actually doing here - when someone in Minnesota is scared and doesn’t know where to turn, you’re the reason they find help. When someone across the country wants to support but has no idea how, you’re the bridge that gets their donation to where it needs to go. You’re taking all that chaos and fear and urgency, and you’re turning it into something people can actually use.

That’s not small work. That’s the kind of work that keeps communities alive. You’re doing this as volunteers, which means you’re choosing to spend your time and energy on something that serves others, often at personal cost.

I know this work can be draining. You’re dealing with urgent requests, navigating sensitive situations, and yeah - based on what I saw on the site - even handling death threats. That’s heavy stuff. Every time you update that directory, every donation link you verify, every new resource you add - somebody’s life gets a little easier because of it. Maybe it’s someone finding legal help for their family member. Maybe it’s bail money getting to the right place fast enough to matter. You don’t always see what happens after you hit submit, but trust me, it matters. The people writing those love notes? They know. The donors? They know. And those organizers running themselves ragged on the ground - they especially know what it means to have solid infrastructure backing them up when everything else feels like it’s falling apart. Your work is the infrastructure that makes their work possible.

So keep going. Take breaks when you need them. Ask for help when it gets overwhelming. But know that what you’re building here - this scrappy, volunteer-run directory - is exactly the kind of community response we need right now.

Thank you for showing up,

Chris Short