University of Pennsylvania Chapter Brothers Donate Millions to Hurricane Relief

Order of Constantine Sig and Significant Sig Jon Huntsman Sr., PENNSYLVANIA 1959, is shown above with Huntsman Corp. employees on Sept. 5, 2017, at the Jefferson County Courthouse in Beaumont, Texas, after he announced plans to help residents with Hurricane Harvey relief.
Following the destruction of this past August’s Hurricane Harvey, Significant Sigs and University of Pennsylvania chapter brothers Charles Butt and Jon Huntsman Sr., both from the class of 1959, donated millions of dollars to help with disaster relief.
Huntsman Sr., who is an Order of Constantine Sig and was his chapter’s Consul when Butt was its Pro Consul, created the Huntsman Flood Fund, a subsidiary of the Beaumont Foundation of America. The flood fund began with $3 million, $1 million of which came from Huntsman’s own money and another $1 million from the Huntsman Family Foundation. Buddy Low and Wayne Reaud of the Beaumont Foundation also donated a total of $1 million to the flood fund; Huntsman Sr. hopes to grow the fund to $10 million. 
Huntsman Sr. traveled to Texas in the midst of the flooding that took place after the hurricane made landfall on Aug. 25, and knew there was much to be done to help the residents along the Gulf Coast, some of whom are his employees at Huntsman Corp. The company, which manufactures chemicals, has locations in Texas and Louisiana communities.
While Huntsman Sr. was surveying the area, Butt and employees from his Texas-based grocery store chain HEB deployed to affected areas equipped with mobile kitchens and vehicles through which residents could fill prescriptions, pay bills and receive supplies.
On Sept. 6, Butt announced that he would make a personal contribution of $5 million to the Justin J. Watt Foundation’s Houston Flood Relief Fund. According to the Justin J. Watt Foundation, the dollars were then funneled into the following nonprofit organizations: Americares, which provides healthcare to those in need following disasters; the hunger relief organization Feeding America; Save the Children, which provides education, disaster relief and health needs to children; and SBP, which helps to rebuild homes after disasters.
“Hurricane Harvey has taken a catastrophic toll on our great state. Now is the time to come together and collectively help rebuild our communities,” said Butt when the announcement about his contribution was made.
For more information about Huntsman Sr.’s efforts, see the winter issue of The Magazine of Sigma Chi, which will mail in late December.