Antioch natives and Texas residents need help following Hurricane Harvey

Jesika Anderson’s home in Dickinson, Texas during flooding from Hurricane Harvey.

By Angelia Tant

Jesika Anderson was born in Antioch in 1991 and was raised by her mother Kelly Anderson in a little three-bedroom home on Parker Lane located off of Cavallo.  Her mother Kelly owned the home for over thirty-five years and sold it in 2016 to move to Arnold California.  Jesika grew up in this home with her mother and two sisters Jennifer Riley and Karissa Anderson.  Jesika loved their home and their small local town.  Jesika went to elementary, middle school and high school in Antioch.  As a child, Jesika loved to visit the Antioch skating rink.  She loved Antioch and always imagined she would raise her children here just as her mother did.  Jesika has two small children, a daughter named Adelynn age six and a son named Jaxon age nine months whom she raises with her significant other, Kevin Kennedy.

They experienced several strands of bad luck and moved from place to place including Arnold, California where her mother and sister resided.  Finding that stable work was scarce in such a small secluded town, Jesika moved back to Antioch where she secured a job at the Antioch Post Office.  They found a small home to rent but had to move due to the owners wanting to sell the house. They could not find affordable housing in Antioch, be able to pay for daycare for two small children and other living expenses.

This last stroke of bad luck forced them to move from Antioch to Dickinson, Texas where they moved in with Kevin’s brother. Jesika secured a job with the U.S. Postal Service and Kevin was working part-time and caring for the children.

They purchased a car and their luck seemed to be changing when Jesika received the heart-wrenching notice that Hurricane Harvey was on its way.  Eager to evacuate, Jesika was notified by the Post Office that they needed her to stay and work. She was asked to do a 13-mile route of deliveries the day prior to the hurricane hitting. Jesika was notified by her employer that it would only be a hard rain and not a hurricane.  Desperate to retain her employment, she stayed.

The very next day, Jessika and Kevin began seeing the floor in their home slowly fill with water which eventually rose past Kevin’s knees and he’s over six-feet tall.  As they looked outside, the car they had purchased was under water.  Scared with their two small children and other family members in the home they became desperate reaching out for help.  When the emergency crews came to rescue them, they went to the wrong house.  Still seeking help, they reached out to all their family members including the ones located throughout California and used social media to reach out for a rescue.  Frightened, they tried every resource.  Finally, Kevin decided to go and see if his brother’s car would start and it did. The water rose another three feet right after they left.

They fled to Webster, Texas and found a hotel room.  They had found shelter but they weren’t out of deep water yet.  They learned that the hotel was renting rooms out from under people to book other people who were willing to pay higher rates.

Jesika reached out to FEMA.  They stepped in and spoke with the hotel guest services and ensured a secure room for them until the September 26.  Jesika, Kevin, Kevin’s father, brother, sister-in-law and the two small children all shared a room up until FEMA stepped in.  They left with literally the clothes on their back and have only been able to purchase the smallest of life’s necessities, such as warm clothes and items for the children with small gifts of love from their friends and family.  Although every little bit of help is greatly appreciated, it isn’t enough to get them back on their feet.  They have a long road ahead of them.

For those who would like to help Jesika, Kevin and their family financially, a PayPal account has been set up in her name at https://www.paypal.me/jesikaanderson.


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Jesika Anderson


32 Comments to “Antioch natives and Texas residents need help following Hurricane Harvey”

  1. TheMoreYouKnow says:

    I would rather donate to a place like FEMA or the RedCross. As they pass out what and where things are needed.

  2. Kelly says:

    Thank You , That is your choice

  3. Jennie Smith says:

    Then I guess the question is why aren’t you typing in your debit card info on redcross.com vs the Antioch herald?

    • Jennie Firecracker says:

      I second that Miss Jennie Smith!

    • Publisher says:

      Ms. Smith,
      Thank you for reading the Herald and for your comment.
      However, you can be sure that no one is being asked to provide or are they providing their debit card information to the Antioch Herald to support this effort.
      The link is to a PayPal account set up by the recipient.
      We just posted the article and link to it.
      Allen Payton, Publisher

      • Kelly says:

        Thank You Allen,
        I do not want people to think that Jesika does not need help,
        and any donations would be greatly appreciated. Her family lost everything they own along with so many other people due to Hurricane Harvey. Please don’t make this story a negative one, Jesika has already been through so much.

        Thank You, Kelly (Jesika’s mother)

  4. Jennie Firecracker says:

    Everyone has their right to send money where they want it is just the governments pocket and rich people who get paid for other peoples misfortune is where u are puting it when you donate through the red cross and fema. But to each their own.

    • ThisSmellsFunny says:

      You are terribly misinformed. Rich people don’t benefit from your donations to places like the Red Cross, or FEMA. What it does do, is insure your donations are used properly, and you can rest assure someone isn’t just trying to make a buck off of such a terrible situation.

      • Kelly says:

        Im insulted that you would think my daughter would try to make a buck off of anyone!! She is a hard worker delivering mail on a 13 mile route to make sure these people get their mail. Her situation is horrible, just like so many others there, and more to come, she isn’t a scammer. And I’m her mother and helped as much as I could.

  5. Angeliahope says:

    I think that some of us are letting politics get in the way of a family needing support, love and help. We need to get back to basics and that’s the issue of being loving, supportive and helpful to one another. The world is a much better place when we are loving and supportive vs. negative. Those two small children don’t understand negativity and politics. They only understand love, laughter, warm clothes, a warm bed, a bottle with warm milk, snacks, food toys etc… they lost all of that except their parents love. Humanity and mankind is so important. Remember folks the world

  6. Fred says:

    Total B.S. all of it

  7. Fred says:

    580,000 people lost everything and from what I gathered from reading this article is they only had a room what about who’s house it was

    • Kelly says:

      It was a rental. And yes this was a horrible thing that has happened to everyone there. It is a story about my family, Sorry if you were offended by this story. Its not the room I was worried about, It was my family!!!!!

  8. Kelly says:

    Dear Allen,

    My Daughter has asked that you remove this post. She didn’t ask for me to tell her story. The last thing she needs is for any negative remarks. This is turning into something my family doesn’t want.

    Thank You,
    Kelly

    • Charlotte says:

      Kelly, you can’t let the negative remarks from people bother you. You are only doing what any loving mother would do. If people want to help her, then they should. Others that don’t, so be it. We can only hope that someday one of there loved ones will not be in a situation like this! There is no need for you to keep explaining yourself. Much love and hugs to you and w❤️

  9. Karissa Anderson says:

    I put my name so you know it’s real! The sister !

    It’s extremely disgusting to see you people say such things. Was it so hard to just not comment and move on with your pathetic lives? People are really going through hell and have lost everything.

    I’ll pray for you. God bless.

  10. Patty Caldwell says:

    Hi Kelly,

    What’s bs is people thinking they have the right to judge how much someone has suffered, how much they deserve for their suffering and most of all, how they would rather help someone else! If you want to help someone else – go do it! And leave this family alone! You sit there in your cozy, dry home. Have you ever lost everything? It is devastating! When something bad happens, most people can go home to their safe haven to feel better. When you have lost everything – that includes your safe haven. It is a very scary place to be. Sorry for the rant but all people have the right to their safe haven. If you disagree or don’t want to help then please move along – preferably with your mouth closed!

  11. Kelly says:

    I just want to make one last comment. My Name is Kelly Anderson, My brothers name is Perry Anderson. We grew up In Antioch. 59 Years I lived there, Aunts,uncles, cousins, friends, even grand parents. This write up is meant for the people that care about our family and didn’t know MY daughter Jesika lived through this ordeal in Dickinson Texas. Like she says she was one of the lucky ones that made it out with their lives. She also commented that so many people lost a lot more than she did. Even some lost their lives. So please no more bad comments.
    Thank You,
    Kelly

  12. We are an small non profit that helps the needy. Especialy in natural disaters. Please send us email about your request please send pictures and basic needs

    David

  13. Jan says:

    And you dont see this as a need!

  14. Jan says:

    And you fail to see this as a need?

  15. Julio says:

    I personally donate to the Salvation Army. I have relatives who were in the eye of two hurricanes in Hawaii and severely damaged and the only help they received was from the Salvation Army. Red Cross has a very bad reputation as money grabbers and is a very wealthy organization. Educate yourselves. FEMA I support via my taxes and other than that I would not give them a dime. It is a government agency that has not been very well run. Rife with fraudulent claims after disaster.

    • ThisSmellsFunny says:

      Maybe the only place your relatives went looking for help was through the Salvation Army. It’s funny that you accuse the Red Cross of being money grabbers, when they aren’t the ones who have people standing outside every Christmas Holiday ringing bells for money. FEMA has come a long way since Katrina, and Bush43.

  16. Please send email to manosdeesperanza@att.net we will review your request. Pictures will also. Help

    David

  17. ThisSmellsFunny says:

    She looks so distraught on her facebook pic.

    https://www.facebook.com/jesika.anderson

  18. Terry says:

    Everyone has a right to their own opinion. There was people that did not make it out and lost their lives. There was also people lying about needing help that did not. It is a bad situation for everyone involved. I hope she gets the help she needs, and the other members in the home as well. Although from this post it does not sound as though during the flooding in the home they did anything.

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