Texas Senator John Cornyn made a stop in the Brazos Valley Monday morning. He visited the Brazos Valley Food Bank to help volunteer and pack boxes of food for families, and he also took an opportunity to hear how the CARES act has impacted the community.
“As you know, after the virus began spreading, we not only had a public health crisis on our hands, we had an economic crisis as well," said Cornyn.
Congress allocated $124.6 million in relief funds from the CARES Act to the Bryan-College Station area. With this funding, cities, businesses, organizations, schools, and hospitals were able to stay afloat and provide for those who rely on them.
The Brazos Valley Food Bank was able to distribute 160,047 lbs. of food to the community/
“With the uncertainty of when COVID is going to end, continued federal funding is going to be very important,” said Theresa Mangapora, the executive director of the food bank.
The Texas A&M University System used half of their CARES Act funding for their students. The system gave tuition reimbursements and helped students who were struggling financially due to COVID-19.
"It took us from $150 million loss to about a $64 million loss," said Chancellor John Sharp.
Local public school districts used the money to prepare for a new world of school and learning.
“We used [the money] for Chromebooks to put in the hands of children," said Dr. Christie Whitbeck, the superintendent of Bryan ISD.
The school district was also able to improve technology for at-home learning and increase teachers' salaries.
At CHI St Joseph's, some of the $21.4 million they received was used to expand how they treat patients. The hospital purchased 12 ICU beds, 10 vents, 6 high flow nasal cannulas,120 vials of Remdesivir and 2 lab machines for testing.
"Most importantly though, the CARES Act has helped us to sustain 3,000 jobs," said Theron Park, the CEO of CHI St. Joseph's Health.
Local governments, like the City of Bryan and the City of College Station, were able to use their money to help their citizens.
“[We] gave nearly $150,000 to a lot of local charities, who are providing a lot of direct assistance to low- or moderate-income people," said Mayor Andrew Nelson with the City of Bryan.
The City of Bryan was able to provide $346,305 in grants to small businesses to retain jobs.
"We see the pandemic as a test," said Mayor Karl Mooney, the City of College Station. "But its also been a test of our will to maintain at the forefront the health, safety and welfare of our citizens."
The City of College Station was provided $197,501 to help local small businesses retain jobs.
Cornyn said he was glad to hear how the money was being used and to know how some things are working and others aren’t. He does believe there is some progress being made to get another round of coronavirus relief funds sometime soon.
“I’m a little more optimistic than I was this time last week," Cornyn said. "Unfortunately, the closer we get to the election it gets harder and harder to find that conscience but we still need to try.”