I am David Livingstone Smith, a professor of philosophy. My spouse is Subrena Smith, who is also an academic. We live in the United States.

Our family lives in one of the areas of Jamaica that was hardest hit by Hurricane Melissa. Many people are homeless, some have died. People are without food, water, medicine, and electricity.

Our family members are alive and uninjured. Their homes, although damaged, are still standing. But they are in urgent need of assistance. They need generators to supply electricity, food, water, and lots of other things in the short term. In the longer term, they need homes that are less vulnerable to the ravages of future storms—concrete houses that can stand up to the wind.

This fundraiser is an appeal for money both to help supply their urgent, everyday needs, and to start a fund to help them rebuild better, stronger, safer.