TEXAS — In an unprecedented move, the Chicago Cubs quietly dispatched a private plane carrying nearly 3 tons of food and emergency relief supplies to areas hardest hit by the historic flooding in Texas.
The plane took off from Chicago’s O’Hare Airport at 3:47 a.m., carrying not only life-saving supplies — but also a message of compassion from one of MLB’s oldest and most beloved teams.
“Baseball isn’t always the priority. Today, it’s people.”
— A Cubs representative shared anonymously.
Much of the food and medical supplies — including clean water, milk, bread, flashlights and medicine — were quickly assembled overnight, from the team’s dining room, internal donors and the Cubs’ own players.
“We barely slept. Some players even carried each box onto the truck themselves,”
a team logistics staff revealed.
In particular, a veteran of the first team quietly donated his entire All-Star bonus to buy more than 500 hot meals to send to shelters in Houston and San Marcos.
The scenes of children in flooded areas holding food bags printed with the Cubs logo, or a mother crying when receiving a box of milk in the 38-degree heat, made social networks “crazy”.
A video recording the moment a famous Cubs pitcher held a 3-year-old girl, gave her milk and gently wiped her tears, was shared more than 2 million times in just 10 hours.
Although this year’s season has not been the most explosive time for the Cubs, for thousands of families in Texas, they are already champions – in a way that does not require a scoreboard or a trophy.
When asked why the team acted so quickly, the Cubs head coach simply said:
“Because we are Americans. And today, that was more important than anything.”