It's not just you — the news has been pretty difficult to keep up with this week. Between the Las Vegas shooting and the Harvey Weinstein sexual harassment allegations, the deluge of news has threatened to overwhelm the very real humanitarian crisis in Puerto Rico. The United States territory is still without power and drinking water following Hurricane Maria.
But there is one person who has been quietly doing the most. Bethenny Frankel, who appeared on Real Housewives of New York City, went to Puerto Rico to assist in relief efforts, reports People. Frankel's efforts seemingly dwarf many others (not that it's a competition), and she's been super low-key about it.
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She chartered four planes to distribute supplies, including water, diapers, canned food. Frankel also cooperated with corporations and nonprofits to send supplies on the planes: Univision sent insulin, Costco provided $30,000 worth of gift cards, and Yieldstreet sent $25,000 in cash and gift cards. And that's not even the beginning.
Frankel also paid out of pocket for the planes while obtaining donations from other celebs, including Andy Cohen. When the planes arrived in Puerto Rico, supplies were distributed, and the planes carried injured and sick victims back to the United States — including children and cancer patients. People also writes that she is "on track to raise more than a $1 million in donations and supplies for Puerto Rico alone."
"People have been living on their roofs for 13 days. It is like nothing I have ever seen. People’s entire homes and cars are immersed in mud, the likes I’ve never seen," she told People.
Did we mention that she's also doing all of this while recovering from skin cancer, with 12 stitches on her face?
Other celebrities have gone above and beyond as well. Jennifer Lopez and boyfriend Aaron Rodriguez donated $1.5 million to relief efforts, and Pitbull sent his own plane to Puerto Rico to ferry cancer patients back to the mainland.
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