Our Mission

Headwaters is a nonprofit organization bringing hope and building resilience in people and communities following a natural disaster.

We are honored to serve across the country and around the world.

In 2017 Headwaters was selected as one of 4 charities that USAID endorsed following our work with Hurricane Harvey alongside Habitat for Humanity, Americares, and Direct Relief.

Headwaters Relief Organization is a non-profit disaster relief collaboration of volunteers that supports the needs of families and communities after disasters. Headwaters provides public health, psychosocial and medical support as well as disaster debris clean-up and re-building in partnership with other organizations.

Headwaters seeks to inspire passion to serve others. We forge connections between those who are being served, the Headwaters team and the community. We work to ensure that every volunteer, regardless of age, background, skills or experience feels valued and motivated to continue to serve others. Our volunteers learn to recognize, respect and value differences. In doing this work, Headwaters’ volunteers build stronger communities and a better world for all.

Headwaters began as a grassroots volunteer effort providing disaster relief in 2005 in response to Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans’ Ninth Ward, one of the most devastated areas of the city. Our experiences showed us that we could make a difference and created for us a passion for disaster work. We continued to expand our work nationally in response to disasters and to work in numerous ways in our local communities to create change.

Headwaters expanded internationally in Haiti following the earthquake in 2010. Since then, Headwaters has responded to disasters internationally to Haiti, the Philippines, Nepal, the refuge crisis for people being served in Greece and Jordan, Liberia the Bahamas and Sierra Leone. Headwaters has responded to tornadoes, floods, earthquakes, hurricanes, fires and man-made disasters providing public health, psychosocial and medical support as well as clean-up and re-building. Nationally, the organization has responded to disasters in multiple states as well as the islands of St. John’s, Puerto Rico.

Make a Difference Today

There are many ways to make a contribution in the world and to help others. We have chosen, through Headwaters Relief Organization, to assist those who have experienced natural or man-made disasters. As we have grown and diversified, we have been able to expand our services and to have an even greater impact locally, nationally and internationally. Headwaters is a collaboration of our volunteers and partner organizations. We want to thank each of you for supporting this work by lending your time and talents, by providing financial support and by making a commitment to positive change in the world.

We are grateful beyond measure.

Our latest articles

Article about the dolls

Article about the dolls

Headwaters Relief Organization has long focused on the wellbeing of children following natural disasters, whether they’re within U.S. borders or in far-off countries like the Philippines, Nepal and Liberia. Its latest effort will include the delivery of...

Fox 9 News Story about the dolls

Fox 9 News Story about the dolls

A half a world away from Minnesota, young girls in Nepal struggle to stay in school. But now, boxes of help are coming from the Twin Cities. The name Asha in Nepal means hope – in this case, the hope of empowering young girls. One of the founders of Headwaters Relief...

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