A caravan of trucks delivered 10,000 cases of bottled water to Flint Thursday.
The caravan was the idea of daytime television judge and motivational speaker Greg Mathis.
Mathis has campaigned to help people during Flint’s water crisis before. He says this latest effort was inspired by a conversation he had with the late Aretha Franklin.
“She suggested I come back up here and help the folks with water and help with a little justice,” says Mathis.
Mathis says the timing of the caravan and rally at a Flint church, less than a week before the November election, was simply coincidental.
State officials insist tests show Flint’s water meets state and federal standards. But since the state closed free bottled water distribution centers, many in Flint continue to use only bottled water.
Mathis says he can understand Flint residents who still don’t trust their tap water is safe to drink.
“The same people who poisoned me and now telling me go ahead and start drinking; it’s clean. Before even rebuilding the pipes,” says Mathis. “That’s why I felt compelled to come back.”
Mathis promises to continue his efforts to assist Flint in the future.
