Crowd at flood fundraiser 'brings tears of joy' to Longhorns safety Michael Taaffe

AUSTIN (KXAN) — Texas star defensive back Michael Taaffe is an Austin native and, like many others, is heartbroken seeing the destruction caused by floods across Central Texas and the Hill Country during the Independence Day weekend.

Taaffe spent a couple of hours Thursday at P. Terry's West Campus location to help raise awareness for their fundraiser, signing autographs and taking pictures with fans, hoping to give them a small break from the sadness and pain the floods have caused.

All 36 P. Terry's locations are donating 100% of profits Thursday to the Austin Disaster Relief Network to benefit those affected by the floods, and Taaffe wanted to do something that "made an impact."

"It's super cool to see everybody here," said Taaffe about the crowd. "It brings tears of joy because it's so cool to see so many people show up. It's not about me. It's about the kids who were affected by this. The families."

The emotional toll of the weekend was clear on Taaffe's face when talking about what happened. Despite that, he took the time to speak with everyone in the long line of people there to see him. He encouraged everyone to purchase something at P. Terry's to help out flood victims.

Being a part of something like this is right up the alley of the former Westlake football standout.

"I thought [this] was a great opportunity to help them out and maybe get more fans here to raise more money," he said. "There's nothing I can do to bring those people back, but I know I can try my best to help those families and help the county. I'm going to do everything I can to do that."