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Astros' Lee contributes to agriculture after IkeHOUSTON (AP)--Carlos Lee looked down from a helicopter and saw cattle swimming through floodwaters. He saw farms and ranches devastated by Hurricane Ike, and knew he had to help. The Houston Astros slugger and cattle rancher announced Sept. 23 a donation of $25,000 and more than 300 bales of hay to the Texas Department of Agriculture to assist Galveston and its surrounding counties in their recovery. "It's one thing to see it on the news and a whole different thing to see it live," he said. "It was hard. As a rancher I understand it's not easy to be in the cattle business. A lot of cattle are dead. Some people are coming back and seeing that all they worked for is destroyed." Lee's own cattle ranch in Wharton, about 60 miles southwest of downtown Houston, was not damaged in the storm, but he wanted to do something to help those who are suffering from Ike. Lee, who is out with a broken left pinkie, said he never expected to be a spokesman for the Texas Department of Agriculture. "I'm a baseball player, but I love the ranch--and if it can happen to other cattle people, it can happen to me," he said. "I feel like if I can help I'm going to do it." Texas Department of Agriculture commissioner Todd Staples said as many as 20,000 head of cattle are roaming free in the hurricane ravaged areas because of damage to fences, corrals and barns. He said many cattle ranchers are selling off large chunks of their herds because they don't have the money or time to repair the thousands of miles of fence that was destroyed in the storm. "The impact on agriculture has been tremendous," Staples said. "The direct and indirect losses to the agricultural community will total into the hundreds of millions of dollars. Texas prides itself on being the No. 1 cattle producing state in the nation and that is a position we want to continue to hold. But we have had the coastal counties devastated by the impact of Ike." Lee hopes his donation will encourage Texans to help in the relief effort. Astros owner Drayton McLane said it was a unique experience to be in Minute Maid Park talking about cattle and hay, but that he is impressed with what Lee has done. "Carlos is passionate about this," McLane said. "He loves ranching and is involved in it and he wanted to make a difference. This is what the Houston Astros are about." 10/13/08 Date: 10/3/08
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