Holiday Decoration on Debris Pile @ Breezy Point, 11/11/12

Dear Readers,

This Holiday Season, I would like to suggest making donations toward the Sandy Relief Effort in lieu of gifts.  The grass roots mobilization toward Sandy Relief is really commendable. Every posting I read on Facebook warms my heart: donations of food, diapers, clothing, solar generators, sleeping bags, gift cards, clean-up duties, socks, photo restoration, underwear, books, volunteers, volunteers, and more volunteers. From the East End, people are driving daily—some on buses and some in their own cars—100 miles to the west to help those in need. So if you are so inclined, please consider making donations to these worthy organizations this holiday season. I am in no way affiliated with any of these groups. I also encourage you to do your own research before you donate. The information I am providing here was collected from the organization's websites as well as from first-hand experience.

Breezy Point, 11/11/12

Paddlers for Humanity

Accepting donations for East End Cares. Please read about this phenomenal group HERE.
100% of funds given to East End Cares go directly to relief efforts.

From the p4h.org website:

"Monetary Donations -  Secure online tax-deductible donations can be made to Paddlers for Humanity,
a registered 501(c)(3) non-profit organization.  All funds will immediately be given to East End Cares."  

You can make a donation here:  http://www.p4h.org/


Power Rockaways Resilience

This is a group that moved into The Rockaways swiftly after the storm and brought in power. The first I saw of them, they were providing solar powered charging stations for cell phones. This gave the storm victims the ability to use their phones to communicate with their families, insurance companies, jobs, etc.  Many of these people, almost 5 weeks later, still have no electricity.

From their website:

"Power Rockaways Resilience is a project of the CMRC (Coastal Marine Resource Center) which is a 501C3 so all your contributions will be tax deductible. Also, please note, this is a flexible funding campaign, so any donations will be available immediately and immediately put to use for the benefit of the Rockaways."

Please read about their fundraising campaign here; it ends on December 20th @ midnight. The campaign receives all funds contributed. 


CARE FOR SANDY

Breezy Point, 11/11/12

And very dear to my heart, is CARE FOR SANDY.  From their website:

"CARE stands for Cherished Albums Restoration Effort. Our mission is simple: to offer FREE digital restoration services for individuals and families whose salvaged photos have been damaged by October's devastating hurricane."

Some of the most heartbreaking experiences I have had @ Breezy Point have been finding the random, damaged photographs that are just lying around on the ground. This picture of an unidentified child in a snow suit was in Ann's backyard. She has no idea who it is...I get teary every time I look at it.

As CARE FOR SANDY says,:

"Because whereas cars, homes and jobs are replaceable, images of mom & dad's honeymoon, baby's first steps and great great grandpa's sole surviving portrait are priceless. Photos contain deep-rooted significance. Photos preserves stories! Photos foster soul and spirit."

So if you know any storm victims who could use these services, please refer them to CARE FOR SANDY.  This group is not yet set up to take financial donations, however they do need equipment. Please take a look at their list of needs HERE. 

And from their website:

"CARE for Sandy is not yet a federally registered not-for-profit charity, which means it cannot yet legally accept cash contributions. It’s a grassroots effort, currently being coordinated/web administrated/designed/written/ideated by a team of one from a home office in Park Slope, Brooklyn. That said, if you're an attorney who would like to help us achieve not-for-profit status, we're all ears!"

So, if you are an attorney or you know an attorney who would like to help out in the Sandy Relief effort, please reach out to this invaluable group.

The Generosity of  Spirit that I have seen as result of this natural disaster has reinforced my love of humanity. Anything that we do to help, any little bit of attention given to this  effort is invaluable. The help will be needed for a long, long time.

I thank you with a full heart and wish you and your families a Healthy, Happy, Peaceful Holiday Season.

I will continue to expect good things....

American Flag in the Ruins @ Breezy, 11/11/12

November 11, 2012

On October 29^th, 2012, Super Storm Sandy ripped across the East Coast causing unprecedented damage to lives and property. I live on the East End of Long Island and prepared in the ways that I know I should. Batteries, lanterns, back-up water, charge the cell phone, batten down potential missiles. I live an old, tiny cottage and behind me is an older, enormous tree. I felt very concerned about this tree coming down on my roof. As the storm progressed and that ancient beauty began to drop her elderly, large branches, I kissed my cats goodbye and ran for it in the spitting, hissing rain to the safety of a neighbor’s much bigger house.

I slept there for the night and in the morning, returned to the cottage, which was intact with a yard full of debris from the large tree. Gazing at the undamaged roof and the intact windows, I vowed that I would not complain about any minor inconveniences I experienced as a result of the storm. No power, TV or Internet for a few days along with the gas shortages were problems that I would learn to live with. I knew via my transistor radio that damage was widespread and extensive.

Around 6:30 a.m., I got a text from my brother in Tulsa. He was checking on my safety and had bad news—there had been a fire in Breezy Point during the storm; 100 houses may have been lost. Our sister has a home in Breezy. Over the past few years, her home has been the holiday meeting place for those of us on the East Coast. My family is spread all over the country and for the couple times a year that we can get together, whatever number of us can do that, I am always very appreciative that she opens it up to us. As I get older, I feel more love and longing for my family. I had weathered my own storm with minor inconveniences; this news about Breezy brought tears to my eyes.

Yesterday, 2 weeks after the storm, finally feeling confident that the gas situation was ok, I was able to go to Breezy to help Ann at her home. It had not burned down, but the flooding damage was extensive. I was incredibly grateful that there was gas and I could lend a hand.

I got up at 4:30 and made 18 sandwiches: salami and cheese, turkey and cheese, egg salad. I packed homemade pumpkin muffins, sour cream & onion potato chips, cheddar popcorn & apples. Many of these things are some of Ann’s favorites—I kept that in mind while I was shopping. I wasn’t really sure who would eat the 18 sandwiches, but felt confident that there would be hungry people to eat them. My friend Kathee had generously donated $50 to use for any needs on the trip; I bought the groceries with her donation.

My friend Cynthia agreed to come with me; she had been to the Rockaways on a bus earlier in the week and wanted to help further. She arrived with a cooler for the 18 sandwiches, a case of water, lots of paper towels, garbage bags, gloves and a thermos for the hot, sugary Chai tea that I wanted to take to Ann.

Debris Pile @ Breezy, 11/11/12

We took off from my house around 6:30 and got to Breezy close to 8:30. The first sign of the devastation was the mountainous piles of debris along the road. Piles filled with scrap wood, bits of furniture, clothing, files in file cabinets, toys, food wrappers, letters, dishes and pans, appliances—you name it—it was there. Everything—EVERYTHING—that people owned was now in dirty, soggy, endless piles on the road.

There were lots of cars, lots of people and lots of volunteers. All along the main street from the entrance to the end, tents were set up: The Red Cross, Habitat for Humanity, FEMA, Operation Blessing, church groups, and private individuals who were giving away food: hot chicken soup, ribs, fresh baked goods, drinks of all kinds, coffee—it was heartwarming to see.

We arrived at Ann’s place. I got out of the car and we fell into an embrace. It is one thing to talk on the phone, but I always like to lay my eyes on people. Seeing them in person—that tells all. She was vertical and had most of her usual high-spirits. She looked tired as I expected and I was happy to see her sense of humor still in place. I introduced her to Cynthia and we broke out the still warm Chai tea. I think she teared-up when I pulled the ½ & ½ out of the cooler. “I brought this for you”, I said. “We are here to help in any way we can.”

The day progressed with numerous volunteer groups coming by to pitch in. We were personally helped by the following: Operation Blessing, Xavier High School Students, The Red Cross and 11 young & strong, polite and funny Air Force members from Mountain Home, ID (they devoured most of the 18 sandwiches).

Air Force Crew from Home Mountain, ID with Ann, 11/11/12

My eyes are welling with tears as I think of these people who came to help us. Ann’s home was just one still-standing, badly-damaged home in Breezy Point. And on a beautiful, unusually warm Sunday in November, these volunteers were pitching in to help her. In the midst of the all-encompassing mind-boggling destruction, I am thrilled to report that the human spirit is alive and well and thriving.

The scope of the devastation is beyond belief. If you have actually read this far along in my story, let me repeat what I just said: The Scope of the Devastation is Beyond Belief. The recovery and rebuilding process will take a long, long time. The buildings, cars and stuff can all be replaced. However, the people will have a harder time of it.

House separated from chimney @ Breezy, 11/11/12

There are not a lot of photographs of people in my story; I found them to be extremely fragile. They are tired and frightened and overwhelmed. Some have lost everything and are homeless. I even had trepidation about photographing the physical damage. I actually felt like a voyeur, like I was looking at private parts of people’s lives. When the fronts of homes are blown away and you can see inside what is generally a private space, it is a disturbing experience. When right-there-on-view-for-the-world-to-see are the remains of the furniture, the decorations and artwork, the toilet, loose clothing blowing in the breeze—for me, this was extremely startling. I felt very conscious of the fact that I did not want to exploit what I was seeing. I did not take these pictures for any reason except to share with you the extent of what happened and the level of devastation to so many lives. And I hope as a result of looking at this story, that you will keep all of this, especially the people, in your minds. Remember these people—any of whom could be us, our parents or siblings, our friends or neighbors. Remember them for they are going to need our help for a long, long time.

You can see my all of my photos from Breezy Point, 11/11/12 on my Ellen Watson Photography page on Facebook. While you are there, please "Like" my page!