Ladies--
I just received some emails from the Southern
portion of our county and, as I have been living in my
cave of mommy-hood, had no idea of the amount of
damage done in Mamaroneck, so thought I would
send along some info in case others don't know the
needs.
The rain and floods Sunday and Monday left many
families with extreme damage to their homes and
their belongings. Many families are still without power
and 70 families as of yesterday were still
living in a shelter set up at Mamaroneck High School!
A Mamaroneck Task Force meeting Thursday
made the following recommendations for helping
these flood victims, please consider helping in
whatever way you can:
1. If you know of anyone that
has been affected by the storm, please have them
call "211" or 800-899-1479 which is the
specific information line through the United Way. You
can also call this number if you would like to help or
donate funds.
2. The Mamaroneck Food Pantry lost
everything. The devastated area is home to a large
percentage of our
community's neediest families, who will not have the
resources to re-build.
3. Interpreters-- especially Spanish-speakers, are
needed to assist with translation
4. Furniture donations can be directed to:
Furniture Sharehouse, 914-834-1294, email:
info@furnituresharehouse.org,
www.furnituresharehouse.org. There is a large
armory at the Westchester
airport that will be housing all furniture donations and
it will be open starting today.
5. Urgent need with Habitat for Humanity!! Every
Saturday and Sunday going
forward, you can show up at Howard Street and you
will be assigned to assist-- they need "manpower" to
pull up rugs, take down drywall, remove debris
etc. You can show up or contact flood@habitatwc.org,
www.habitatwc.org.
6. Help with cameras-- to document losses,
put "Willing to Photograph Damage" as the Subject in
an email to Habitat, flood@habitatwc.org
7. Clothing donations will be accepted by
Mamaroneck Cares-- the Pavilion at
Harbor Island has to be prepared as the interim
drop-off site, more details to follow, again, use 2-1-1.
8. "Love In a Box" will begin a new project
matching "families-to-families" as soon as we have a
needs assessment from the Mamaroneck Avenue
School we get the basic needs met. Consider
whether you would support another family through this
difficult time-- this means helping them navigate the
Relief systems in place and providing them with
some of the basics to get back on their feet. Email
Linda Ryan for additional info on matching with a
family or connect with "211" for more volunteer info.
Linda Ryan, linda@loveinabox.org,
www.loveinabox.org.
9. As a result of last weekend's storm, the My
Sisters' Place shelter in Mamaroneck sustained
serious damage. For more than 25 years, My Sisters'
Place has provided thousands of victims of domestic
violence and their children with a key to a better life.
The women and their children were evacuated, but it
is hoped that they will be able to return some time next
week. The flooding destroyed all of the contents on the
ground floor of the shelter, including the washer and
dryer, extra refrigerators, significant food stuffs and
cleaning supplies, the childrens' playroom furnishings
and all of their toys, books and art supplies. As the
shelter is not in a "flood zone", we were unable to
insure for this catastrophe, and so we are making this
emergency appeal. It is our hope that together we can
help MSP quickly replace all that was lost so that the
shelter can once again be a comfortable and nuturing
home. Please make your check payable to My Sisters'
Place and send it to 1 Water Street, White Plains, NY
10061, attention "shelter donation". If you have any
questions, contact Ariana Aguilar, email
aaguilar@mysistersplaceny.org, phone:
914.683.1333,
www.mysistersplaceny.org. Currently the shelter
is only able to
accept monetary donations, but in the next week or
two they will be able to accept donations of toys,
clothes, etc to rebuild the shelter.
10. Pass this email on to those you feel would be
interested and able to
help in ANY way.
