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One year ago, Superstorm Sandy came ashore.
It swept with it homes and businesses, and for far too many, a lifetime of possessions. Up and down the coast, in several beach towns, the rubble remains and even more questions linger. Residents agree, recovery is a long road ahead and it's anything but normal. But one thing is certain─ as our coastal landscapes have changed, so have we as a community.
Relief Efforts
In the weeks following the storm, a record 90,000 dialed into 211's call center in New Jersey. Calls for relief, namely the basics ─ food, shelter and clothing ─were among the highest call volume the hotline has ever fielded. Thankfully, by the truckload, donations began to pour in, and volunteers queued up to lend a hand: in shelters, at warehouses, transporting goods. Funds to aid the impacted areas were established, including the national United Way Hurricane Sandy Recovery Fund, the American Red Cross' Disaster Relief Fund and through the Robin Hood Foundation's A-list telethon concert on 12.12.12. Relief was, at that moment, a national effort.
Recovery Continues
One year later, in Atlantic County, a cadre of volunteers continues to meet every other Monday. They gather around one table with a shared mission: complete recovery for all local Sandy-impacted residents. Made up of nearly 40 organizations from the public, private, non-profit and faith-based communities ─ including UWGPSNJ as the fiscal agent and key partner─ the strength of the Long Term Recovery Group is the treasure of expertise its members have among them and their commitment to taking action, together. To date, the LTRG has secured more then $1.1 million to complete this task and much of its work─ either repairing or rebuilding ─ is just getting started. This group is often the last piece in the puzzle of recovery for local residents, tackling projects when other funds are either exhausted or lacking. This process takes time, but the members of the LTRG are in it for the long haul. And because it is a volunteer effort, able hands are always needed.
In the past 10 months, more than 1,800 volunteers have stepped out or showed up in Atlantic County, some spending days on a bus en route to the devastation to offer their time, talent and resources. And according to the Department of Labor, this collective effort is the equivalent of $1.9 million in man-hours. The projects have ranged from "mucking out," a term describing the removal of a home's moldy contents, to stocking supplies and donations inside a 33,000 square-foot warehouse space donated by Atlantic County Utilities Authority, to reconstructing an entire basement apartment. And still, projects continue.
There is no question Superstorm Sandy has forever changed the residents, groups, leaders, first responders and communities it touched. But the strength that has risen from those who have weathered this storm and the will of those who continue to reach out their hands to help is truly to be commended. Together, we can achieve much more than any one of us could alone.
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