After the storm
We are a company situated in central Long Island with employees from Brooklyn to the Rockaways to Long Beach and the East End. No one avoided the reach of Sandy, whether it was a power outage or the complete loss of a home. We have plenty of both here.
The morning of the storm, I posted pictures on our Facebook page of the impending rising ocean. I have included scenes of Long Beach taken the very next day. The shock of Tuesday led to despair in the days to come; many just had to pick up and leave.
Mike Winerip of the New York Times captured both moments in his on-line article, “The Night the Dune Failed.” Mike is my neighbor and that dune is where I took my pictures earlier that day. We have for years looked at the tragic hurricane destruction residents of the southeast have experienced, wondering if it could ever be us. As Mike wrote, it is “one thing to cover a disaster, another thing to be the disaster.”
Of course it is not only my community that is suffering through the storm and its aftermath. My house was spared flooding by inches but many neighbors, some of whom now live in my home, were not as fortunate. As I came to work on Wednesday, I was shocked at how many employees shared the same fate. Those who work for me are a skilled group of individuals filled with pride and commitment.
I want to take this opportunity now to publicly acknowledge them for enabling us to produce products to the highest standards of our industry; all made on Long Island. Today for many of these individuals, work is now their only oasis of heat, electricity and normalcy. While our phones and internet were down (we’re back online with both today), our factory has been running without interruption since Wednesday and for this I am eternally grateful to them. Despite their own situations, some have done food and clothing drives for me to bring back to Long Beach.
We are participating in the relief efforts for our local communities. If you would like to join us, please see the websites below where you can send your support.
Long Beach Relief Fund
The American Red Cross
https://helpmedonate.org/American_Red_Cross-Hurricane_Sandy_Relief
Sincerely,
