State Senator Mike Nozzolio is encouraging local residents to consider volunteering their time or resources this Labor Day weekend to help New York families who were hit the hardest by Hurricane Irene. Senator Nozzolio applauded Governor Andrew Cuomo for coordinating “Labor for your Neighbor”, a volunteer initiative aimed at helping clean-up efforts following the devastation of the storm.
“All across the State, we have witnessed the outstanding generosity and compassion of New Yorkers turning out to help others who lost everything to Hurricane Irene,” said Senator Nozzolio. “Governor Cuomo’s initiative presents a wonderful opportunity to provide more neighbor-to-neighbor help on this long holiday weekend. I encourage everyone to visit the ‘Labor for your Neighbor’ website and learn more about how they can lend a hand to victims of this terrible storm.”
Clean-up efforts will be targeted to the Schoharie Valley, the Catskills region and the North Country, where the storm brought extensive damage. Clean-ups will take place on Sunday and Monday. Volunteers will be safely shuttled into towns and villages needing assistance, and provided appropriate supervision and equipment. The National Guard and the State Office of Emergency Management will supervise the effort.
In addition, anyone wishing to help by donating money to recovery efforts can do so through a centralized effort coordinated by United Way of New York State. United Way has set up a dedicated fund that will take donations for charities and voluntary agencies assisting with recovery efforts in the affected communities. One hundred percent of donations will go relief efforts. United Way will work with other statewide charitable partners, such as Catholic Charities, the Red Cross, the Food Bank Association, the Community Action Association and others, in the Hurricane Irene Storm Recovery Fund.
New Yorkers interested in volunteering or contributing can do so on the Governors website at www.governor.ny.gov/laborforyourneighbor [2]. Volunteers will receive specific directions and instructions for the cleanup sites.
Those who wish to contribute goods rather than funds should directly contact charitable organizations in their areas to determine which will accept such contributions and what items are most needed in the storm relief effort. United Way and the Disaster Relief Centers being set up by New York State with the Federal Emergency Management Administration do not accept non-cash contributions.
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