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Grassroots Volunteer Project Helps Hurricane Sandy Victims

By: Mark Hiller

Updated: November 16, 2012

Kingston, Luzerne County -- Volunteers sorted new and gently used donated clothes at The Church of Saint Ignatius Loyola in Kingston. All of the clothing is intended for New Jersey victims of Hurricane Sandy. Even though other drives delivered donated clothes to New Jersey, these volunteers determined there is still a need for clothing and a better way to coordinate it. "We decided we would separate them, too. because that's where they were having a problem. People were just dropping off bags and bags and bags and they weren't separated," said Anne Bergold,

The separated clothing covers sizes from child to adult, male to female. Savanna Miller of Plymouth wanted to help this clothing drive after helping in another effort. She worked with FEMA Corps and met first hand with superstorm victims in the Hoboken and Jersey City areas. "Just registering people with FEMA just going door to door telling them the number and just setting up DRC's (Disaster Recovery Centers). They come to us. We just register them online." What she witnessed while in New Jersey had a lasting impact on her. "Definitely surreal. I mean definitely life changing."

It's more than just clothing donated through this hurricane help drive. Even blankets have been donated, knowing that the need is so great. The drive also took clothing collections at two Wilkes-Barre Fire Stations where volunteers rounded up several boxes and containers of donated clothes. For clothing drive coordinator Tammy Wenger of Kingston, the motivation to do this is simple. "I have relatives down in Toms River but how could you not get involved in something like this when we have so much and they have nothing. People have lost everything."

Ward Trucking of Wilkes-Barre is donating a truck for the volunteers to deliver the clothing to New Jersey on Saturday.