Archbald Donations Head to New Jersey Storm Victims

Archbald, Lackawanna County - There was a huge outpouring of donations on the final day of a collection drive for victims of Superstorm Sandy in Lackawanna County.

For the last three weeks, the borough of Archbald has been collecting donations in a trailer outside of the borough building.

On the final day, members of the Waymart Ambulance Association arrived with an ambulance full of donations.

"If we could do more, we would," Tom Derrick said. "I just hope they can use it to good use."

Ambulance members dropped off bag-after-bag of clothes and other items.

"The last two days, we've been looking for a way to get it there," Anita Thompson said. "We were even at the point, if we knew where to go with it, we were going to load up a truck and go."

Before the Waymart Ambulance donation even arrived, organizers of the collection drive say members of the community helped to fill-up a 53-foot trailer donated by "Kane is Able" trucking.

"Through the valley, we'd be here loading the truck and people would just be coming up in the cars dropping off stuff," councilwoman and organizer Shirley Barrett said. "We had an 80-year-old lady come up and she said, I only have two bags but I wanted to give something. That touched all of us."

At 2:00 PM, the truck full of donations left Archbald headed for Atlantic City, New Jersey.

That is where all of the items will be given to several churches.

"These people have just suffered so much and you just wonder how they cope with the weather getting as bad as it is," Eynon/Archbald Lions Club treasurer Louis Rapoch said.