In Case You Missed It

Dozens of residents forced from their homes have found refuge at a Red Cross shelter

at Mamaroneck High School. (Photo: Kevin Suttlehan)

Over the last seven days, the Greater New York Red Cross has activated to support communities impacted by Hurricane Ida. In addition, we have continued provide providing emergency assistance to individuals affected by other local disaster responses, mostly home fires.

Here are some highlights from last week and a preview of upcoming activities. (See below)

Last Week in Review

• In response to the devastating flooding brought on by the remnants of Hurricane Ida, Red Cross teams from across the region have been working around the clock to support local communities.
• Throughout the weekend, Red Cross volunteers and partners like Mira USA and NYC CERT were distributing clean-up kits to residents affected by Hurricane Ida in Woodside, Mamaroneck and Pemberwick section of Greenwich, Conn.
• On Long Island , Red Cross teams delivered food to assisted living shelter residents temporarily displaced due to the storm.
• Since last Wednesday, many residents forced from their homes from Hurricane Ida found refuge at a Red Cross shelter at Mamaroneck High School.
• Partner Bill Cusano from Meals on Main Street by Caritas showed his support to the community members staying in our shelter in Mamaroneck by dropping off meals.
• Many Red Cross volunteers like Manuel and Bernadette continued to help families affected by Hurricane Ida at the NYC Service Centers in each borough.
• Many GNY Red Crossers have deployed to Louisiana to help with disaster relief operations as well.
• New York Stock Exchange rang the closing bell in support of the Red Cross work supporting communities affected by Hurricane Ida, western wildfires and other emergencies.
• At the start of September, we kicked off the start of National Preparedness Month by sharing this video on how to be Red Cross Ready in different languages and how you can find out which emergencies occur where you live and how you can prepare for them.

Upcoming Events and Activities

• Sign up to donate blood during the 20th Anniversary 9/11 Week of Remembrance Blood Drives:
• Sept 8: Adam Clayton Powell Building, 163 W 125th Street #508, New York, NY
• Sept 8: Paramount Hudson Valley, 1008 Brown Street, Peekskill, NY
• Sept 8: Stamford Church of Christ, 1264 High Ridge Road, Stamford, CT
• Sept 10: The City of White Plains ,
• Sept 10: YMCA of Greenwich, 50 East Putnam Avenue, Greenwich, CT
• Sept 8: We’re livestreaming an online disaster preparedness seminar in partnership with NY State Senator Phil Boyle.
• Sept 10: Join the Eastern, Greater and Western New York Regions of the American Red Cross for a panel discussion “Reflections and Lessons Learned” featuring volunteers and team members who responded to the 9/11 Attacks.
• Sept 13: Free Virtual CPR & AED Training with NY State Senators Kaplan & Kaminsky.
• Sept 14: Learn about our many volunteer opportunities and how you can apply by attending our Disaster Volunteer Information Session livestream.
• Sept 15, 29: Join us for a virtual preparedness presentation--Prepare, Respond and Recover: What to do when disaster strikes—in partnership with NY State Senator Anthony Palumbo and NY State Rep. Harry Arora.
• Volunteer Services is looking for two full-time NYC Civic Corps. This is a paid, stipend opportunity ideal for a recent college grad who is mission-focused and looking to gain nonprofit volunteer management experience. Learn more and apply here.
• We’re looking for volunteers to help staff disaster shelters, with a specific need for health professionals. Apply today at redcross.org/volunteertoday! For more information, please contact recruitmentgny@redcross.org.

FOR RELEASE: RED CROSS CONTINUES TO PROVIDE ASSISTANCE IN GREATER NY FOLLOWING HISTORIC FLOODING

A Red Cross volunteer distributes cleanup supplies to 

flood-affected neighborhoods in Queens

NEW YORK, September 4, 2021 — The American Red Cross in Greater New York continues to work around the clock to support families forced from their homes due to the devastation caused by the remnants of Hurricane Ida. The storm brought historic flooding, forced families from their homes and severely damaged vehicles, property and belongings, across NYC, Westchester County, Greenwich, Conn. and Long Island.

NYC

In NYC the Red Cross is working closely with City partners to provide emergency housing to displaced households. To date, the Red Cross has housed 77 individuals from Queens, Staten Island, Brooklyn and the Bronx with safe lodging, in partnership with NYC. The organization is also actively seeking out additional families in need of services. In NYC, residents in need of assistance due to the storm are urged to call 311 or 877 RED CROSS (press 1 when prompted).

Starting today, the Red Cross will be present at NYC Service Centers – alongside multiple agencies and organizations who are available in person to discuss storm-related issues — in each borough. For the locations of these centers, along with online resources for affected residents, visit www.nyc.gov/ida.

Red Cross teams are also out canvassing NYC communities to complete disaster assessments and distribute clean up supplies.

Westchester County and Greenwich, Conn.

In Westchester County, the Red Cross shelter at Mamaroneck High School (1000 W Boston Post Rd, Mamaroneck, NY 10543) remains open for displaced families. Since Wednesday, more than 125 residents have stayed at the facility where Red Cross volunteers are providing food, water and other support. Red Cross teams are also out canvassing communities in Westchester and Greenwich to complete disaster assessments and distribute clean up kits.

Long Island

Since Thursday, the Red Cross has been assisting residents forced from a senior center in Elmont because of storm damage, providing emergency housing to 16 residents. The Red Cross has also completed disaster assessments and distributed clean up kits to affected residents.

Condolence Teams

In response to the heartbreaking loss of life caused by the storm, trained Red Cross mental health and spiritual care volunteers are reaching out to families in New York State who have lost loved ones to offer one-on-one support and provide financial assistance.

About the American Red Cross
The American Red Cross shelters, feeds and provides emotional support to victims of disasters; supplies about 40% of the nation’s blood; teaches skills that save lives; provides international humanitarian aid; and supports military members and their families. The Red Cross is a not-for-profit organization that depends on volunteers and the generosity of the American public to perform its mission. For more information, please visit redcross.org or cruzrojaamericana.org, or visit us on Twitter at @redcrossny.

In Case You Missed It

Red Crossers enjoying Mets game courtesy of LI Red Cross Board Member Ming Chiang.

Over the last seven days, the Greater New York Red Cross provided emergency assistance to 96 adults and 37 children for 42 local disaster responses. Here are some highlights from last week and a preview of upcoming activities. (See below)

Last Week in Review

• Since late last week the Greater NY Red Cross has been supporting our organization’s response to Hurricane Ida. Learn more about the response to this devastating storm.
• Over the weekend, News 12 spoke to LI Red Cross volunteer Bruce Vesloski on his way down to the Gulf in a Red Cross Emergency Response Vehicle.
• CBS New York was among many news outlets who spoke to our Red Cross colleagues from Greater NY about Hurricane Ida.
• A big THANK YOU to Long Island board member Ming Chiang for inviting our volunteers to enjoy Taiwan Day at Citi Field for a Mets game.
• Thank you Bruce and Bob for their hard work readying our cots (used in advance of Tropical Storm Henri) for the next major disaster.
• Last week we released the second episode of our third podcast season featuring a few volunteers who joined the Red Cross in the wake of 9/11. The episode is also available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and iHeart by search “Red Cross NY.”

Upcoming Events and Activities

• Sign up to donate blood during the 20th Anniversary 9/11 Week of Remembrance Blood Drives:
• Sept 7: American Red Cross in Greater NY HQ, 520 W 49th Street, New York, NY
• Sept 8: Adam Clayton Powell Building, 163 W 125th Street #508, New York, NY
• Sept 8: Paramount Hudson Valley, 1008 Brown Street, Peekskill, NY
• Sept 8: Stamford Church of Christ, 1264 High Ridge Road, Stamford, CT
• Sept 10: The City of White Plains ,
• Sept 10: YMCA of Greenwich, 50 East Putnam Avenue, Greenwich, CT
• Sept 8: We’re livestreaming an online disaster preparedness seminar in partnership with NY State Senator Phil Boyle.
• Sept 13: Free Virtual CPR & AED Training with NY State Senators Kaplan & Kaminsky.
• Sept 14: Learn about our many volunteer opportunities and how you can apply by attending our Disaster Volunteer Information Session livestream.
• Sept 15, 29: Join us for a virtual preparedness presentation--Prepare, Respond and Recover: What to do when disaster strikes—in partnership with NY State Senator Anthony Palumbo and NY State Rep. Harry Arora.
• We’re looking for two full-time NYC Civic Corps members: Regional Youth Coordinator and Volunteer Engagement Coordinator (includes paid-stipend, health insurance, transportation and more)
• We’re looking for volunteers to help staff disaster shelters, with a specific need for health professionals. Apply today at redcross.org/volunteertoday! For more information, please contact recruimtent@redcross.org.

9/11 Reflections from Greater New York Red Cross CEO

On September 11, 2001 I was on the #4 Train on my way back to my home in Brooklyn from a breakfast meeting in Midtown earlier that morning. I was going to get my suitcase at home and then grab a cab to LaGuardia to head to an out of town business meeting in Colorado.

Just as the train pulled into Fulton Street (under the WTC) around 9:30am, it came to a halt and we just sat there with no information because cell phones did not work underground in those days. After a time, the doors to the train opened and several people covered in ash and blood boarded the train in panic and told us that two commercial airliners had crashed into the Twin Towers.

They finally allowed the train to move forward to the Brooklyn Bridge station and then told us to evacuate. As I left the train station – the dust and ash in the air made it look like a blizzard and as I looked back, I saw the Twin Towers collapsing as if it were a melting wedding cake. In a state of shock and disbelief, I crossed the Brooklyn Bridge on foot and walked to my home in Carroll Gardens. As I was walking towards my home, I saw memos and other papers that had blown across the river from the impact of the explosion in the tree in my garden. They were from Cantor Fitzgerald, one of the businesses that were decimated during the attack.

When my husband finally got home that evening, the first thing we agreed on was to go to the Red Cross Blood collection site then in Brooklyn Heights to donate blood to the victims. The line was long and the Red Cross volunteers came out and told us they were not collecting because sadly, the hospitals were not admitting any survivors. In the days that followed, I made a donation to the Red Cross and also brought some batteries to a Red Cross station near the site. What haunts me to this day, are all the posters that were placed all over the city for people looking for loved ones. I will never forget that day for the rest of life and I am so glad that the Red Cross was there to help and is helping us to commemorate that unspeakable tragedy.

Mary J. Barneby

In Case You Missed It

Red Cross distributing clean-up kits in Staten Island and Mamaronek after Hurricane Henri. (Photo: Eli Dardis)

Over the last seven days, the Greater New York Red Cross provided emergency assistance to 121 adults and 37 children for 62 local disaster responses. Here are some highlights from last week and a preview of upcoming activities. (See below)

Last Week in Review

• Thank you to all our volunteers who answered the call over the past several days and supported our Henri relief operation, by staging supplies and setting up shelters in advance of the storm.
• Yesterday, Red Cross volunteers distributed clean-up kits in Staten Island and Mamaronek after localized flooding due to Tropical Storm Henri.
• Saturday evening, we opened six shelters on Long Island in advance of the storm. We had many more on standby.
• Early morning yesterday, our very own Metro NY North CEO Stephanie Dunn Ashley gave an early morning update to News 12 Westchester on the response to Hurricane Henri.
• Late last week, our colleagues Craig Cooper and Liz Barker spoke with KJOY FM on Long Island about the need for volunteers.
• Last Friday, we posted a news story about Ethan Chiu, a rising high school senior recently appointed to the American Red Cross National Youth Council.
• On #WorldHumanitarianDay, we once again recognized Dr. Joseph Prewitt Diaz and his decades of service by sharing our recent podcast conversation with him.
• From August 7-14, the Greater NY Red Cross Service to the Armed Forces Team supported the 40th Annual National Veterans Wheelchair Games in New York City. Our volunteer photographer Kevin Suttlehan captured these amazing photographs.
• Last Monday, we held a Facebook livestream presentation on how to prepare, respond and recover from local emergencies and large-scale disasters in your community, co-hosted by US Congressman Andrew Garbarino.
• We recently launched season three of our podcast! Click here to listen to the first episode. You can also subscribe on iTunes, Spotify and iHeart Radio by searching “Red Cross NY.”

Upcoming Events and Activities

• We’re looking for 2 full-time NYC Civic Corps members: Regional Youth Coordinator and Volunteer Engagement Coordinator (includes paid-stipend, health insurance, transportation and more)
• We’re looking for volunteers to help staff disaster shelters, with a specific need for health professionals. Apply today at redcross.org/volunteertoday! For more information, please contact recruimtent@redcross.org.
• The American Red Cross has issued a call for blood. We are experiencing a critical need for blood donors to help us save lives. Find a blood drive near you today.
• Sept 8: We’re livestreaming an online disaster preparedness seminar with NY State Senator Phil Boyle.

In Case You Missed It

Then and now: Photos from the archives of Red Cross volunteer Jim Heavey, who is now the Greenwich Police Chief.

Over the last seven days, the Greater New York Red Cross provided emergency assistance to 108 adults and 36 children for 36 local disaster responses. Here are some highlights from last week and a preview of upcoming activities. (See below.) 

Last Week in Review

• The third season of our podcast launched Friday with an episode about the 2003 Northeast Blackout. We were joined by Red Cross members and partners who helped to keep New Yorkers safe and informed during this historic emergency 18 years ago. 

• Longtime volunteer, board member, blood donor and Greenwich Police Chief Jim Heavey reflected on his 45+ years of service with the Red Cross in a blog post from this past week. 

• We shined a spotlight on Sarai Korpacz, a Red Cross Volunteer who jumped at the opportunity to give her time and services in support of the 40th National Veterans’ Wheelchair Games. 

• On August 10, we live-streamed a presentation on how to prepare, respond and recover from local emergencies and large-scale disasters in your community co-hosted by NY State Assemblyman Mike Lawler. 

• A Queens explosion and fire forced 44 people from their homes last Tuesday. ABC7 reports the Red Cross was there to provide temporary lodging, financial assistance, emotional support and other services to those impacted. 

• The Patch highlighted Red Cross blood drive efforts in the Greenwich area happening over the next few weeks. 

• Earlier this week, The Examiner profiled a Red Cross disaster preparedness event with Assemblyman Chris Budrick which was held on August 3, the one-year anniversary of Tropical Storm Isais. 

Upcoming Events and Activities

• August 17: We’re hosting an online informational session for potential volunteers. Join us to learn about our many volunteer opportunities and how you can apply today! 

• We’re looking for volunteers to help staff disaster shelters, with a specific need for with health professionals. Apply today at  redcross.org/volunteertoday! For more information, please contact recruimtent@redcross.org.

• The American Red Cross has issued a call for blood. We are experiencing nationwide blood shortages and are in dire need of donors to help us save lives. Find a blood drive near you today.

In Case You Missed It

Red Cross volunteers at the National Night Out in Brentwood. 

Over the last seven days, the Greater New York Red Cross provided emergency assistance to 103 adults and 33 children for 51 local disaster responses. Here are some highlights from last week and a preview of upcoming activities. (See below.)

Last Week in Review 

• According to Newsday, the Red Cross was called in to help some of the families impacted by a massive blaze in Hempstead early Friday morning. 

• Last week News 12 reported that the Red Cross aided residents displaced by a three-alarm fire at an apartment complex in Montrose on Friday night.

• On Tuesday, one of our ERVs made a pit stop at the National Night Out in Brentwood, NY, a drug abuse and violence prevention awareness event. We set up shop to greet the community and support the cause. 

• Also on Tuesday, we teamed up with NY Assemblyman Chris Burdick for a virtual presentation on disaster preparedness. 

• We co-hosted a Red Cross Ready livestream Monday with Greenwich Selectwoman Lauren Rabin. 

• The New Haven Register published a photo series highlighting Red Cross blood drive efforts in Greenwich, which were held Monday.

Upcoming Events and Activities

• August 10: We’re presenting an online disaster preparedness seminar with NY Assemblyman Mike Lawier. 

• August 17: Join us for a virtual informational session about volunteering with the American Red Cross in Greater New York. Register by signing up on our Eventbrite page

• We’re participating in the Target Circle program! You can vote for the Red Cross and help direct Target’s giving to benefit disaster relief. Vote by September 30 to make sure the Red Cross receives a grant so we can further our life-saving work in the community.