Several politicians and institutions are announcing drop-off spots for goods that can be shipped to Puerto Rico, which is still reeling from Hurricane Maria. Firehouses throughout the city are collecting 18 items, but none are on the UWS.
Columbus Pre-School is hosting a diaper collection for hurricane relief efforts in Puerto Rico. “Our in-school families have begun donating diapers, and we will collect until 10/6, when we will bring our collection to Engine 91 in East Harlem, where the goods wil be transferred for distribution to Puerto Rico. We are collecting diaper donations (all sizes, sealed/unopened donations only) at Columbus Pre-School, 606 Columbus Ave (89th St), 2nd Floor. Donations will be accepted 9/27-9/29 and 10/2-10/6: 8:30am-5:00pm.”
State Sen. Brian Benjamin is also preparing to gather supplies this Saturday:
“To aid our neighbors in Puerto Rico & Mexico, I will be driving a truck through our Senate District this Saturday, September 30th to collect donated items from our partners around the city, and then delivering them to shipping containers in the Bronx bound for Puerto Rico & Mexico, courtesy of Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz, Jr. If you would like to help by collecting items, please reach out and let us know! We are particularly interested in collecting:
- Batteries
- Flashlights
- Portable Lanterns
- Diapers
- Baby Wipes
- Cases of Water
- Feminine Hygiene Products
To learn more, call or email Valerie Alcena at 914.539.2382 and alcena@nysenate.gov, or visit our office at 163 West 125th Street, Suite 912, New York, NY 10027, where you can also drop donated items off. We are open 9am – 5pm Monday – Thursday, and will be open ’til 7pm on Friday.”
The New York City Council also explained ways to help.
HURRICANE MARIA RELIEF EFFORTS
There are many organizations actively working to assist Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands and the other areas of the Caribbean that were badly damaged by Hurricane Maria, including:
- Community Foundation of the Virgin Islands (www.usvirecovery.org)
- Global Giving (www.globalgiving.org)
- UNICEF (www.unicefusa.org)
- Save the Children (https://www.savethechildren.or
g) - Dominica Hurricane Maria Relief Fund (https://dominicarelief.org)
- Catholic Charities (www.catholiccharities.org).
Those wishing to help out our neighbors in Puerto Rico can also text UNIDOS to 41444 and/or contact the Hispanic Federation, which has established its own Hurricane Relief Fund to aid those on the Island who were affected by Hurricane Maria. For more information, visit www.hispanicfederation.org.
Additionally, the City has identified 18 firehouses and EMS stations across the five boroughs where New Yorkers can donate the following critically-needed items for Hurricane Maria relief:
- Diapers
- Baby Food
- Batteries
- First Aid Supplies
- Feminine Hygiene Products
For a list of locations and the hours within which donations are being accepted, please click here or visit the City’s website at www.nyc.gov. However, please note that the City is only collecting the items listed above.
MEXICO EARTHQUAKE RELIEF EFFORTS
Relief efforts are also underway to help those affected by this month’s powerful earthquake in Mexico.
Here’s a list, originally published in the NY Times, of local and international organizations that are providing aid:
- Topos México is a nonprofit rescue brigade made up of volunteers that was created after a 1985 earthquake. The group posted to Twitter information on how to donate through PayPal and its bank accounts, and thanked people for their support.For more information, visit www.topos.mx. (Please note: Website is in Spanish.)
- Direct Relief, a humanitarian aid organization, has staff members in Mexico City and has pledged that 100 percent of its donations will go directly to relief efforts, which it says will include facilitating the delivery of medical supplies to affected areas.For more information, visit www.directrelief.org.
- GlobalGiving, a crowdfunding organization, has pledged that all money donated to its earthquake fund will go to recovery and relief efforts.For more information, visit www.globalgiving.org.
- Fondo Unido Mexico, part of the United Way network, has created an emergency fund to help the areas affected by the earthquake as well as by the recent series of hurricanes.For more information, visit https://www.fondounido.org.mx/e
s/EmergencyFund. A WORD OF ADVICE
When deciding to donate, please be sure to visit www.CharitiesNYS.com – the New York State Attorney General’s one-stop resource for charitable organizations, fundraisers, grantmakers and members of the public. There you will find important tips on charitable giving, as well as information about other helpful resources to check before donating, such as Charity Navigator.
Image via NOAA.
Fairway (74th & Broadway) is collecting items for donation outside the store, at a table.
Firehouses “none are on the UWS.” Why not?
I have some cases of water to donate, but no way to get them somewhere. (I know that cases of water are quite inefficient, but nonetheless they are available). I also have some feminine hygiene products, but no place on UWS is collecting that. Can anyone help with this?