NK Girl Donates to People (and Pets) Affected by Sandy

Abby Duffy’s first absence of the school year wasn’t due to sickness, or even a feigned sickness. Instead of sitting in the classroom on Wednesday, Dec. 5, Abby was sitting shotgun as she and her father drove down to the Jersey Shore to donate supplies to the area ravaged by Hurricane Sandy.

Abby, who is in fifth grade at Suzanne M. Henseler Quidnessett Elementary School, decided to take action and help those hit hard by the October storm after watching the coverage on television. Struck by the images that streamed across her television screen, Abby sent an email to her principal to see if the school could do anything.

Days later, letters were sent out to staff and parents asking for donations to send to New Jersey and two boxes were set up at the school to collect the donations. For 10 days, Abby collected essential supplies for those displaced by the storm, including toothpaste, diapers, flashlights and even pet food.

With boxes of donations, Abby and her family began to plot how to overcome the next obstacle: how to get it all to New Jersey. Abby’s mother, Lee Ann, contacted the Red Cross for some guidance. According to Lee Ann, the Red Cross representative recommended that Abby drive down to New Jersey to deliver the goods herself.

“It was a life experience for her,” said Lee Ann.

With the back of the family stuffed with supplies, Abby and her father set out on the five-hour drive to the Jersey Shore. Most of their drive was uneventful, until they hit the New Jersey line and really began to see the devastation wrought by the storm.

“You get into New Jersey and there’s just lots of downed trees,” said Abby. “When you got down to the shore, it was just piles of garbage and check stations and closed roads.”

Mountains of storm debris, filled with couches and other household items, the size of houses dotted their journey to the distribution center. Most of the area was still without power and nearly all shops and stores were still closed. According to Abby, the workers at the distribution center were appreciative of her donation, especially one item.

“No one had donated pet food,” said Abby.

Though the distribution center was packed with boxes and boxes of supplies, Abby and her father were told that the room would be empty by the end of the night. According to one worker, most distribution centers are only able to guarantee supplies for up to week out.

“I felt sad,” said Abby. “If you think about how we have everything and they have nothing. Not all of us are doing something to help.”

Abby says she plans to continue monitoring the news to see if the need for help and donations persists into the new year. If so, she said she’d consider mounting another effort to help those in need in New Jersey.

Do you know someone who’s working to help those devastated by Hurricane Sandy? Tell us about them in the comments!