In lieu of cake…
This Friday is my birthday. As I told a friend the other day, “I try not to make a big deal out of my birthday, but I can't help it. Birthdays are up there with Christmas and Halloween for me. I love them, whether it's mine or someone else's. I just think they're great.”
But, in the midst of all of my birthday excitement, I’m continually being smacked in the face with devastating news and images from home. Last week’s heavy rains caused wide-spread flooding in my hometown; worse than the flooding they experienced just five years ago.
As power is restored, roads reopened and people allowed to return to their homes to assess the damage, many people are finding they’ve lost everything - many of them for the second time. And while my family is safe and have relatively minor damage to deal with, I can’t help but feel an extreme sense of loss, though I’m more than 300 miles away.
Homes that I was invited into and played in as a child are gone. The landscape of my hometown has been forever changed, and I’m desperate to do something for the place that was my home and helped to shape the person am I today.
Since I’m unable to travel to New York right now to help clean up, I think the next best thing is to make a donation to one of the many charitable organizations set up to assist people in putting things to rights.
I would consider it a wonderful birthday gift if there’s anything my friends can do to help those who need it at home.
Information regarding items people are in need of and where they can be sent can be found here: http://bit.ly/pWjsRJ.
Donations can also be made to the American Red Cross of South Central NY: http://www.1redcross.org/
Thank you.
But, in the midst of all of my birthday excitement, I’m continually being smacked in the face with devastating news and images from home. Last week’s heavy rains caused wide-spread flooding in my hometown; worse than the flooding they experienced just five years ago.
As power is restored, roads reopened and people allowed to return to their homes to assess the damage, many people are finding they’ve lost everything - many of them for the second time. And while my family is safe and have relatively minor damage to deal with, I can’t help but feel an extreme sense of loss, though I’m more than 300 miles away.
Homes that I was invited into and played in as a child are gone. The landscape of my hometown has been forever changed, and I’m desperate to do something for the place that was my home and helped to shape the person am I today.
Since I’m unable to travel to New York right now to help clean up, I think the next best thing is to make a donation to one of the many charitable organizations set up to assist people in putting things to rights.
I would consider it a wonderful birthday gift if there’s anything my friends can do to help those who need it at home.
Information regarding items people are in need of and where they can be sent can be found here: http://bit.ly/pWjsRJ.
Donations can also be made to the American Red Cross of South Central NY: http://www.1redcross.org/
Thank you.