HUDSON VALLEY – It is an effort being repeated around the region and nation as family members and area residents come together to collect relief supplies for hurricane-torn Puerto Rico. That’s after Hurricane Maria killed at least ten people in Puerto Rico and left the entire U.S. Territory without electricity or clean water.
At Cilantro Tapas & Bar in New Windsor on Monday, areas businesses who have been collecting supplies over the weekend, along with people from the community, came together with supplies ranging from bottled water to toiletries, canned goods and more, to organize them, and package them for a Jet Blue flight to Puerto Rico.
Gisela Gomez with Latinos in Business, was one of the organizers of the event. Hearing that so many people here on the mainland have been unable to contact relatives because power and communications remain out, she knew she had to do something.
That sentiment rang true for David Lebron, owner of Cilantro’s who allowed his place of business to be used as a staging area for all the collected donations. “I was told on Friday that we had a plane ready to leave on Tuesday, but needed a central location for donated items. So we just made it happen,” Lebron said.
Utilizing social media and word of mouth, people started gathering items and bringing them to designated local businesses, who then brought them to Cilantro’s. There, an army of volunteers worked to sort and arrange the items for placement on pallets, before they were loaded into tractor trailers.
Daisy Vale and her husband Pablo both have relatives in Puerto Rico who they have not been able to speak with. “It’s very bad there. You see the images on the news and the devistation and we knew we had to do something to try to help,” Vale said. So the retired couple went to Cilantro’s, where they could volunteer their time for a cause very near to their heart.
Lebron noted that this will be an on-going effort as Puerto Rico has been destroyed. “Just because this one flight of donated items is going out, we need to find a way to keep collecting and getting things out there to them. This is going to go on for a long time,”Lebron said. While the donations amassed looked impressive, Lebron knows it’s but a grain of sand on the beach in comparison to what is needed, so he plans to keep the momentum going.
At the American Legion Post 151 in Middletown over the weekend, the same kind of community spirit could be observed as Middletown fireman Joel Sierra, who has family in Puerto Rico, organized a similar event.
“This is one of the biggest humanitarian efforts in years,” Sierra said. “We’ve been filling trucks all weekend.”
Relief efforts are continuing all week and items may be dropped off at the American Legion Post 151. Sierra may be reached at 845-591-6448.
In Dutchess County, Assistant Minority Leader of the Dutchess County Legislature, Francena Amparo, is leading a group of local small businesses and volunteers who will be staging a hurricane relief drive this Sunday, October 1 from 11am to 3pm.
Legislator Amparo identifies herself as a member of the Puerto Rican diaspora and says, “Thinking about the long road to recovery for people on the island, I couldn’t just sit by and see what kind of help materializes. There are so many Puerto Ricans in our own community and so many expressions of support from everyone – together we can do a lot.”
In partnership with Café con Leche, along with a generous incentive from Starbucks, and space donated by the management of Ransley Square in Fishkill, volunteers are all set to accept donations of essential items at the Starbucks on Merit Boulevard in Fishkill on Sunday. Water, non-perishable food items, feminine hygiene products and toiletries, baby food, diapers and other items for children will be collected and then delivered by truck to the Puerto Rican Family Institute who will bring the donations directly to the people affected on the island of Puerto Rico.
US Representative Sean Patrick Maloney (NY-18) has called on the administration to act immediately.
“Millions of American citizens in Puerto Rico are in serious danger – they don’t have electricity, they don’t have clean water, and they needed our help yesterday. We’ve got the resources and personnel necessary to save lives and help our fellow Americans rebuild – it’s time to get in gear and get them on the ground. I urge the President to send help immediately and to send Congress an updated FEMA funding request ASAP,” Maloney stated.
![](https://hudsonvalleypress.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/WaldenSavingsBank1.jpg")
![](https://hudsonvalleypress.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/HVCU_Dec2024.jpg")
