Letter: Thanks to North Fork Community After Upstate Flooding From Lee

My community has been completely devastated by Tropical Storm Lee’s torrential rains and the ensuing flood. Entire neighborhoods have been lost to water, mud, raw sewage, and an overwhelming sense gloom. People have lost everything.  Homes that have been in the family for generations are gone along with pictures, furniture, and appliances.

And yet, we have all gained much more than we have lost. Thanks to your community, as well as members of our own, acts of charity and generosity give the inspiration to rebuild.   

I am writing on behalf of the 18 (and counting) families who have benefited from the generosity of your community. Hard goods such as couches, cooking ranges, and tables were donated, loaded on to trucks and delivered to our struggling community in Broome and Tioga Counties. It has been enriching to the soul to see the gratitude and relief in the eyes of my weary neighbors as they pick from the supply of high quality used goods.

Experts say it will take two years for my community to recover. Those who helped in the collection and delivery of these precious donations, especially those at Miller Environmental Group, Miller Marine Services and the Orlando family, have helped make recovery a little sweeter and the burden a little lighter. 

Thanks for sharing the burden,

Jenniffer Wheeler

(resident of Tioga County)