More than six months after Hurricane Sandy struck the east coast, many local families are still struggling to rebuild their homes and lives. In an effort to help those affected, Fordham University has sponsored a series of one-day outings known as “Sandy Saturdays” to work with affected communities.

On April 20, Fordham will run its final Sandy Saturday of the semester. Volunteers will travel to Breezy Point to help clear debris, gut devastated homes, and assist in the beginnings of the rebuilding efforts. Groups will join Habitat for Humanity and other organizations already working in the area.

To learn about the volunteers’ Jan. 26 experience, read the article on Fordham’s news blog

Volunteers will depart from Fordham at 7:30 a.m. and, following a full day’s labor, will return to Fordham by 5 p.m. Transportation and meals will be provided.

“Sandy Solidarity calls out the entire Fordham family to live with a true spirit of compassion, to truly live out our Fordham mission in this time of ongoing need,” said Monsignor Joseph G. Quinn, vice president for University mission and ministry.

Fordham is requesting the help of faculty, staff members, administrators, and friends of the Fordham community to chaperone students on the outings. Anyone interested in either chaperoning or volunteering should contact the Dorothy Day Center for Service and Justice at (718) 817-4510 or by going online here.

More information about additional trips and ongoing relief efforts will be provided in a forthcoming Inside Fordham article.

While many students were heading to Edwards Parade to enjoy one of first warm days of spring, some 90 Fordham University student-athletes instead headed to the Rockaways on April 6, to help those affected by Hurricane Sandy as part of the University’s Sandy Solidarity Project.

The Fordham student-athletes joined a group from Habitat for Humanity Westchester, led by Executive Director Jim Killoran, in cleaning up areas hard hit by Sandy back in October. They assisted with clearing debris from houses damaged by the storm, demolishing decks that were ruined and deemed unsafe, hauling drywall to houses being renovated, and helping one homeowner to clear debris.

Members of the Fordham women’s swimming program provided some engineering assistance, helping level the front deck of a house that was raised by floodwaters. The women lent their muscle to dig out the temporary supports in order to let the deck level out to its original position—much to the delight of the deck’s builder.

Conor O’Kane, associate director of Campus Ministry, encouraged the student-athletes to interact with the residents and share their stories. O’Kane stressed the importance of understanding the devastation suffered by the people of Breezy Point and Far Rockaway, especially now as the storm has faded from the headlines.

“When you go back to campus, bring the lessons you learned here today with you,” said O’Kane. “Share the stories you have been told by the residents with your classmates and reflect on what it meant to the people whose lives you touched today that you were here.”

This was the second student-athlete effort toward helping Sandy victims. In January at the Fordham Breakfast for Champions, the Fordham Student-Athlete Advisory Council (SAAC) presented a financial gift to St. Francis de Sales School in Rockaway Beach, a school and parish that was severely damaged by Hurricane Sandy.

The Sandy Solidarity Program was established by the office of University Mission and Ministry and the Dorothy Day Center for Service and Justice established and includes Fordham students traveling to the Rockaways to assist the Habitat for Humanity Westchester Project in rebuilding the Breezy Point and the Rockaways.

For more photos and video of the Fordham Athletics Sandy Saturday, visit the Fordham Athletic website at www.fordhamsports.com.

by Joe Dibari

Though the temperature sank to single-digit degrees this weekend, a stalwart group from Fordham trekked to Breezy Point for the second in a series of “Sandy Saturdays” to help those recovering from Hurricane Sandy.

The cold forced the group of students, alumni, faculty, and staff to concentrate on indoor projects for the day, including removing damaged insulation, reinsulating, and bringing in new sheetrock.

“We ended up with 22 people in Breezy Point—more people than degrees!” said Gil Severiano, assistant to the vice president of campus ministry, who was one of the chaperones.

The group also brought donations and other supplies to residents, many of whom are still displaced three months after Sandy struck the east coast. Despite having found temporary shelter in apartments or with family and friends, many lack the comforts of home, making emotional recovery difficult, Severiano said.

Photo by Cathy Lee, GSB ’08, GBA ’11

“When something’s wrong, a lot of us go to the kitchen and make food, because making food is such a nurturing act for your family,” she said. “One woman told us that now, every time she reaches for something to use, there’s nothing there. You think you have a measuring cup, or you think you have a frying pan, and you don’t. The cookbooks you used all your life, that your mother handed down to you, don’t exist anymore.”Several participants of the Jan. 26 trip, which was co-sponsored by the Office of Alumni Relations, were featured in a CBS news video, which can be viewed here.Though the number of overall volunteers have decreased during the winter months, a devoted corps labored beside the Fordham group on Saturday, including a few New Orleans residents who wanted to repay the kindness of New York volunteers who came to help victims of Hurricane Katrina.”Part of the trip involves going into somebody’s home, seeing firsthand what happened, seeing somebody’s reaction to their whole world being turned upside down, and offering comfort and support,” Severiano said. “It was a good experience for the students, the alumni, everyone, because we actually did important work that day.”The trip was part of a series of one-day outings known as Sandy Saturdays that Fordham will sponsor throughout the spring semester. Volunteers will join organizations such as Habitat for Humanity to help clear debris, gut devastated homes, and assist in the beginnings of the rebuilding efforts.Sandy Saturdays are set for:

• Feb. 9
• Feb. 23
• March 9
• March 23
• April 6
• April 20

Anyone interested in either chaperoning or volunteering should contact the Dorothy Day Center for Service and Justice at (718) 817-4510, or by going online here.

— Joanna Klimaski

Like Fordham’s other campuses, the canter suffered little in the way of major damage. Strong winds did topple dozens of large trees though (not including those in the 113 acres of forest), including one that snapped a power cable, leading to a two-week period where the center was forced to run on generators.

John D. Wehr, Ph.D., the director of the center, said Calder was well-prepared for such an event, having recently installed three building-level power generators this year and one last year in each of the main buildings there.

Several houses on the perimeter of the grounds were left without heat or power, so residents there were moved into buildings with power.

John Spaccarelli, Director of Special Projects and Facilities Management, said there was only one scare,

near the original Lord and Burnham greenhouse, which was constructed in early-mid 1900’s.

“The closest call that we had was we had pine tree that fell alongside the greenhouse that’s attached to Calder Hall. It fell parallel to the greenhouse, not across it. If had gone across it, it would have chopped it in half,” he said.

Keeping the power humming was more that just a matter of comfort for the professors and students working there, Wehr explained.

“Being without power for that length of time after the storm would have been a disaster for our many people here. The loss of thousands of samples (water, DNA, microbes, plants, insect, etc.) from fridges, freezers, ovens, etc, would have set back or ended ongoing research programs, theses, or dissertations of many students and staff working here,” he said.

“This included research on water quality in upstate New York watersheds, long-term studies of deer ticks, bat hibernation, and green roof vegetation, among many others.  But because we had the generators, we came though fine.”

Like Fordham’s other campuses, the center infrastructure suffered little major damage. Strong winds, however, toppled dozens of large trees (not including those in the 113 acres of forest), including one that snapped a telephone wire, leading to a two-week period where the center was forced to run on generators.

John D. Wehr, Ph.D., director of the center, said Calder was well-prepared for Sandy, having recently installed three building-level power generators this year and one last year in each of the main buildings.

Several houses on the perimeter of the grounds were left without heat or power, so residents there were moved into other buildings.

John Spaccarelli, director of Special Projects and Facilities Management, said there was only one structural close call—near the original Lord & Burnham greenhouse, constructed in the early- to mid-1900’s.

“A pine tree that fell alongside the greenhouse [but]it fell parallel to the greenhouse, not across it. If had gone across it, it would have chopped it in half,” he said.

Keeping the power humming was more than just a matter of comfort for the faculty and students working there, Wehr said.

“Being without power for that length of time after the storm could have been a disaster,” he said. “The loss of thousands of samples (water, DNA, microbes, plants, insect, etc.) from fridges, freezers, and ovens would have set back or ended ongoing research programs, theses, and dissertations of many students and staff.”

“This includes research on water quality in upstate New York watersheds, long-term studies of deer ticks, bat hibernation, and green roof vegetation, among many others.

“Because we had the generators, we came though fine.”

Thanks to the dedication of essential personnel who oversaw the Rose Hill campus through Hurricane Sandy, the view of Edwards Parade (above) on Oct. 30 was calm and intact.

Sporting a slight stubble from two days on the job, hospitality services manager Brian Poteat said that service workers stayed for the duration to keep students well-fed, while some 120 members of Fordham’s facilities management worked 24/7 to keep buildings functioning and to secure the campus. By Tuesday, many damaged trees had been cut back and barricades put in place to keep the community safe.

Students at Martyrs Court were prepared.

Food service staff had been on duty since Sunday, when the University’s Ram Vans picked them up directly from their homes and brought them to work during the storm. The University housed its staff in nearby hotels.

Rose Hill freshman Arthur Van Sutendael, who lives in Alumni Court South, said that Sandy gave him a chance to interact more with his dorm mates when internet service went down.

“We played apples-to-apples, it was really fun,” he said.

“This wasn’t scary, but then I’m from Florida,” he added. “We have a lot of hurricanes.”