Politics & Government

Project Hope Reaches Out to Sandy Victims

They started out going door to door, visiting homes to see if people needed help. Then they started visiting local organizations like the Elks Clubs and even churches. Now, they are setting up displays at libraries and businesses like Home Depot.

All this outreach is being done by Project Hope, a Federal Emergency Management Agency-sponsored program that has been mobilized to help residents on the South Shore of Long Island recover from Hurricane Sandy. This according to two crisis counselors manning a table at the West Islip Library on Wednesday afternoon.

Robert Falkner and Denise Sckalo, both of whom are paid crisis counselors with the organization, are on hand at the library to offer advice and assistance to those who are still dealing with the after effects of the storm that ravaged the area last fall.

According to Falkner, they have gathered an abundance of resources to share with the public including where to share stories of the tragedy, get counseling and help in the form of services and funds from both the government and non-profits.

Falkner and Sckalo are from the Federation of Organizations, a social work organization based in Patchogue and West Babylon. FEMA, through Project Hope, funds their outreach.

Falkner said that Project Hope started after 9/11 and the model has been used across the nation since then to assist people after disasters like Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans and more recently the fertilizer explosion in West, TX and here after Sandy.

Those in need of assistance or wanting more information can call Project Hope at 1-800-LIFENET (1-800-543-3638). You can visit the Federation of Organization on the web at www.fedoforg.org.


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