Many millions of Americans living on the Atlantic coast had their lives disrupted, if not much worse, by the power of Hurricane Sandy during the past week. Double figures of lives were lost, homes were demolished, large numbers of people were stranded in their homes, millions lost power, public transportation in the tri–state area could not run.
Those fortunate to have power have watched the mesmerizing story of the unwelcome visit on TV or looked at the photos on websites and TV. Those suffering from power outages may have heard the terrible stories on old-fashioned transistor radios.
First responders who work in the metropolitan area, members of the National Guard and volunteers from other sections of the nation worked and are still working to better the lives of local residents and repair the damaged infrastructure.
Individuals and organizations are also looking for ways to aid the relief effort. Those who are can follow the example of the New York Yankees. The Bronx sports franchise donated $500,000 to the American Red Cross, which is trying to assist the victims of the superstorm. Several days after the announcement of the Yankee donation, the NBA and NFL each made $1,000,000 donations to the ARC.
The Yankees Managing Partner Hal Steinbrenner made a statement regarding the natural disaster, “The damage and destruction to the Tri-State area caused by Hurricane Sandy is daunting, but we have seen the great resiliency of this region before. As a neighbor and community member, the Yankees embrace our role of stepping forward and assisting the American Red Cross, which comes to the aid of so many people through their tireless efforts.”
This is not the first time the Yankees under the Steinbrenner ownership have become involved in charitable undertakings. The organization as a unit as well as individual players has formed foundations to aid a variety of causes. The organization today is setting an example that hopefully that hopefully will be followed by other sports organizations and businesses of all types as well as individuals. The easiest way to donate $10 to the Red Cross is texting RedCross to 90999. The money will be used to benefit, family, friends and neighbors in a time of need.
The efforts of the legendary baseball franchise did not end with the first contribution. Two days later, November 2, the Yankees sponsored a blood drive at Gotham hall on 36th Street in Manhattan. The first 300 blood donors were offered a voucher for two tickets to a Yankees game during the 2013 season.
Those who were devastated by the hurricane need supplies that are basic necessities such as clothing, non-perishable food, hygiene items, cleaning supplies, paper goods, a variety of items for babies and food for pets.
To help meet those needs, the Yankees opened Gate 2 at Yankee Stadium on November 5 for the collection of such products. The gate will be open 24 hours each day through November 9. Yankee employees will make regular deliveries of the goods to the hardest hit locations in the metropolitan area.
To encourage people to bring supplies to the stadium, Joe Girardi and C.C. Sabathia were present on Wednesday and Joba Chamberlain on Thursday. They signed autographs, posed for photos and thanked the contributors.
Yankees COO Lonn Trost commented on the effort, “In addition to the many loved ones who were lost, people have been left without homes, food and the basic necessities. We hope our efforts support and show solidarity with those who are bravely dealing with heartbreaking circumstances.”