Hurricane Sandy hit New York and the East Coast hard, and OC friends and family are getting their hands dirty to help those affected. Meet the individuals who are making the recovery happen, all wearing the T-shirt we created to benefit the Ali Forney Center for homeless LGBT youth, which suffered devastating damage from the storm. Next up is the German-born, New York-based photographer Isabel Asha Penzlien.
Name: Isabel Asha Penzlien
Occupation: Photographer
How are you involved in Hurricane Sandy relief? I have friends who live out in Rockaway and I spent lots of time there this summer. During the blackout I didn't have power and thought helping others would be the best thing I could do with my time. I started out volunteering in the Lower East Side on Grand Street. I saw on Facebook that James Fuentes, a friend, had organized for volunteers to canvas buildings that had no power on Grand Street and along the FDR. I joined him and others to look for home-bound residents, delivering water, food, and other supplies to them on Friday.
On Saturday I met up with my friend Gina, who had a car with gas, and we joined friends near Beach 54th Street in Rockaway to distribute food and water to home-bound residents. On Sunday we drove out again to Rockaway. We first went to Saint Francis on Beach 129th Street, where we helped for a few hours, and then we spent the afternoon on Beach 40th Street volunteering with New York Cares, distributing supplies to residents of the area.
What about this experience has been moving to you? It was incredible to see how many people donated and volunteered and helped each other.
Independently of Hurricane Sandy efforts, what other causes do you support, and how actively? I became a volunteer of New York Cares this past August, and I am currently looking for a new project to start working with elderly people and young kids.
What can others do to help post-Sandy efforts? I think New York Cares is a good place to get involved, either to make a monetary donation or to volunteer in any of the hard hit areas in New York and New Jersey.
Shop the OC Surviving Sandy T-Shirt here![]()
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Opening Ceremony Surviving Sandy Tee
Name: Isabel Asha Penzlien
Occupation: Photographer
How are you involved in Hurricane Sandy relief? I have friends who live out in Rockaway and I spent lots of time there this summer. During the blackout I didn't have power and thought helping others would be the best thing I could do with my time. I started out volunteering in the Lower East Side on Grand Street. I saw on Facebook that James Fuentes, a friend, had organized for volunteers to canvas buildings that had no power on Grand Street and along the FDR. I joined him and others to look for home-bound residents, delivering water, food, and other supplies to them on Friday.
On Saturday I met up with my friend Gina, who had a car with gas, and we joined friends near Beach 54th Street in Rockaway to distribute food and water to home-bound residents. On Sunday we drove out again to Rockaway. We first went to Saint Francis on Beach 129th Street, where we helped for a few hours, and then we spent the afternoon on Beach 40th Street volunteering with New York Cares, distributing supplies to residents of the area.
What about this experience has been moving to you? It was incredible to see how many people donated and volunteered and helped each other.
Independently of Hurricane Sandy efforts, what other causes do you support, and how actively? I became a volunteer of New York Cares this past August, and I am currently looking for a new project to start working with elderly people and young kids.
What can others do to help post-Sandy efforts? I think New York Cares is a good place to get involved, either to make a monetary donation or to volunteer in any of the hard hit areas in New York and New Jersey.
Shop the OC Surviving Sandy T-Shirt here
Opening Ceremony Surviving Sandy Tee