Volunteers and Donations Needed as Howard County Helps Those Still in Need After Hurricane Sandy

Columbia Association (CA), Food on the 15th and the Young Women’s Giving Circle of Howard County will be joining together to assist those still in need after Hurricane Sandy — and help from local residents is key.

The organizations will be collecting donations on Saturday, Nov. 17, from noon to 3 p.m. at Clarksville Middle School, located at 6535 Trotter Road. In addition, volunteers will be needed to help load the donations into the truck (which is being provided and driven by CA’s Open Space Division staff), to direct traffic at the site and then to help unload the truck once it arrives at the Civil Air Patrol, Maryland Wing in Glen Burnie. Those able to assist should contact Julie Rosenthal of Food on the 15th at foodonthe15th@gmail.com. Students can receive community service hours for volunteering.

The items needed are: bottled water, easy-to-open non-perishable food (please make sure any cans have pop-top lids), plastic dining utensils, paper plates, trash bags, warm clothing of all sizes (including coats, hats, scarves, gloves and shoes), blankets, sleeping bags, diapers, baby food, toothpaste, toothbrushes, cat and dog food, buckets, brooms, work gloves, face masks, shovels, trash bins, 5-gallon totes, tool belts, tape measures, large heavy-duty contractor trash bags, work boots, new heavy work socks and safety goggles. Donations will not be accepted before noon or after 3 p.m.

Please bring items in boxes, not bags. Also needed are empty boxes to help the volunteers sort donations, particularly the large, flat boxes that vegetables come in and that can be picked up from stores such as BJ’s and Costco.

The state wing of the Civil Air Patrol will then bring the donations either to New Jersey or Crisfield, Md. It is also accepting monetary donations to help offset the cost of truck rentals and gasoline. Checks can be made payable to Maryland Wing, Civil Air Patrol, and mailed to 7427 Zachary Lane, Glen Burnie, MD 21061. Be sure to write “Hurricane Sandy” on the check.

Food on the 15th is a Howard County-based organization that delivers free groceries and toiletries to disadvantaged senior citizens. Its deliveries come around the middle of the month, which is when money from the senior citizens’ social security checks may have run out. For more information, go to foodonthe15th.org or its Facebook page.

The Young Women’s Giving Circle of Howard County, an extension of the Women’s Giving Circle of Howard County, is composed of teenage girls from Howard County high schools with a strong passion for philanthropy. Its mission is to promote and ensure the wellness of women and girls in the Howard County community. For more information, go to womensgivingcircle.org/YWGC2012.html or its Facebook page.