Public Employee Press

You can help with DC 37 hurricane relief

Hurricane Noel careened across the Caribbean in October, pounding Cuba, Jamaica and the Bahamas and delivering its worst devastation to Haiti and the Dominican Republic, where more than 100 were feared dead and an estimated 67,000 were left homeless.

In November, Tropical Cyclone Sidr slammed into Bangladesh with winds up to 155 mph, killing 1,100 people and destroying more than 20,000 houses made of mud and bamboo.

“The human need is immense, and although there are many demands on us during the holiday season, we have to do all we can to help,” said DC 37 Executive Director Lillian Roberts.

DC 37’s Latino Heritage and Asian Heritage committees quickly announced fund drives to assist relief work in the areas hit by Noel and Sidr.
“Many DC 37 members came to the United States from the countries where these devastating storms hit, and many have family there. We have to respond,” said Santos Crespo, chair of the Latino Heritage Committee and Executive Vice President of Local 372.

Locals and members can help by writing checks payable to District Council 37 and earmarking them “Aid for victims of Tropical Storm Noel” or “Aid for victims of Tropical Cyclone Sidr” on the memo line at the bottom.

District Council 37 will then deliver one large check each to the international organizations conducting the relief work, said Roberts.

Mail your checks to Noel Victims, c/o DC 37 Latino Heritage Committee, Room 525, 125 Barclay Street, New York, NY 10007, or Sidr Victims, c/o DC 37 Asian Heritage Committee, Room 525, 125 Barclay Street, New York, NY 10007.