Local Moms Transform into Secret Santas for the Holidays to Help Children Affected by Sandy

Dec. 13, 2012 - PRLog -- With the holiday season quickly approaching, it's hard to imagine that there are children who won't be getting a Christmas this year. While families are busy trying to rebuild their lives and their homes, the holidays may be the last thing on their mind. Many parents affected by the storm will have a hard time getting their children gifts because of financial burdens as a direct result of Hurricane Sandy. Santa's Hurricane Helpers was created and organized to help relieve some of the Holiday stresses for families that are already going through so much.

A few weeks ago, Jennifer Scalia and Cherie Norman-Guzman were just two working mothers who wanted to do something to help their nearby communities after Hurricane Sandy hit the Jersey Shore. They started with a large collection, in which they enlisted the help of donations from local friends and families and then delivered a truck full of items to Toms River Intermediate School. They also started a donation page online, in which they were accepting monetary donations for direct help to victims of Sandy in exchange for a cool tee shirt or sweatshirt designed: “Rebuilding New Jersey: One Piece at a Time”. They were able to surpass their goal of $5000 in just over two weeks. Those donations went directly to Sandy Survivors that they found through word of mouth and social media.

In the midst of collecting, making shirts, shipping and organizing families, a light bulb went off. Christmas was just about 6 weeks away and with young children of their own at home, they thought about the fact that there were going to be many kids who would not have a Christmas because of Sandy. That’s when Santa’s Hurricane Helpers started. A logo, slogan, website and Facebook page were created within a few days and the volunteers started pouring in. They were able to secure almost 20 businesses in South Jersey that agreed to serve as drop off locations, including organizations such as Virtua and Rowan University. They even received large donations from individuals in North Carolina and New Hampshire.

Santa's Hurricane Helpers collected the toys at several local businesses, including: Mario's Pizza, Dynamic Detailing and Studio 21 Beauty Bar in Hammonton, Stone Harbor Yacht Club, Craig Testing Labs- Mays Landing, Yogurt Swirls- Northfield, Surfers Supplies- Ocean City & Margate, Maria's Salon & Lorenzo's Barber Shop- Vineland, Rowan University Campus, Ryan & Emma's Goodies- Berlin, Unlimited Salon & Day Spa- Clementon, Moorestown Fire Department, Virtua Child Development Center- Voorhees, Lilac Blossom Photography- Collingswood

Between the drop off locations and individuals who took on entire families and “adopted” them for Christmas, this project became bigger than they could have every imagined. Santa's Hurricane Helpers has also recently partnered with Habitats of Humanity to find and deliver Christmas to families in Ventnor and Atlantic City who lost everything. In total, Santa’s Hurricane Helpers will be helping almost 250 children have the Christmas they deserve.

For more information on Santa’s Hurricane Helpers, visit: www.SandySantas.org orwww.Facebook.com/SandySantas