Alan’s accounts from NYC: Nov. 19 and 20

Editor’s note: Alan Witchey, United Way of Central Indiana's Volunteer Center director, is one of two volunteer professionals in the national United Way system who was deployed to New York City to help that United Way manage volunteer response in the wake of Hurricane Sandy.

People want to help after a disaster, but they don't always know how to. Today, a company contacted us and offered 3,000 pairs of yoga pants. It is a generous offer to be sure, but at the moment, we are focusing on a project to help the elder Russian population. I wonder, how many yoga pants can a Russian assisted living complex for seniors use? Later, another company wants to donate some discontinued children's clothing. Slowly, we are piecing together a boutique. The trouble in accepting product donations is twofold: Where do you store it until you can distribute it and how do you make sure you can really use what you take? Otherwise, you can find yourself in a complicated situation, like distributing discontinued children's clothing and yoga pants to seniors.

This afternoon, I take some time away from disaster response because someone in the education department wants to learn more about the work we do in Indianapolis around education volunteerism. Right now, their education work helps keep kids on track to high school graduation during the critical transition from middle school into the early years of high school. We brainstorm ideas for him to convene tutoring programs, offer curriculum assistance, and partner with existing providers. At the end, he thanks me. It's been nice to think about something different than the hurricane. But for now, I need to focus on the job at hand. I need to translate information into Russian. Someone, I think, in this building must know Russian. I just need to figure out who. As it turns out, she sat two cubicles down from me.

Nov. 20: passing the torch

Last days are awkward. Today is my last day at United Way of New York City. When discussing future projects, I say "we" and then quickly correcting myself to say "you". "You are ready," I say to the women leading the response efforts. She's new to United Way, so I think it's important for her to know she's doing a good job. I read once that people need to hear something at least three times before remembering it. I decide to make sure I say it at least four more times that day for good measure.

We are in the Coney Island again. The lines of people waiting for food look longer today and the air of desperation seems to have flooded the streets. United Way is funding emergency food relief but there aren't many places to distribute it. We aren't able to open our own food pantry but we have 1,000 meals arriving for Thanksgiving, so it's close. People are still without power and heat. One man says, "The city told me to expect another three weeks. It's already been three."

People keep approaching us asking if we can help them. They think we are FEMA and want to find out the status if their applications or where to go to apply or want some other assistance. I explain that the FEMA office has closed and how to get to another one by train. It is far, and they have never heard of the new location. One Spanish speaking woman understands me after explaining it four times, and she points to a confusing sign left by FEMA and starts crying.

We visit a different senior living facility that was flooded. Volunteers have already mucked it out, and the residents are returning today. They have been eating in emergency shelters and living in temporary housing. They have brought back small treats, and offer them to us. I am moved by their generosity. The place smells like bleach and mold and sewage. I want to demand that the residents be relocated until the air is better, but they want to be home and the temporary housing is done. One woman sees my concern and says, "The smell was worse. The Department of Sanitation was lovely to work with." I nod and smile.

The past volunteers cleaned out the sand, mud and salt water. Now the walls need repaired and painted. We have a group that can do that and for a short period everyone gets excited. As we tour, I realize the situation is more complicated. The group is coming for one day and the building is too large for them to do it all. We need to break it into several volunteer opportunities and seek some additional help. The facility wants to start in the game room and the library. There are piles of books that people have brought to replace the wet ones. I note mold on the wall. "We'll have to have that treated before we can paint. We don't have anyone to do that yet." Instead we select the cafeteria, which is mold-free. Our goal isn't just to paint it, but to make it colorful and welcoming. The residents have lived through much, and we want to brighten this room for them.

Later, we visit the boardwalk. The wooden planks snake along the coastline. Nails are sticking up, boards are broken and some are just gone. It's clearly too dangerous to use. It's city property, and they are not requesting our help. One woman in a jogging suit walking by says, "They're talking about using cement. It won't be the same."

When we get back, I spend time rapidly typing up notes, updating project lists, planning out details for activities I will never see. At last, it's time for our final briefing. The entire response team discusses upcoming events and partnerships. I find myself confirming details we all know. I need to say goodbye, and I'm delaying. Are they ready? Will they make mistakes? Yes and yes, I think. I'll continue conference calls with them as long as they want. They ask if I will come back. I provide a list of recommended next steps, and we briefly discuss them. We hug goodbye, and I realize we have become friends quickly.

After leaving the building, I have an urge to see the September 11 Memorial and Museum. It's almost 5:30, and it closes at 6, but I might make it if I rush. I hop on the subway, but the train has problems. It sits on the tracks for 10 minutes, and when I run up to the museum ticket counter, the short plump woman says, "I'm sorry dear. We closed 5 minutes ago. Come back tomorrow." I say, "I can't." "Next time," she says as though she knows I'll return.

I'm in the mood to wander the streets of New York. I watch two women enter a theater with tickets in hand, a young couple holding hands through the window of a Thai restaurant, and a group of green color coordinated teens chasing their teacher down the sidewalk. Life looks so normal in this part of the city. Three times, people stopped me to ask directions. Why did they think I would know? Three times I tried to give directions but likely sent each one in the wrong direction. I'm excited to go home and see my family.

--Alan Witchey, Volunteer Center director, United Way of Central Indiana

Alan’s accounts from NYC: Nov. 16

Editor’s note: Alan Witchey, United Way of Central Indiana's Volunteer Center director, is one of two volunteer professionals in the national United Way system being deployed to New York City to help that United Way manage volunteer response in the wake of Hurricane Sandy.

Nov. 16: Assessing the need

Today, we head to Coney Island to scope out potential projects for volunteers to complete or United Way to fund.

Stark brick buildings darken the skyline. They are public housing units for low-income families. We stop at one close to the water. We're told the flooding filled the second story, and that people were so scared they jumped out the windows into water. There's still no power. Residents speak in heavy Russian accents, and some have difficulty answering our questions.

Sand covers the streets, and much of it has been swept into giant hills. Sofas, chairs, televisions, and other assorted household items are strewn in mounds, waiting for someone to haul them away. Some cars are coated in sand and dirt from the ocean. A few houses are washed away completely. Others still wet, have items drying out front.

These nonprofits had no flood insurance. They will rely on special funds and volunteers to reopen. Inside, the hallways are pitch black. Parts of the concrete floor have collapsed and were carried away, leaving dangerous holes and uneven ground. Our flashlights illuminate ceiling tiles collapsing, and the stench of standing ocean water hits us hard.

Chairs, desks, copiers, printers and other office equipment are piled in corners where the receding waters left them. The playroom still has a tricycle, a small slide, and is coated in dirt and sand.

Someone has stacked binders of damp paper. They are filled with confidential client information that must be saved because all of the computer backups were destroyed. A man plans to freeze them for now and later photograph each page. The project sounds improbable to me, but we are told it has been done before.

The building has to be structurally rebuilt. Volunteers might help clean out debris, but we need a contractor's help to determine what can be done by volunteers and what should be left to professionals.

An older woman with a limp approaches me. She speaks in a heavy Russian accent, "Was a good place. I learned English here. Made friends." She wipes tears from her eyes. "Please build it again."

At a clothing distribution center, tables are covered in sloppy piles of clothes. People are sorting through them, holding them up, trying to figure out if they fit. Inside, clothing is piled to the ceiling. The generosity is impressive, but volunteers are needed to help sort and distribute.

"I think we need another 200 people," says the woman in charge. But they might need them to pack up for moving instead. The owner of the building just informed them they need to relocate the day after Thanksgiving due to building damage. They have no place to go.

The elementary schools we visit look clean and ready to reopen Monday. One janitor says, "The furnace was in the basement. That seemed like a safe place...maybe next time we'll put it on the roof." More than anything, they need school supplies.

The local food pantry is a small building. The refrigerator and the stove are propped up so the floor can be cleared. Volunteers are pulling drywall down. You can see the flood waters reached maybe seven and a half feet. It's great to see construction tools and smell cut wood.

"We are going to distribute 40 turkeys on Monday, so this has all got to be cleared out by then," says one man. Volunteers will probably rebuild it since they had no flood insurance. Here, you see the community pulling together.

We go by the church where we will serve Thanksgiving meals for 1,000. It's operating for the last day as a FEMA emergency response center. "Where will people go after today?" I ask. I'm handed a short list of other sites, but none are close to this community.

"This looks like a war zone," A colleague says. I choose to feel inspired by some of the things I saw – some rebuilding, people getting food and clothing, a community in rebirth.

On the way back to the office, I wonder how long it will take for this community to return to normal, whatever normal means to them.

--Alan Witchey, Volunteer Center director, United Way of Central Indiana

Alan’s accounts from NYC: Nov. 15

Editor’s note: Alan Witchey, United Way of Central Indiana's Volunteer Center director, is one of two volunteer professionals in the national United Way system being deployed to New York City to help that United Way manage volunteer response in the wake of Hurricane Sandy.

Alan Witchey

Nov. 15: Pieces coming together

Every day we hear from people who want to be part of the recovery from Sandy. We have a database of more than 7,000 prospective volunteers. But we can't mobilize that many at once.

Some projects come together as though they were meant to. A caterer offers to make Thanksgiving dinner for 1,000 people. The food and service will be free, but there will be expenses like tables rentals, clean up and more. We find the tables and chairs at a church, but we still expect about $15-$20,000 in other expenses.

A group of high-powered social media experts wants to promote an event that will reach thousands of followers. Is this the answer? Through their networks, the social media pros begin asking people to each give $10. We hope it will raise enough to pay for the Thanksgiving expenses. The pros predict, "We should have this done in a day."

We will need volunteers at the Thanksgiving dinner. A small group of firemen commit to that. Again, the pieces fit!

Interrupting us, a sharp white light flashes while a blaring siren fills the room. A man bursts in screaming, "Move it, now!" We stream out in a calm, single file. When the fire drill is done, a man in a security outfit debriefs us. We are still recovering from one disaster, and are expected to prepare for the next.

Tomorrow we go to Coney Island to reassess potential volunteer projects. People have helped daily with recovery, so the needs are evolving. Some areas still don't have power or heat. Communication is spotty because many phone lines are not working. In one of the public housing buildings, power is back only in common areas. Three elementary schools that were under water are scheduled to reopen Monday.

We map out places to visit. "We can take those 12 homes off the list. They were mucked out today," someone says."Let's keep the elementary schools on," another offers. "They may still need help." We add a low-income child care center. Their building was completely under water, and 90 percent of their families are still misplaced. We add two homeless shelters, a food pantry and a church where we hope to host the Thanksgiving meal . I am both eager and apprehensive to see firsthand the extent of the damage we've been looking at on spreadsheets.

--Alan Witchey, Volunteer Center director, United Way of Central Indiana

Alan’s accounts from NYC: Nov 14

Editor’s note: Alan Witchey, United Way of Central Indiana's Volunteer Center director, is one of two volunteer professionals in the national United Way system being deployed to New York City to help that United Way manage volunteer response in the wake of Hurricane Sandy.

On the way to the office, we pass under scaffolding like mice. The steel skeleton of a new structure looks carved into the gray clouds. A crane pulls a heavy beam into the sky. The project has nothing to do with the hurricane. They are constructing something new. This building will probably be done before recovery efforts are complete.

Today we are supposed to map out a short and long-term response strategy. Our task is to chart a clear direction with measurable goals – a plan we start and they will continue when we are gone.

One group is mapping out the needs of nonprofits hit by the storm. Most are food pantries, homeless shelters or low-income child care centers. There's data, but can these assessments be developed into projects that need volunteers or clear funding proposals?

We review spreadsheets with notes. Some are detailed paragraphs explaining the flood damage, loss of office equipment and the need to be mucked out. Others are small bits of information, such as "major structural damage," "looking for temporary site," or "unable to assess yet."

A group of organizations at the bottom have nothing in the note column. We think these no longer exist. I count 37 in this group. It's a starting point, but we'll need more information before we can turn them into concrete projects. That's a job for tomorrow.

When I sit in my hotel room at the end of the day, I read emails from my Indianapolis office. Several are about the explosion back home. The cause is still unknown, but the emergency response team met. Many residents have returned home, and most of them appear to have insurance. Support is in place for rebuilding their homes and providing emotional support. I'm thankful to read they will not need United Way's help in that recovery.

--Alan Witchey, Volunteer Center director, United Way of Central Indiana

United Way Toastmasters Club news!

On November 9, United Way of Central Indiana’s Business and Community Toastmasters was honored by Toastmasters International for long-time support to the Toastmaster Club at United Way of Central Indiana and in hosting events and contests for the region. United Way, has been called upon many times to host meetings for the District and Toastmasters wanted to show appreciation. We were told that this award has only been presented twice in the last several years in a region that includes all of Indiana and part of Kentucky.

Our Region Advisor, Dietmar Wagenknecht and Bob Norris, the Lt. Governor for marketing for the region, presented the award to United Way Senior VP Jay Geshay on behalf of Toastmasters International. Club president, Kim Donahue and Vice President for Education and Area Governor, Joe Phillips were there for the presentation.

--Kim Donahue, Director, Nonprofit Training Center

Alan’s accounts from NYC: Nov 13

Editor’s note: Alan Witchey, United Way of Central Indiana's Volunteer Center director, is one of two volunteer professionals in the national United Way system being deployed to New York City to help that United Way manage volunteer response in the wake of Hurricane Sandy.

Nov. 13: Day 1

The first day helping another organization is never easy. They have acronyms I've never heard, positions and titles that don't translate to my organization, and programs that are complicated and unconnected to our own complicated programs. My fingers tap on my iPad all day taking notes. My role starts to take shape, and I move from observer to participant.

Alan with Sue Brogan from United Way of Anchorage

Unrelated to the hurricane, they are short staffed, without email, and in the middle of what seems like hundreds of projects that all require immediate attention. My job is to help focus attention on disaster recovery.

The priorities are to: coordinate with the city, support recovery of the nonprofit sector, and deploy groups and volunteers in a meaningful way. We decide the focus should be on helping child care centers rebuild (33 have been identified with structural damage) and supporting food distribution centers. Many have been destroyed by flooding or face structural damage due to high winds. Others are overwhelmed by enormous increases in need. Tomorrow, I will lead a process to map out the response plan.

Hundreds of companies and thousands of individuals want to help. It's complicated to match groups with opportunities that fit their skill, availability and interest. We are putting the pieces together.

One company has 5,000 items of clothing they want to donate. Another has 100 employees who want to volunteer in one big project. And, the YWCA in Coney Island has storm survivors who have lost everything. The pieces fit together like a giant jigsaw puzzle. They envision a distribution day in which one company donates items, another volunteers to coordinate, and community partners bring those in need together. Everyone is happy with the idea. Now we need details.

At the end of the day, my colleague from Alaska has arrived. I brief her, and we discuss our strategy for the next day. Our goal is to help them plan for the next several years, though we won't be here long. How do we set them up for success? What is their capacity when we leave? It's easier to see what needs to happen from the outside, but balancing that with the reality of everything else that needs to be done is never easy. I have confidence they will do it.

--Alan Witchey, Volunteer Center director, United Way of Central Indiana

Alan’s accounts from NYC: Nov. 12

Editor’s note: Alan Witchey, United Way of Central Indiana's Volunteer Center director, is one of two volunteer professionals in the national United Way system being deployed to New York City to help that United Way manage volunteer response in the wake of Hurricane Sandy.

Alan Witchey

Nov. 12: Arrival in NYC

I think back on my briefing call yesterday. A reassuring calmness was in the voice as she explained the breadth of Hurricane Sandy: 12 states affected, thousands in New York still without power and water. 6,000 people raised their hands to help in two days. New York City is struggling to get back to normal. I'm honored to be asked to help, but I won't really know what that means until I get there. My first job is to assess the situation and figure out how to help in organizing volunteers to aid in recovery. I believe we are to focus our efforts on Coney Island and the Rockaway. In all the times I have been to this city, I've never gone to either area. I know almost nothing about them except the sad interviews I've watched on the news over the last two weeks. In one, a senior citizen hauled water up 14 flights while the camera crew filmed her. She talked about wearing six layers of clothes to stay warm at night. She couldn't understand why she still didn't have power or water.

Tomorrow morning I meet with United Way of New York City to get a briefing and figure out my role here. I'm excited and should rest, but decide to explore the streets to see if I can find Times Square. I feel the need to experience it crowded and loud.

--Alan Witchey, Volunteer Center director, United Way of Central Indiana