Two local groups recently sent trucks full of supplies to the East Coast in an effort to help Hurricane Sandy victims.

            New Age Transportation, a distribution company, collected donations from the community and sent essential materials to the East Coast, according to the company’s website. In addition to New Age Transportation, local groups of the Knights of Columbus have also helped by raising money.

            “The Knights of Columbus-United States Relief Fund is a group based out of the East Coast and is focused on helping those in need. Local groups have already received over $350,000 from online donations in order to support hurricane victims. Groups from around the country have raised over $500,000, which is being used to support distribution centers for things like food and supplies,” Jeff Rae, past grand knight for the Knights of Columbus Relief Fund, said.

New Age Transportation also realized how devastated the East Coast was after the storm. The company is sending a majority of the donations to the New Jersey area, but the specific town depends on where the most supplies are needed, according to New Age Transportation’s website.

The Lake Zurich Police and Fire departments were involved as well, by helping New Age Transportation, and they are also accepting and sending donations. New Age Transportation, along with the local fire and police departments, plan on sending another truck of supplies as soon as possible, and the groups are encouraging Lake Zurich residents to donate to those in need.

“I was shocked by all of the damage I was seeing on television. It was horrible watching people losing everything they had. A friend of mine lives in Connecticut and he lost power for over a week, and that wasn’t even compared to how badly others were affected,” Hannah Butler, sophomore, said.

Labeled as the strongest storm to ever strike the East Coast, Hurricane Sandy caused damages that included flooding of New York City and coastal areas, over 100 citizens killed, at least 100,000 citizens being displaced, and 8,000,000 people across the East Coast left without power, according to the Huffington Post website.

In addition to citizens living on the East Coast being affected, shipping companies around the country are finding it difficult to distribute shipments to the East Coast due to destroyed ports and buildings.

New Age Transportation is a company based on receiving and distributing shipments. The company works with large business corporations throughout the nation, but also works with smaller firms locally.

The company is also a promoter of the “Expect a Miracle Foundation,” founded by New Age Transportation president Carolyn Gable. The foundation works to assist single parents in paying for extracurricular activities for their children, such as field trips or school activities, according to New Age Transportation’s website.

By encouraging donations from the community, New Age Transportation is hoping for supplies that include pillows, blankets, sleeping bags, school supplies, coats, cleaning supplies, and toiletries, according to New Age Transportation’s website.

            In addition to donating materials, the Knights of Columbus Relief Fund hosted a fundraising event on December 1. The event featured a raffle and performances by Cavern Beat, a Beatles Tribute band, whose lead singer is a member of the Knights of Columbus group. Tickets for the event were $15 and the proceeds will be donated to the relief efforts in the East Coast, according to Rae.

“[The Knights of Columbus Relief Fund] had a pretty good turn out at the fundraising event. We had about 70 to 75 people show up, which was nice to see. In the end, I feel like everyone had a good time and we raised more money to send to victims, which made things even better,” Rae said.

The most important thing that came from the fundraiser is that the Knights of Columbus United States Relief Fund was able to bring the community together and donate to those less fortunate, especially during the holiday season, according to Rae.

“It’s great that [our community] is willing to send money and donate things to people we don’t even know. I know how my friend suffered and how there are people out there even worse off than him,” Butler said. “It shows that we are prepared to help however we can in this time of need.”

            If interested in donating supplies to assist victims of Hurricane Sandy, donations can be dropped off at New Age Transportation, the Lake Zurich Police Station, or the Lake Zurich Fire departments.