Volunteers Doing Laundry For Long Beach Residents Hit By Sandy
LONG BEACH, N.Y. (CBSNewYork) -- Superstorm Sandy victims continue to get help in unusual ways.
Dirty laundry from flood-ravaged Long Beach homes is getting washed and dried and returned with a hug.
Kathryn Casale is helping storm victims one load of laundry at a time.
The Glen Cove working mother of four hails originally from Long Beach, and as moms do best, she's devised a way to meet the most basic need.
"My husband said 'there you go, but you're not going to save the world one dirty sock at a time,' but in essence, that's kind of what we're doing," Casale told CBS 2's Carolyn Gusoff.
Casale and others formed a Facebook group called "Take A Load Off." Volunteers and donated laundry detergent have poured in ever since its creation.
LINK: Check Out The Group's Facebook Page
"I can surely do laundry all day long if need be and a lot of people have actually said to me 'Wow. I could do that!" said volunteer Maggie Tanchuk.
"What a horrible thing to be without clean clothes. It's such a simple, little thing we take for granted," added volunteer Leslie Dwyer.
Even local laundromats got in on the action, donating machines for the worst of what Sandy could soil. Now, 50 volunteers wash, dry, pick up and deliver laundry from Long Island's North Shore to its South Shore.
Katrina Freydin, whose washer and dryer were under water, is among those especially grateful.
"They really help to normalize our lives because what do you do without laundry?" Freydin said.
And as if the volunteers don't have enough dirty laundry, they still have their own families to worry about.
"As my husband has said, 'Where are my socks?' and I said 'just get in line buddy,'" Casale said.
Sandy victims said they're trying to replace washers and dryers, but there's a waiting list for new appliances.
The laundry brigade said they will keep working until the last load is dried and folded.
Volunteers said their Facebook page has enabled them to branch out and do laundry for storm victims in other communities.
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