Belmar Launches 'Home By Summer' Initiative For Final 2 Families Displaced By Sandy

BELMAR, N.J. (CBSNewYork/AP) -- One Jersey shore town is coming together to help its last two families displaced by Superstorm Sandy.

Belmar saw about 2,000 families displaced by the Oct. 29, 2012, storm; all but two have been able to return to their homes, Mayor Matt Doherty said.

The town has launched "Home By Summer," an effort to raise $200,000 to get those final two families back into their homes by June 1.

Krista Sperber's family has moved five times since the hurricane flooded their home. She said they'll crack up if they have to move one more time into someplace that's not their house.

"For us, it's still Oct. 30, 2012. We're still stuck in the day after the storm," Sperber told reporters, including CBS2's Christine Sloan, on Thursday.

Teresa Keefe lives with relatives 30 minutes from Belmar, but makes an hourlong round trip twice a day to drive her kids to and from their school -- the only remaining bit of normalcy in their lives.

"We couldn't take anything. We left with the clothes on our backs," she said. "So far we've gotten $100,000. That's where this has got us."

The living conditions have taken a toll on the Keefe children.

"It's hard being away from your friends, not having a place to play," 10-year-old Shaun Keefe said.

"The whole time, it's been like on the roads," 9-year-old Alyssa Keefe added.

"It tore us apart. We get no family time," 14-year-old Shayla Keefe said.

Mayor Doherty said the financial assistance initiative has no choice but to succeed.

"These families have missed three Thanksgivings, three Christmases, three New Years, birthdays and two summers because of Sandy,'' Doherty said. "We are committed to ending this cycle and getting them back home. There is no Plan B; there's just us. And so we will not fail.''

So far, $20,000 has been raised through the generosity of businesses, residents and even people from around the country, Sloan reported.

"You're amazing, because without you nobody else would listen," Teresa Keefe told the mayor on Thursday.

The gratitude from the kids touched many.

"I thought I would never see this happen. I thought this was just a dream," Shaun Keefe said. "Hopefully, my house will come back and we'll have family time."

Home by summer -- it may just happen for these two families.

Belmar partnered with the St. Vincent De Paul Society of St. Rose, a Catholic church in town, and set up a bank account to receive tax-deductible donations. They can be made online through PayPal by going to www.belmar.com, or by sending checks made out to "Home by Summer'' to: Borough of Belmar, Attn: Home by Summer, P.O. Box A, Belmar, N.J. 07719.

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