Hurricane Sandy Housing Initiative
Donation protected
Hurricane Sandy has devastated lives up and down the Eastern Seaboard. The power is still out for hundreds of thousands of people, and the power companies are working their hardest to get it all turned back on. But once the power goes back on, there will be tens of thousands of people who do not have homes to go back to. That's where we (and you!) come in. I work for a company that imports a variety of goods in from overseas, and through our network of contacts, we think we have a cheap and efficient way to provide temporary housing for hopefully as many families as we possibly can. Modular homes have always been an inexpensive way to quickly provide housing, but we have found an even better way to do it - shipping containers.
Right about now, you might be thinking, huh, shipping containers?
Type a search into Google for shipping container homes and you'll be amazed at what you see. Our government and businesses have been using shipping containers for decades to quickly set up temporary, safe and efficient housing for site workers and the military. Overseas, colleges have built massive dormitories out of shipping containers and there are just as many hotels, office buildings and homes made out of them.
Here's what makes them so great:
-They're cheap. (Compared to regular homes and modular housing)
-They can easily be green. (Think solar power and more)
-They can be set up quickly. (They built a huge office building overseas in 8 days)
-They're fire-proof and rust-proof.
-They're durable.
-They function just like regular homes; they have electricity, running water, heat and air conditioning.
Right now, our goal is to get enough donations to provide three of these homes so families can try to be "home" again as quickly as possible. And once a family gets back on their feet, another family can move into the unit.
If it takes off and we get even more funding, we want to try to build a temporary dorm-style building and apartment buildings to house people until they find another place to live. We hope to build many.
Our company will be donating our time, contacts and resources to facilitate the purchase, shipping, and distribution of these homes to families in need.
If anyone knows of individuals with land or parking lots that would like to donate some space to set up these temporary shelters, please don't hesitate to email us at [email redacted].
If there are any companies willing to donate furniture or goods to help furnish these housing units, you can also email us at [email redacted].
If there are any companies or individuals who would be interested in donating their time and skills to setting up these units in disaster areas, please email us at [email redacted]
Donate today and help bring families begin the recovery process from this devastating storm.
Any donation amount is helpful. From $1 to $10,000, every little bit helps. We would also love suggestions and any advice. For instance, should we focus on providing individual homes to families who lost everything? Or should we focus on building dormitory-style buildings to house lots of people temporarily?
We want to be directly involved in helping the people that will be using these units. If regulations or problems occur and we can't find a place to house the disaster victims, we will donate the units to Project Hospitality and The American Red Cross for their use. If we don't reach our funding goals and cannot afford to purchase the units, we will donate the funds to a relief organization or charity. We will e-mail all of the donors and take a survey to see where it should be donated in a group email.
Our goal is small for now, but in grand scheme of things we can build temporary housing for hundreds of families cheaply and easily so they can get off their feet with a minimum cost of living.
We will most likely be placing these first units in the New York/New Jersey area.
Feel free to e-mail us with any questions.
Organizer
Crystal Bonham
Organizer
White Haven, PA
