Brick's Visitation Relief Center Marks Two Years Of Helping Community

(Visitation Relief Center volunteers gather outside the center to mark the organization’s two-year anniversary in its building on Mantoloking Road. Credit: Visitation Relief Center Facebook page)

When Hurricane Sandy devastated parts of Brick Township and surrounding communities in October 2012, Visitation Roman Catholic Church and its volunteers sprung into action to help.

Wednesday, more than two years later, that effort, which spawned the formal Visitation Relief Center, is still going strong, helping residents in need.

In the first weeks after Sandy, the organization received donations from far and wide, of food and clothing and home items. Truckloads poured in from across the country, forcing the organization to find a bigger space than its initial room at the church, and in February 2013 moved into the vacant Mantoloking Marketplace next door to the church.

It moved into the revamped building at 721 Mantoloking Road on Feb. 25, 2013.

In doing so, the center was able to expand its reach in its stated mission “to facilitate families to recovery, and help them rebuild after Superstorm Sandy.”

Since Sandy, the center has helped thousands of victims of the storm.

The center says it helped nearly 6,500 people from more than 3,000 families in 2014, providing more than $1 million in direct financial assistance. The center has helped nearly 300 homes get rebuilt, and 536 tons of debris removed, with its volunteers contributing 119,000 hours of assistance last year.

“Supporting that energy, we focus on improving the process of receiving assistance and increasing access to supplies. We are a centralized and collaborative community outreach program,” the center said in a statement on its Facebook page. The statement also thanked the volunteers, contributors, funders and partners, who have helped along the way.

If you are interested in volunteering at the relief center, call 732-746-3456 or stop in. The center is open Monday through Saturday 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.