The Lindenhurst first-graders loved Whitney .
After Whitney and I visited Daniel Street School in Lindenhurst, NY last may, first-grade teacher Erica Bohrer published a post about us on her blog. What fun it was to see (okay, hear about) one of our school visits from a teacher’s point of view.
That’s Erica with me and Whitney at Daniel Street School in Lindenhurst last May.
Fast forward to October. Lindenhurst was one of the Long Island towns hardest hit by last month’s storm, and an email from Erica this month assured me that she and the sweet students we met there are okay. “I am so lucky that my family, my friends, and my students are safe,” she wrote. “Many lost their homes, but they still have their health. We are all pulling together.” Erica’s email also explained a fundraiser she is sponsoring: she offers lesson plans, teaching resources and other related materials for teachers on TeachersPayTeachers.com (an open marketplace where teachers buy and sell original teaching materials from each other) and she is donating proceeds from a Hurricane Unit she developed to help with Hurricane Sandy victims in Lindenhurst. Whether you’re a teacher or not, I encourage you to check out Erica’s unit on hurricanes — it’s interesting stuff!
And the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree: Erica’s mother, Maria, is a reading teacher in the Lindenhurst school district as well. My Seeing Eye dogs and I have enjoyed visits to Maria’s special readers over the years, and we’ve been to her beautiful home a few times, too. Maria is collecting new children’s books to replenish school libraries devastated by flooding, and you may send new (or almost new) books to her at:
Maria Bohrer
Harding Ave. Elementary School
2 Harding Ave.
Lindenhurst, NY 11757
For more information, you may email Erica’s mom Maria at mbohrer@lindenhurstschools.org
Because I live and work very close to Lindenhurst, and because Maria and Erica are also my friends, I have offered to deliver books directly to Maria’s house. If you or your friends want to help, but do not want to pay the cost of shipping books, just send me a gift card for Barnes and Noble, and I will purchase books for you and deliver them to Maria’s school. It’s a great cause, and I’m happy to support it. Francine Poppo Rich Blue Marlin Publications 823 Aberdeen Road Bay Shore NY 11706. There is more about this fund raiser on the Blue Marlin Facebook page.
I enjoyed reading your post and it makes me feel good to know that people in the area are picking themselves up and dusting themselves off and working to get things to normal…..as our governor now says, “The new normal.” I may have some books to send to Maria. I will check.
This is wonderful!
Yes, Maria and Erica *are* wonderful, as is Francine Rich — she’s my publisher at Blue Marlin Publications, the one who introduced me to the Bohrer family in the first place. THANK YOU all…!
[…] me a story. Their family dog is old, and she really is blind. His family’s home was destroyed by Superstorm Sandy in 2012, they’ve finally just moved into a new house, and it’s on […]
[…] me a story. Their family dog is old, and she really is blind. His family’s home was destroyed by Superstorm Sandy in 2012, they’ve finally just moved into a new house, and it’s on […]
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