WESTBURY, N.Y. — The office and warehouse team at Crystorama Lighting held a flood relief supply drive at the company’s Westbury, N.Y., offices last week, collecting a large assortment of household items to help victims of the recent catastrophic flooding in Baton Rouge, L.A. It’s an initiative that hits home for Crystorama’s vice president of sales, Ryan Ranzino, who was born and raised in Baton Rouge.
Employees donated baby food, canned goods, diapers, children’s toys, bottled water, detergent and cleaning supplies needed by families whose homes were damaged or destroyed by the flooding. The supplies are being shipped to the Hebron Baptist Church just outside Baton Rouge, which is housing and assisting local residents displaced by the storm.
“The devastation that occurred in southeastern Louisiana is heartbreaking,” said Brad Kleinberg, president of Crystorama Lighting, a leading source of chandeliers and other decorative lighting. “It is estimated that as many as 110,000 homes and 7,000 businesses in the greater Baton Rouge area have been affected. Recognizing the profound need for basic household items that residents have while they recover and rebuild, our employees took the initiative to organize a relief supply drive here at our headquarters to assist in the effort. We are proud to be lending a helping hand.”
Kleinberg added that Ranzino’s ties to Baton Rouge made the flood relief drive even more meaningful for the Crystorama team.
The floods that swamped the Baton Rouge region with 15 to 32 inches of rain over a 48-hour period in mid-August killed 13 and have been described as the worst natural disaster in the United States since Hurricane Sandy in 2012, according to the Washington Post. So far, more than 100,000 people in Louisiana have applied for federal assistance and the government has set aside $127 million to help those displaced find temporary housing and pay for home repairs.
In remarks made during his Aug. 23 visit to the region, President Obama emphasized that, in addition to federal help, assistance from private charities, churches and volunteers also will be a critical element in the area’s recovery. “That’s what Americans do in times like this,” he said.
To make a donation for flood relief efforts in Louisiana, please visit www.braf.org.
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