HELP! WHALEY LAKE BRIDGE DISASTER

WHY WE NEED MORE DONATIONS!

Our compelling video provides the answer: https://youtu.be/sZx_4PckeUo

(Turn sound on for full effect!)

Please watch this very interesting, 8-minute video retrospective of the Whaley Lake Bridge Disaster to see what it took to confront the damage and rebuild what we lost. People who donated will find this extremely fulfilling to see what their contributions produced.

As a show of support and a source of inspiration for your donations, our president, Ron Cioppa, has promised a sizeable donation on the GoFundMe page despite having a young family to support with long hours on a laborious job. He hopes his donation motivates you to donate more.

Since the installation costs for wood, steel or stone guard rails were equivalent, the Board approved the use of beautiful granite donated by Rick Wilson who spent long hours and many weeks researching the available options.

If you cannot donate monetarily, your "in-kind" donations of physical effort to help clean our beaches and stream beds of debris; cut and move piles of wood washed downstream or from fallen branches and trees inevitably during every storm; are also very much appreciated. Another way to donate would be to provide email addresses for our list of missing members (list available on request).

Thank you so very much!

____________________________________________________________________

HERE IS THE ORIGINAL STORY

On Sept. 2, 2021, Hurricane Ida destroyed our Lakeview Drive bridge, road and beach access. We’ve been in danger ever since.

 

We are a non-profit lakeside community of 103 homes (known as Shore Haven Civic Association), a mix of fixed-income older people, working families with children, and seasonal residents. We all share access to Whaley Lake in Holmes, in the Town of Pawling, NY. My husband, Rick Wilson, and I, Marilyn Bontempo, have been volunteering our skills to help the whole community of which we are a part: my skills are in writing and digital arts; my husband’s skills are in landscaping and heavy labor.

 

Our elderly residents and children are at high risk of injury or death as they try to cross through the very treacherous rubble to access the beach to fish, swim or use their boats or just walk down the road.

 

Large daily delivery service trucks are required to turn around on our very narrow road or to back down our road. Ambulances, fire trucks and police are seriously hindered by the lack of a bridge in extremely rushed circumstances! This puts the entire community at risk, not just of liability in the event of accidents but also loss of life in the face of medical or fire emergencies.

 

To avoid having another storm destroy our new bridge, we have to build it better than it was per current regulations, able to withstand massive amounts of water and support heavier vehicles safely. This is expensive! Our annual $600 dues covers costs to maintain our private unpaved road, beaches, insurance, taxes and lawyer. We have no surplus to afford the critical engineering, excavation and building costs involved with a bridge.

AN IMPORTANT NOTE ABOUT GUARDRAILS

Part of the $50,000 goal for this GoFundMe bridge disaster outreach is to cover the additional cost of guardrails which are a critically essential part of constructing a new bridge. A conservative estimate of this cost is approx. $10-$15,000 including guardrails/hammering rock/permits. Since the bridge spans over a deep drop-off to a very rocky stream bed on both sides of the road, it is vital to install guardrails on both sides of the road to provide safety to vehicular and ambulatory traffic, to deter veering off with tragic repercussions!

 

What Have We Done To Get Help So Far?

Since our insurance would not cover flood damage, 24 of us applied to FEMA as individuals, and when denied, 22 of us appealed with valuable input from our lawyer. We were again denied because we “had access to our homes without the bridge.” The SBA denied our request for a loan saying that “we demonstrated no ability to repay.” We sought help from national and local engineering outreach programs but were ineligible for all. 

 

Why We Need Your Help

We’ve contacted 15 elected political representatives who advocated on our behalf to FEMA, the SBA, Dutchess County and Homeland Security (DHSES) many times and have tried everything to assist in fixing the bridge. Unfortunately, their efforts have not resulted in success.

 

But as is often the result of a disaster, this crisis has brought us together as a community with many, many residents donating their time and empathy.

 

View our Sept 2nd Lakeview Drive flood video by resident Melanie Hopwood: https://youtu.be/RsezpHkrVks

 

How You Can Help:

Please Donate Whatever You Can

Email the GoFundMe Link to everyone for their help as well

Share the GoFundMe Link on social media

 

Anyone Who Wants to Donate Materials, Equipment or Manpower: we will gladly accept your kindness to help. Please click the "contact" button below under: Organizer Marilyn Bontempo.