{"id":8101,"date":"2025-11-13T08:37:30","date_gmt":"2025-11-13T13:37:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/communicator.pef.org\/?p=8101"},"modified":"2025-11-20T10:12:42","modified_gmt":"2025-11-20T15:12:42","slug":"pef-member-collects-donations-for-hurricane-melissa-relief-in-jamaica","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/communicator.pef.org\/issue\/volume-43-no-11\/pef-member-collects-donations-for-hurricane-melissa-relief-in-jamaica\/","title":{"rendered":"PEF member collects donations for Hurricane Melissa relief in Jamaica\u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\"><em>November 22, 2025 &#8212;<\/em> Hurricane Melissa devastated Jamaica late last month. Current damage estimates show the Category 5 storm caused as much as $7 billion in damages. International aid organizations have descended on the island nation with relief supplies, and the United States has pledged $12 million in assistance. <\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">But when a disaster like Hurricane Melissa hits, governments do not commonly donate essentials like food and drinking water, meaning it often falls to organizations and individuals \u2014 such as PEF member Michelle Campbell \u2014 to help feed those affected by the hurricane.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u201cThis is something I wanted to do personally,\u201d said Campbell, who is a Healthcare Management Systems Analyst with the New York State Department of Health. \u201cJamaica is my homeland, and the people are near and dear to my heart. I know they\u2019re hungry. I know firsthand that they need the food.\u201d<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Jamaican Disaster Relief Donations: Michelle Campbell\" src=\"https:\/\/player.vimeo.com\/video\/1135483524?dnt=1&amp;app_id=122963\" width=\"422\" height=\"750\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"autoplay; fullscreen; picture-in-picture; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Campbell is Jamaican-American and her family and friends were impacted by the storm. While they work to rebuild, she wanted to do something for as many people on the island as possible.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">With her own money, Campbell bought enough food and supplies to fit into a 170-gallon container to ship to Jamaica. She recognized that her own efforts would not be enough and recorded multiple social media videos asking others to join her cause.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u201cThis is a focus on the community. I want all my friends and associates to see if they can put in a little right now,\u201d said Campbell in one of her first videos. \u201cLet\u2019s see if together we can get something substantial to feed a community.\u201d<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Since her first call to action and since that first container was shipped, Campbell has received donations from co-workers and friends moved by her goodwill. A few fellow PEF members donated items like water, flour, and rice. Others at the Department of Health donated money, which she uses to shop for fresh food.\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u201cThis is just the tip of the iceberg. We know that people are generous and we\u2019re blessed, and right now we have a country in need,\u201d said Campbell. \u201cI think that this should be our standard reaction (in times of crisis). People are hurting. I am hoping that at least once monthly I can ship out that 170-gallon container.\u201d<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Campbell is collecting food, towels, laundry detergent, soap, toilet paper, and most importantly: bottled water.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u201cI would love to have a whole pallet of water. Right now we have four cases of water,\u201d said Campbell. \u201cI am not going to ship four cases of water. We need a pallet.\u201d<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Campbell said she is serious about helping the entire community. Her goal is to help feed at least 200 families.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">PEF members who wish to help Campbell by contributing a monetary donation can do so through her CashApp: $MichelleJoyC or viaPayPal using the email <\/span><a href=\"mailto:amsotnas@gmail.com\"><span data-contrast=\"none\">amsotnas@gmail.com<\/span><\/a><span data-contrast=\"auto\"> (Michelle Santos).<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">She also set up an Amazon.com registry where members can order needed items that will be shipped directly to Campbell\u2019s home and then on to Jamaica every time she fills her 170-gallon bin.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><em>Editor&#8217;s Note: There are two additional ways PEF members can contribute to Jamaican relief efforts. PEF President Spence worked with AFT to activate their Relief Fund. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.billhighway.com\/aph\/forChapters\/v2\/donate.aspx?d=zKIqmqokNi0%3d&amp;u=JVwSZ8heWEg%3d\">Click here to donate<\/a> and note Jamaican Disaster Relief in the Notes field. In addition, members in the Capital Region can drop off donated items at the Albany Hilton during the next meeting of the PEF Executive Board on Dec. 4 &amp; 5. The union will have a donation bin inside the lobby at 40 Lodge St. in downtown Albany. <a href=\"https:\/\/supportjamaica.gov.jm\/needs\">Here is a list <\/a>from the Jamaican government of items that are most needed.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>November 22, 2025 &#8212; Hurricane Melissa devastated Jamaica late last month. Current damage estimates show the Category 5 storm caused as much as $7 billion in damages. International aid organizations&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"division":[],"allowed_regions":[],"allowed_divisions":[],"class_list":["post-8101","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","issue-volume-43-no-11"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v27.6 (Yoast SEO v27.9) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>PEF member collects donations for Hurricane Melissa relief in Jamaica\u00a0 - PEF Communicator<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/communicator.pef.org\/issue\/volume-43-no-11\/pef-member-collects-donations-for-hurricane-melissa-relief-in-jamaica\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"PEF member collects donations for Hurricane Melissa relief in Jamaica\u00a0\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"November 22, 2025 &#8212; Hurricane Melissa devastated Jamaica late last month. 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