Children's Voices Still Heard In Book "Superstorm Sandy: In the Eyes of the Children"

It’s been over a decade since Hurricane Sandy slammed into New Jersey and New York, causing death and destruction throughout the state. And, the voices of children affected by the storm are still heard in the book, Superstorm Sandy: In the Eyes of the Children, edited by Dr. Kathleen Woods Ignatoski, who used the book as a fundraiser as families were recovering from the disaster.

Hurricane Sandy was downgraded to a Superstorm when it made landfall on Oct. 29, 2012. In New Jersey, Sandy caused 38 deaths statewide, $30 billion in economic losses, and destroyed more than 346,000 homes. In New York, the storm caused 43 deaths and $19 billion in damages. 

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration recorded Superstorm Sandy as the fourth-costliest storm of the past 40 years, according to a report from the New York University Center for Public Health Disaster Science. 

Residents of New Jersey and New York still carry the emotional and psychological scars of that traumatic day. Besides adults, children were greatly impacted by the event, and Kathleen, a Michigan resident with New Jersey ties, wanted to make sure that they were not forgotten in the aftermath. 

Kathleen arranged to have children who witnessed the destruction firsthand write an essay about the event. The youngsters were more than happy to oblige. In their essays, the children described what they were doing before the storm hit, the sights and sounds of the storm, how their homes were lost, and the pain and heartbreak they felt because of the storm. 

Over time, the collection of essays was compiled to create Superstorm Sandy: In the Eyes of the Children. What's more, the book was used as a fundraiser with all proceeds going to St. Theresa's Catholic Church in Tuckerton, NJ.

The idea for the book came after Kathleen's then 12-year-old daughter, Theresa, was devastated over the loss of the home of Kathleen's father, Harry Woods, who lived on Mystic Island. Theresa's teacher suggested she write a descriptive essay about the impact the loss of her grandfather's house had on her. Theresa described her grandfather's house as a place she loved to go to prior to the storm: 

The beach is one of the most enjoyable places to visit in New Jersey; you put your feet into the smooth but hot sand, jump in the freezing waves of the ocean, and find the cool-looking seashells on Long Beach Island (LBI). It's the utmost place to be but, so sadly, most of it was ruined by Hurricane Sandy.

Kathleen thought if her daughter felt this way, how do children feel who actually went through the storm? Kathleen spoke with MarketingNewAuthors.com (MANA) about how she began the process of developing the book: 

MANA: How many students and teachers were involved in creating the book?

Kathleen: To start the book, I approached all of my friends from Michigan who had ties to NJ and asked them to have their kids write something. I also sent out a Facebook message to friends of mine back in NJ. My cousin teaches fifth grade in Harrison, NJ, so she and her teacher friend had their classes write an essay as an assignment. There is also a Catholic school that the parishioners of St. Theresa’s send their kids to in Southern NJ.  It has students from 19 parishes all around southern NJ.  Since those kids live where the worst damage occurred, their school had them all write essays about their experiences in the storm about a week after the storm hit and they had gotten back to school. The essays from this school are some of the more scary ones in the book, as some of these kids stayed in their homes during the height of the storm. I wish I could have gotten all of the essays from the school, but they had a worm hit their server shortly after I asked for the essays, so they were only able to send a few.  

One student, Zachery Piniero, an 11-year-old from Harrison, NJ, wrote that before the storm hit the night of Oct. 29, he, his sister, and his aunt were "making pasta puttanesca as a surprise dinner" for his mother because it was her birthday. They eventually had to leave their house because of flooding and stayed at his grandmother's house. He also did not go to school:

Although Hurricane Sandy gave us days off from school, the scary situation I experienced was not worth the time away from my classroom.

MANA: What was it like working with people in two different states (Michigan and NJ) to get the book published?
Kathleen: It is difficult in Michigan to fully comprehend the devastation that happened just in NJ. The number of houses destroyed or severely damaged were 10 times that the number lost to Hurricanes Katrina and Rita combined in the Gulf. It is a misconception that the homes damaged were mostly second/Summer homes. Where my dad lives, many people are year-round residents, so making people understand that was difficult. I had to rely on others for the essays from NJ, and many of them were in areas of devastation, so it was difficult to get some of the essays in a timely manner.  However, we did get them and were able to publish the book. 

MANA: How did parents, other teachers and the school administrators react to the book?

Kathleen: All of the people I asked had some ties to NJ. NJ has a strong spirit and a strong following amongst past and present residents. Thus, the book was well received by all.

MANA: How have people at church reacted to the book?
KWI: I started out collecting money for gift cards for St Theresa’s parish in Tuckerton. That parish alone had over 600 homes destroyed.  The pastor was very appreciative, so it seemed to me to be the logical place to partner with for the book.  My dad tried to “fly under the radar” there, so he didn’t tell them he lost his home, and since he had shelter (with my brother), he never asked them for any help. When the book came out, the parish put it in their bulletin to advertise it, using my dad’s name. He said he couldn’t “fly under the radar” anymore! We sold several books through that advertisement. Then, the parish ordered 50 books and sold out of those extremely quickly and had orders for 50 more. 

While there have been other destructive hurricanes and tropical storms since Superstorm Sandy, the natural disaster has been etched into the minds of residents whose lives were upended by the event. And, stories about that day continue to be told in Superstorm Sandy: In the Eyes of the Children.

Go HERE to preview or purchase Superstorm Sandy: In the Eyes of the Children.