East Rockaway shows its heart

Gene and Rachel Gamache, of West Boulevard in Bay Park, waited on a long line that streamed into the James Street recreation building with their children Jack, 5, and Amy 2, last Saturday. “We’re looking for things like small appliances,” Rachel said. “We haven’t been back to the house since the storm — we’re going to have to demolish.”

She said that the family was lucky to rent a nice house in Forest Hills, Queens, where they have already enrolled Jack in kindergarten starting in September. “We still have to apply for permits to rebuild our house in Bay Park. Maybe we can get back in, hopefully by January …”

Once they reached the large desk outside the rec center entrance, manned by volunteers, the Gamaches and other residents were required to present their FEMA numbers and photo I.D.’s before being admitted to a free flea market. Once in, they were given boxes to cart away anything and everything they could carry — food, clothing, bedding, kitchen appliances, furniture, changing tables, mirrors — that would help bring some normalcy back into their lives.

“I started to make a cake,” one woman said tearfully, “and I realized I didn’t have a beater. I hope they have one here.”

In what began as a virtual one-woman effort last November, East Rockaway resident Melissa Van Wickler saw her vision come to fruition last weekend at the Paying it Forward to East Rockaway event, when more than 200 East Rockaway and Bay Park residents who were affected by Hurricane Sandy came to the Recreation Center to pick up some much-needed items and supplies — or just share their stories with one another.

“ The outpouring of love and support this weekend was incredible,” Van Wickler said. “We showed each other what we can do — small town or not — to help each other out in a huge way.” What started out as a way to make people smile, she said, turned into a dream she had for East Rockaway. “The one thing I keep saying over and over again is our town is one mile long and one mile strong,” she said. “Our residents are amazing, and this small town proved we have huge hearts.”