Paying it forward to Louisiana

On Oct. 1, dozens of East Rockaway residents will “pay it forward” to victims of the Louisiana flooding by taking part in a fundraising pub crawl. The ER 4 LA Pub Crawl Fund Drive will involve five local establishments: Michael’s Port Hole, Barrier Brewing Company, Reel, Lazy Lobster and Althouse 1848.

Last month, thousands of homes were damaged by catastrophic flooding in a 200-square-mile area of Louisiana that included Baton Rouge and its suburbs. Thirteen people were reported dead in what has been described as the worst U.S. disaster since Hurricane Sandy hit in 2012.

Dan Caracciolo, a founder of The11518, a volunteer group that helped East Rockaway residents in the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy, is helping to organize the pub crawl, an idea he had for raising community camaraderie in the village. Right after he and the group’s co-founder, Joe Forgione, came up with the pub crawl plan, the flooding hit Louisiana. Event organizers said they saw the local event as a way to support another area in need following a similar disaster.

“Within 48 hours of [our] coming up with the idea for the pub crawl, Baton Rouge was under water, and this idea totally made sense,” Caracciolo said. “At the same time, almost immediately I received some messages from Friends of Long Island, who were in their own communities and were kind of feeling the same way.” Like The11518, Friends of Long Island is a post-Sandy, community-based volunteer organization.

The pub crawl will start with registration at Michael’s Porthole at 2:30 p.m. It will begin at 3 and last until 8. Participants can spend as much time as they want at each establishment, but must register to participate. The tickets include a bracelet, five discounted drink vouchers (one for each location) for up to $6 each, food specials, entry in several raffles and a T-shirt. The shirts are guaranteed only for those who buy tickets online prior to Sept. 23. Organizers encourage patrons to purchase tickets in advance.

“When we heard about the flooding in Baton Rouge, we knew the event would be a great way to help,” Forgione said. “Four years later, we’re able to enjoy our waterfront because people helped us after the storm and businesses showed a confidence in our area. Now we get to pay it forward, not only with money, but with the hopeful message that they, too, can and will rebuild.”

Organizers connected with the relief group Together Baton Rouge through social media to determine where the proceeds from the event will be distributed.

“It’s incredible, and this is the most meaningful and most touching, because you’re dealing with people who have gone through it and faced all the same kinds of inadequacies of response and the frustration,” Together Baton Rouge lead organizer Broderick Bagert said in a phone interview with the Herald. “It looks like [Sandy] built a community of people that have stuck together — besides just the immediate response to look after not only their own community, but a place 2,000 miles away.”

Bagert now lives in New Orleans, but was a resident of Houston when Hurricane Katrina devastated his parents’ house in 2005. He joined Together Baton Rouge in 2009, and is now helping those impacted by the flooding. He said he was grateful for fundraising efforts like East Rockaway’s.

“We’re very humbled they would know we exist,” Bagert said. “We’re humble they chose us as the people who they’re going to trust to raise money for, and [allow us to] dedicate our resources.”

Some $1,200 had been raised for the fund drive as the Herald went to press. Caracciolo and Forgione were excited about the early ticket sales, and said they hoped to drive home the message that, much like East Rockaway, Louisiana can rebuild. “Sometimes you need to reflect a little bit, you need to renew,” Caracciolo said. “You need to remember, and it’s obviously a really great feeling and something you don’t really want to lose.”

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