ORANGE, NJ –- Tricia Taylor of Mississippi remembers with great clarity the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina – the devastation, the confusion and the loss.  Spared the destruction of her house because of its inland location, she opened her home to those that had lost everything, which included feeding 20 people and housing nine dogs. Mrs. Taylor was determined to help in any way she could, and decided to make it her mission to help restore the local Pass Christian library, which had lost their book collection in the disaster.

The First Occupational Center of New Jersey (OCNJ) was only too happy to help when contacted by the Belleville Lions Club, who had heard about the plight of the Pass Christian library. A truckload of books, ranging from children’s books to adult fiction and non-fiction, were collected from employees of the non-profit and the surrounding areas. Pictured loading the books into the truck bound for the Pass Christian Mississippi library are (l-r) OCNJ staff Harold Filkens, Francine Faragi, Sheila Grywalski and (third from right) Joe Ruffalo; John Rible, Tricia Taylor of Mississippi, and Robert Bowden, son of Martha Bowden of the Belleville Lions Club.