Jenks Kids Take Post-Sandy Trip to the Shore With Gifts and Song

Elementary school children from Chestnut Hill bring gifts for Ocean City Intermediate School students displaced by Superstorm Sandy.

More than 20 students from the J.S. Jenks Elementary School in Chestnut Hill loaded a school bus full of gifts on Thursday and took a trip to the shore. Their destination was Ocean City Intermediate School, where about 60 students and a half-dozen teachers are still displaced from their homes in the aftermath of Superstorm Sandy, whose record flooding left widespread damage throughout the island. The trip was the brainchild a Alice Goldsmith, a computer science teacher in the K-8 school who spends summers in Ocean City, where her father has a home. Goldsmith knew that many Ocean City families might still be struggling to provide necessities, let alone gifts, at the time of the holidays. She and the school's students organized an effort to …

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Watch for Flood-Damaged Cars for Sale

If you're car shopping, you'll want to be on the look out for vehicles that saw the worst of Hurricane Sandy.

Information provided by AAA: Thousands of vehicles were damaged in the wake of Hurricane Sandy, but not all were total losses. AAA Mid-Atlantic warns potential car buyers that flood-damaged vehicles may soon be making their way to used car dealers throughout our region and across the country for resale.   “If you’re looking at buying a used car, inspect it carefully for food damage.  Also, you should research the car’s Vehicle Identification Number (VIN) prior to purchase, and be sure to contact your insurance company before purchasing a flood-damaged vehicle,” advises Jenny M. Robinson, Manager of Public and Government Affairs for AAA Mid-Atlantic. Flood-damaged vehicles can be shipped anywhere for resale, and they often continue to …

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Disaster Recovery Tips for Small Business Owners

Hurricane Sandy has caused severe damage to many local businesses. if you're a small business owner, here's some helpful advice for how to recover.

1) File insurance claims as soon as possible, if you haven't already done so. The National Association of Insurance Commissioners offers important advice and tips for filing your claim. The National Flood Insurance Program also provides information on filing a flood insurance claim. 2) The Small Business Administration offers several low-interest, long-term disaster loans to small businesses in declared disaster areas, including business physical disaster loans and economic injury disaster loans. You can apply for loans up to $2 million for both uninsured and underinsured damages. You can apply directly online. Once submitted, the SBA will send an inspector to estimate the cost of damage. 3) Apply for tax relief if needed, which will allow…

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How You Can Help Hurricane Sandy Victims

Find out where locally you can drop off items to go to Hurricane Sandy victims.

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Hurricane Sandy

Patch & AOL Send Hurricane Sandy Relief Trucks to Long Island, New Jersey

Employees help out, and you can, too.

It's been said it's far better to have a neighbor who's near, than a brother who's far away, but in the wake of Hurricane Sandy, Americans across the nation have proven to be the best neighbors and the strongest of families.   This past weekend, AOL and Patch employees took an opportunity to pitch in, packing two tractor trailers worth of food, water and supplies in Dulles, VA, and Baltimore. The donations are headed to Hurricane Sandy ravaged areas in New Jersey and Long Island. Want to join the relief efforts? Click here to donate: https://donate.networkforgood.org/aol "When a catastrophe of this size hits, we all feel it, both the hundreds of us who live in the impacted towns, and our colleagues who are watching and wishing they could …

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This Week: Sandy, Romney Visit and More

Find out what's been going on around the region this week that you might have missed.

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5k Still Without Power in Philly, Says PECO

The energy company hopes to have most all services restored by Friday night.

Only 5,000 residents in Philadelphia remain without power from Hurricane Sandy, according to a release from PECO. "Working around-the-clock for nearly three full days, PECO has restored power to nearly 80 percent of the customers who lost power during Hurricane Sandy," the company said in a release on its website. "PECO will continue working 24/7 until service can be safely restored to all customers." The company believes that, with additional support from other utility crews from around the country, it will be able to restore power to nearly all of the Philadelphia residents impacted by the hurricane by Friday night, though "some customers in the most damaged and isolated areas may be without service until early next week." "Our crews …

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The Northwest Recovers from Hurricane Sandy

Some areas are looking better after Tuesday's storm. Other spots seem like they'll take a while to get back up to speed.

We drove around Mt. Airy and Chestnut Hill on Wednesday to get second look at the damage Sandy caused in the area. Check out the photos to see what areas were recovering, and check out our photos from Tuesday.

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