A dangerous blizzard hit western New York days before Christmas bringing heavy snow, damaging winds, and dangerous wind chills. Buffalo was one of the hardest hit areas leading to more than 40 deaths, massive power outages, and extensive property damage. A Facebook group called Buffalo Blizzard was a vital conduit in helping connect people in dire need to available support and resources.
Days after the blizzard, Julia Mungenast, a manager at Pet Friendly in Hilton, noticed people posting on the blizzard page needing help with pet food and supplies. Many were unable to travel, out of work, and out of money. Julia reached out to the Administrator of the Facebook group and asked if they had any centers that could use pet food donations. She was promptly connected to West Side Community Services in downtown Buffalo, which was actively providing resources to families in need in the hardest-hit areas of Buffalo. Mary Schaefer, the Director of West Side Community Services, responded to the offer to take donations of pet foods and supplies.
On Wednesday, December 28, Julia created some social media posts asking for donations of cat, dog, and small animal food and supplies to be donated at Pet Friendly in Hilton to help those impacted by the Buffalo blizzard. The need was immediate, so she only had a few short days to get the word out and collect items for delivery to Buffalo on Saturday, December 31.
“The community response was incredible,” said Julia.
The owner of Pet Friendly, Hamed Ebrahimi, not only agreed to allow Pet Friendly to be the collection site but also donated a generous amount of supplies. Another retail pet food store, Pet Supplies Plus in Greece, also donated shopping carts full of supplies.
“Love Rob & Amber Pet Food Pantry” donated an entire pickup truck full of pet food, crates, toys, and more. Suzanne Nugent, a local animal advocate, founded this pet food pantry to honor her late brother and a good friend by helping pets in Monroe County. “We were happy to help animals and their families and felt that Buffalo was in a dire situation and deserved our assistance in getting the community back on their feet. The pantry is run completely on donations, and we are so thankful to the Rochester community for making it possible to help Buffalo,” said Suzanne.
Habitat for Cats of Rochester also donated a large supply of cat food and litter for the Buffalo residents.
In addition, residents from western Monroe County were eager to donate some pet food for the cause.
Michelle Johnson, a Clarkson resident, saw Julia’s post and donated. Michelle has family who lives in the Buffalo area and saw firsthand how badly the area was hit and the immobilizing impact of the blizzard. “I was motivated to help because of my love for animals, and having my daughter who lives in north Buffalo helped me see the devastation the community was enduring,” said Michelle.
In just a few days, more than 2,000 pounds of pet supplies were collected from the local community. Two trucks and a trailer were filled with supplies for the Buffalo community.
As they were loading the trucks on December 31, a call came in from the Buffalo Dream Center, a church in the community that was actively feeding and providing necessities to those in need from the storm. They heard that there was a donation of pet food supplies coming into the area and asked if they could possibly get some to help those they were serving. “Fortunately, the local community was so incredibly generous we had more than enough to provide to both centers,” said Julia.
Donated pet food and supplies for those impacted by Buffalo blizzard.
