By MADDY VITALE
Sea Isle City is built on families doing for families. Neighbors doing for neighbors. Friendships that grow out of working on the beach patrol, volunteering at the Historical Museum and taking tennis lessons at Dealy Field.
But amid the coronavirus outbreak the world is shut down and the shore town of Sea Isle is no different.
Out of something unprecedented and bad has emerged an outpouring of kindness, generosity and concern for loved ones, friends and neighbors at a time when the future seems uncertain for all.
The Sea Isle City Welcome Center is closed to the public during the pandemic. But Sea Isle Public Information Officer Katherine Custer pointed out that new signs placed in the Welcome Center’s windows serve as reminders that there is great appreciation for those who continue to work, risking their lives, as the invisible killer continues to threaten the world.
A sign says “Thank You …” and what follows is a list of the workers who continue to go to their jobs every day to make everyone else’s lives a bit easier and safer. From fire and police personnel to medical workers and food store clerks, they are all listed on the signs in bold black letters.
Over the last month of the COVID-19 pandemic, members of the community have reached out to show support to those who need it most.
Custer said the generosity of Sea Isle residents is reflective of the caring people in the town.
“It’s not surprising that the people of Sea Isle City are showing their true colors and helping others during this pandemic, because this community has a long history of service,” Custer noted.
“From our local volunteer organizations and civic groups, to the people who are sewing face masks for others and the individuals who are checking in on older neighbors, the spirit of giving is alive and well in Sea Isle City,” she added.
The United Methodist Church of Sea Isle City’s Food Pantry continues to provide meals for those in need on and off the island who are struggling, especially at this time.
And a mother/daughter team, Tara Crowell, of Sea Isle, and her 15-year-old daughter, Ellie Kutschera, spent the week leading up to Easter sewing surgical-style masks. They gave them to friends and neighbors.
Their goal was to make about 100 masks. They didn’t just make them for locals. They sewed some to give to Courtney Kincade and Shaun Mooney, a married couple in Hoboken, N.J., who have close ties to Sea Isle. Mooney works in New York City, the epicenter for the outbreak, and gave the masks to co-workers to help protect them from the virus.
And then there was an anonymous donor who recently gave hand sanitizer, Clorox wipes and other items to the Sea Isle City Fire Department.
Reaching out through its Facebook page, the volunteer fire department appealed to the public for Lysol spray or Clorox wipes to help protect its members from the coronavirus outbreak.
“Any type of Lysol aerosol disinfectant spray, or Clorox/Lysol type wipes that you can spare,” the Facebook post said.
Sea Isle City and members of the public sensed the urgency of the message. Within an hour of it appearing on Facebook, donations of Lysol and Clorox came in from the city and local residents, Fire Chief John Mazurie Jr. said.
What the department received in return was an abundance of cleaning and disinfecting supplies.
“It was great. It makes me proud to be in a town where so many people appreciate us,” Mazurie said in a previous interview.
