My Experience During Hurricane Sandy

My experience during Hurricane Sandy was quite different compared to my classmates. During the storm, I did not experience any damage to my home and I was truly blessed to have the luxury of still having electricity and hot water in my home. In addition, I opened my home to my friends and family members who did not have the same opportunity as I did. Although they were unable to reach me at times due to the connection of their phones, I still was able to extend the offer and try to lend a helping hand.  The guilt and sadness I felt towards my loved ones and friends was undeniable. I was able to have my grandmother and my aunt stay with me during the storm, and I was really grateful for that. I still feel  the pain of those who were traumatized during the storm because although I was not able to experience it hands on, It is still a sad situation to this day.  

The OHMAR CONFERENCE

The OHMAR Conference was such a unique experience for me. I have never presented at a conference a day in my life, and being this was my first time, I was more than delighted to present a presentation on Hurricane Sandy. The conference included different kinds of speakers of Oral History, and many interesting panels that were very exciting. The panels included people who were apart of the CIA, House of Representatives, and Students from different universities, including me and my classmates. I enjoyed the entire trip to Washington, D.C. and I wouldn’t mind experiencing it all over again.

The Beginning

When I first stepped foot into this Oral History class, I was nervous and excited at the same time. I did not know what to expect from this class, and what I was going to learn by the end of it all. As I sat down and waited for my 20-25 classmates, I was only to be surprised that there were only 6 students including myself in the classroom. After my classmates walked in, and everyone including my teacher settled down, we each introduced ourselves and everyone as well as I seemed excited. Once my professor, Dr. Perkiss introduced the project we were going to be working on, me and my classmates just looked at each other in awe. She briefly explained to us that we would be working on an Oral History project in regards to Hurricane Sandy, a devastating hurricane that occurred in New Jersey less than 10 months ago. In addition, we were also going to interview people who experienced this traumatic event first hand. As we began the project, I knew it would end up turning out to become something magical and historical.