Hurricane Sandy Fundraisers

As many of you know, Greg Brooks, having grown up in the Bahamas, is a bit of a 'cane head. Short for "hurricane head", it's a term to describe a "storm chaser" with a thing for hurricanes. Living here in Montreal is a bit of a challenge for a 'cane head, as we don't exactly get many hurricanes. A little wind, a little rain, but "hurricane" isn't a common term for Montrealers. Hurricane Sandy was no exception. Greg likes to track hurricanes from their inception. Often they'll start off the coast of Africa, Sandy started in the South Caribbean and charged her way up the east coast. She was special. Hitting a low of 943 millibars when we captured the screen shot of a satellite photo of her, she will go down in history as the Super Storm of the century. Today, Sandy is but a bizarre whisper of her former self, but she is still affecting the weather over a large area. On her charge up the coast followed by a sharp left turn that devasted a large area of the North-Eastern United States, Greg watched and waited, fully expecting much worse devastation than actually occurred. With 760,000 people still living in shelters, it is no small wonder that Haiti was hard hit losing 65 people to the storm. In Cuba 11 people died as she pounded her way up the Coast. In Greg's beloved Bahamas, the eye of Sandy passed right over Greg's old stomping grounds. The famous Atlantis resort went into lockdown, as did the airport. The airport was destroyed during the hurricane and will have to be rebuilt. As sad as the awful death toll this storm wrought in the Caribbean, none felt the sting so intensely as the people of the North-eastern United States. As of today, Peppermaster still has friends and family still in need of shelter from the damage caused by the storm. Caribbeans tend to be "used to" hurricanes. New Jerseyites, New Yorkers, not so much. On Thursday, as a result of the desire to help, the Tarot Reader's community, that is a large part of my life, pulled together to create a project called Tarot-Aid. Our goal was to find a way to raise $5,000 for the Red Cross to help alleviate the disaster that has befallen so many people. As I write this the fundraiser has currently raised $3,270 USD. The project includes tarot readings, artwork, books, tarot decks and other tarot-related goodies, donated by a veritable who's who of the Tarot world. I've donated a reading myself for the raffle, and I've made a cash donation as well! If you'd like to help and THIS interests you, get a move on. The fundraising opportunity ends at midnight tonight! If you're a member of our Peppermaster Facebook Group then you are already aware that in honour of Hurricane Sandy's passing, Greg has created a special version of Hurricane Mash, called Hurricane Sandy mash. It is made with Orange habaneros, Jamaican field peppers and Red Savina habaneros. It packs a little more punch than your average Hurricane Mash. To honour our friends who have been victimized by the hurricane, Greg has put together a slew of mini Hurricane Sandy mash. For each 45 ml jar sold at $20, we will give $15 to the American Red Cross, (shipping not include). For each 250 ml jar sold at $50.00 we will donate $25. We have a limited pocket book and a limited number of jars, so we've had to set the limit at 25 jars each, limiting our total donation to $1,000. We're hoping to write a check to the Red Cross for the full amount, so please share, far and wide! Tina Brooks