Facebook chat leads to donations for Washington
What started with a whirlwind of messages on a Huntley Facebook page Sunday night has grown into a grass-roots community effort to help others affected by last weekend’s devastating tornadoes.
Sunday night when Mike Lyp, owner of All Around Towing & Auto, and Maria Gueroult, both of Lake in the Hills, were online at Huntley Deals ‘N Steals, a Facebook group, the idea was hatched to donate items rather than sell them.
Lyp, who was scheduled to leave for Washington, Ill., with the first truckload at 4:30 a.m. Thursday, rented a truck and offered to take everything to the affected areas.
“It was a great feeling when I picked up the truck,” said Lyp, who admitted the entire process was a bit overwhelming. “But I knew it was going to be worth it.”
The group has been collecting goods on the northeast corner of Algonquin and Route 47, in the parking lot of Bowl-Hi Lanes in Huntley. It hopes to make at least two trips this week. “I would make a trip every day if I could,” Lyp said, as cars kept stopping to drop off goods.
It’s all about helping, Gueroult said.
“If I can help just one family or an entire community, then I don’t want anything for Christmas, or my birthday for that matter,” said Gueroult, who said she’s planning a trip to Washington Saturday to deliver everything she can fit in her van. “If I said I was all warm and tingly inside, that would not even begin to describe how I feel about helping.”