Marine from Jersey City happily deployed to storm relief unit in Staten Island
The Jersey Journal
By Anthony J. Machcinski
on November 08, 2012
When he left his Jersey City Heights home for the Marines in 2011, 2nd Lt. Gerard Farao never thought he’d be deployed near his home. Due to Hurricane Sandy, that’s exactly what happened.
When Sandy slammed New Jersey and New York last week, Farao, along with the rest of the 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit, was deployed to Staten Island to help in humanitarian relief efforts.
“I was hoping to be deployed to Afghanistan (when I first joined the Marines),” said Farao, 23, who is stationed at Camp Lejeune in North Carolina. “We have to be ready to go anywhere in the world within an hour. I just never thought it’d be here.”
When the storm hit, Farao, a Hudson Catholic graduate, immediately became concerned about family that remained in Jersey City.
“Once (Sandy) got north, I was calling, asking if everyone was all right and if there was electricity,” Farao recalled. “In a weird way, I kind of wished I was home to experience it, just because it’s where I’ve been all my life.”
Since arriving in Staten Island last week, Farao and his unit have helped provide generators, fuel and clean water to aid in disaster relief efforts all over the area.
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