Support for East Palestine, Ohio Train Derailment
East Palestine needs your support due to a massive toxic waste train wreck on February 3, 2023, at 8:55 p.m. EST.
The purpose of this page is to provide a single, consolidated resource on how best to help the citizens of East Palestine. The train derailment effects, hazardous waste disaster relief, and how/where/what to donate to those in need of disaster assistance are included here.
East Palestine and its surrounding communities need your support. Keep reading for ways to donate vital resources and monetary funds to the most impactful nonprofits and community outreach programs offered to the East Palestine residents, community, and its citizens.
We have a heartfelt connection to East Palestine here at Wirks Moving and Storage, because I grew up in East Palestine and much of my family is in or near the train derailment disaster zone and the chemical spill-affected areas. After I learned about the disaster and began searching for the best ways I could help, I ran into roadblocks due to a lack of readily available information. So I set out on a mission to gather what was needed to create this page. My team and I hope to continue to provide the latest information here, updating this page regularly as new information is released and reported by the leadership of the East Palestine community and the heads of the nonprofit organizations listed below.
Where To Donate
The Way Station, Inc.
The Way Station, a 501(c)3 non-profit, is a staple within the Ohio community for individuals and families in need. Agencies and organizations throughout Columbiana County and beyond use The Way Station as a resource for emergency assistance, nutrition, clothing, household items, job training, and emotional support.
http://www.thewaystationinc.org/
What’s Needed Most
The Way Station, Inc. is also a primary source of donations and vital resources needed for East Palestine and surrounding communities.
What do East Palestine residents dealing with the effects of the toxic waste need most now?
Whole house water purification systems. The Goal: 400 units donated.
Air purifiers with activated carbon filters. The Goal: 400 units donated.
Mail donations to:
The Way Station
P.O. Box 449
Columbiana, OH 44408
East Palestine Community Foundation, Inc.
The East Palestine Community Foundation is a non-profit organization established nine years ago. They fund other non-profits such as churches, schools, and our town.
If you would like to make a direct impact, with no fees and no tax, please consider donating to The East Palestine Community Foundation, Inc. The Foundation is a non-profit organization 501c3 that thrives on making your donation go further than 3rd party donation sources. Businesses, employers, and individuals may donate as a tax write-off as a qualified donation to a 501c3.
Donations can be mailed to:
East Palestine Community Foundation
P. O. Box 42
East Palestine, OH 44413
Venmo: @EPCommunityFoundation
PayPal: [email protected]
EAST PALESTINE TRAIN DERAILMENT TOXIC WASTE
Health Information Resources
If this is a medical emergency, please dial 911.
- Residents near East Palestine with drinking water wells can request testing by calling 330-849-3919.
- Health Assessment Clinic appointments can be made by calling 234-564-7755 or 234-564-7888
- A toxicologist is available to answer questions at 800-222-1222.
- Columbiana County Health District water well sampling results- click here
- Ohio Emergency Management Agency event information- click here
- Ohio Environmental Protection Agency East Palestine public drinking water test results- click here
- Ohio Department of Health event information- click here
- Updates from Governor Mike DeWine- click here
- Norfolk Southern train derailment information- click here
- US Environmental Protection Agency response site- click here
East Palestine Born & Raised
Who Is Eric Wirks
Born and raised in East Palestine, Ohio, I attended East Palestine City schools my entire academic career. My whole family is from East Palestine, including my mother and father, Jeannine and Thomas Wirks, my grandparents, great-grandparents, extended family, and my late sister Julie Lynn Wirks, co-valedictorian of the East Palestine High School Class of 1991.
After graduating from East Palestine High School in 2000, I attended Kent State University and then moved to Atlanta, Georgia, in 2004 to pursue better academic and career opportunities. But continuing to support the East Palestine community and its youth has been a personal mission of mine, so in 2021 I began offering an annual scholarship to one student from East Palestine High School, in hopes of helping them find their path and expand their knowledge with an opportunity to move into the world with some much-needed financial support. My parents were a perfect, exemplary model showing us that accomplishing big dreams is completely possible, regardless of what handicaps or disenfranchising circumstances you face. I’m proud to be able to help support East Palestine students too in their honor and in Julie’s memory.
Through the support, leadership, mentorship, and guidance of several successful, impactful individuals including my parents, I acquired the tools needed to find my path and my own success. The support I received combined with an internal drive and the constant pursuit of knowledge, self-betterment, and empowerment guided my journey. Now, it is truly my pleasure to give back to our old school and the East Palestine community. East Palestine and its citizens positively impacted me, my drive, and my success. Without East Palestine, I would not be me.
So to say the East Palestine train derailment disaster is a genuine, authentic concern for me is an understatement, as much of my family and many of my friends still live in the community and are being directly impacted by this ongoing toxic disaster. When locating factual, actionable information about the disaster proved challenging for me, I considered how best I could help, and landed on not only donating myself, but also providing a single location for folks to find out how they too could help.
The East Palestine community is one-of-a-kind, full of genuine kindness, and overflowing with love. Today, I plead with you to donate and support the efforts to assist the residents of the East Palestine Train Derailment Disaster.
Thank you for your heartfelt concern, and thank you for helping me support my hometown.
Eric Wirks & Family, East Palestine, OH
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