From Montville to Montville With Love and Gratitude! [Video and Photos]

The package has arrived!

"What a moving and generous gesture," said Montville Mayor Ron McDaniel as he opened the box. "This is what it's all about. People helping people."

Montville New Jersey mayor and city council members packed a box of their town's memorabilia to say thank you to Montville CT for its donations after Sandy. 

Mayor Tim Braden asked his town clerk to gather memorabilia from the township to send to Connecticut officials and residents in gratitude.

Remember the story?

It was just a few days after Hurricane Sandy ravaged the East Coast, that a few people from hard-hit Montville, New Jersey happened upon our Montville Patch while looking for their own and while I  redirected them I soon realized they were searching for help.

I called Montville (NJ) Patch editor Ariana Cohn and she directed me to a social service department worker running their shelter, whichwas caring for hundreds of people. They needed food 

I shared what I learned with all the amazing Montville Patch friends on Facebook and the next day, I put a box in the lobby of town hall and by the end of the day, the box had overflowed 10 fold. The next morning I shipped (thanks to Patch!) eight 30-40 pound boxes to Jersey. A day later, Montville (NJ) Mayor Tim Braden and social services worker Nancy Mertz opened the boxes packed with everything from boxed and canned foods, toiletries, paper products and lots more.

This was Braden’s reaction to your generosity:

"After 10 days of dealing with a catastrophe and tragedy in the town and seeing what our residents have endured, it's heartwarming to receive help from a group of people who the only thing we share with them is a name," Braden said.

And so now, as a way to say thanks, our unofficial sister city sent us a package filled with Montville New Jersey memorabilia.

McDaniel said he is proud of the residents of Montville.

"They didn't do this for special recognition. They did it becasue they care."