Charities Are Deluged With Offers of Aid

Hearts and pocketbooks opened from Manhattan Beach to Manhattan island as corporations and individuals fueled an outpouring of support for victims of America’s most devastating terrorist attack.

“We are absolutely overwhelmed. It’s been amazing,” said Ani Hurwitz, a senior consultant of the New York Community Trust, which has helped United Way of New York City administer the so-called Sept. 11 Fund since it was set up late Tuesday.

By the end of Thursday, $40 million in pledges--and countless offers of other kinds of assistance--had been tallied.

“I actually had a call from a young man in Arizona who’s a construction worker who said, ‘I know how to work a jackhammer. I can drive a semi. I’d even be happy to sweep up debris. Just let me come and help,’ ” Hurwitz said.

Officials were urging people to stay home and send money instead. Rescue teams are already on site, and “you can’t have people stumbling over each other,” said Patrick Foy, a spokesman for the California Office of Emergency Services.

Experts are warning donors to choose recipients carefully. “When tragedy happens, the scoundrels come out in force,” said Gerry Wilson, president of the San Diego Better Business Bureau.

Established charities are being swamped with calls from individual donors. There are the high school students who want to give bake sale money. The couple who wants to give their cash wedding gifts.

Major corporations are stepping forward. The Lily Foundation and DaimlerChrysler both gave $10 million. IBM and Microsoft gave $5 million each. American Red Cross in Las Vegas said it got its largest corporate gift ever--$1 million, from the Las Vegas MGM Mirage--earmarked for New York City relief.

Citizens across the country pledged to donate their $300 tax refunds to assist victims of the attack--and in one case, to help pay for sky marshals on U.S. passenger jets.

New Jersey-based Commerce Bank on Thursday asked customers using coin-counting machines in its branches to give their spare change for relief efforts. Los Angeles radio personality Big Boy of Power 106 asked his listeners to contribute a dollar each.

An account to aid victims’ families was set up by the Giving Back Fund, an organization based in Los Angeles and Boston that manages charitable foundations for professional athletes and entertainers such as NBA star Charlie Ward and ‘N Sync’s Justin Timberlake.

Beer maker Anheuser-Busch donated $1 million to the Red Cross, along with 9,500 cases of canned water. Food, plus $100,000 in cash, was donated by H.J. Heinz.

The AT&T; Foundation contributed $1 million, set aside another $300,000 to match employee donations to relief efforts and donated $10 million in prepaid long-distance calling cards for use by relief workers in New York and Washington.

Michelin tire company donated $250,000 in free tires for emergency vehicles being used for rescue work and dispatched workers to New York to help change tires. It also pledged $1 million.

The 5,100-store Ace Hardware sent two tractor-trailers loaded with dust masks, safety goggles, lanterns, work gloves and batteries to rescue workers.

The National Assn. of Realtors earmarked $1 million to launch a fund that will help pay the mortgage and rents of families devastated by the terrorists’ attacks.

Smaller fund-raising efforts were popping up everywhere.

The operators of Gladstone’s Restaurant in Pacific Palisades said they will donate Sunday’s proceeds--probably about $65,000--to the New York Fire and Police Officers’ Disaster Fund. Part of the proceeds from Thursday night’s jazz concert at the Hollywood Bowl was designated to go to the Red Cross.

In Orange County, the Santa Ana-based Opera Pacific plans to donate the proceeds of its Sunday concert to the Red Cross as well.

Several police departments began collecting for funds created to help family members of police officers and firefighters who perished.

The Cypress Police Department began soliciting donations, as did the Ontario Police Department. California Highway Patrol officers, meanwhile, helped start a $30,000 relief fund with a ceremony Thursday in Sacramento.

“It’s a global response,” said Jeanette Brown, spokeswoman of New York City’s United Way. “People are just feeling helpless.”

How to contact some of the major funds accepting donations:

* Sept. 11th Fund

c/o United Way of New York City

2 Park Ave. NY, NY 10016

* American Red Cross

(800) HELP NOW (435-7669)

* United Way of Greater L.A.

(866) 2 HELP NY (243-5769)

https://www.unitedwayla.org

* Salvation Army

(800) SAL-ARMY (725-2769)

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Public Memorial

Services

Dozens of memorial services are scheduled today, which President Bush designated a national day of mourning. Here is a sampling:

Los Angeles County

* Temple Beth Am, 1039 S. La Cienega Blvd., Los Angeles, 7:30 a.m., 6 and 6:45 p.m. (310)-652-7353.

* St. Sophia’s Cathedral, 1324 Normandie Ave., Los Angeles, 9:30 a.m. (323) 737-0118.

* Glendale College, Plaza Vaquero, 1500 N. Verdugo Road, Glendale, 11:30 a.m. (818) 240-1000.

* First AME Church of Los Angeles, 2270 S. Harvard Blvd., Los Angeles, noon. (323) 730-9180.

* USC, in Bovard Auditorium, near center of campus, noon. (213) 740-6110.

* Oviatt Library, Cal State Northridge, 18111 Nordhoff St., Northridge, noon. (818) 677-1200.

* All Saints Episcopal Church, 132 N. Euclid Ave., Pasadena, noon. (626) 796-1172.

* Islamic Center of Southern California, 434 S. Vermont Ave., Los Angeles, 1 p.m. (213) 382-9200.

* West Valley Jewish Community Center, 22622 Vanowen St., West Hills, 1 p.m. (818) 464-3300)

* Wilshire Boulevard Temple, 3663 Wilshire Blvd., Los Angeles, 5:30 p.m. (213) 388-2401.

* Library Plaza, 217 Maclay Blvd., San Fernando. Community event, 5:30 p.m.; candlelight vigil, 8 p.m. (818) 838-0234.

* Stephen S. Wise Temple, 15500 Stephen S. Wise Drive, Bel Air, 6:15 p.m. (310) 476-8561.

* Episcopal Church of St. Andrew & St. Charles and Temple Beth Torah, 16651 Rinaldi St., Granada Hills, 7 p.m. (818) 366-7541.

* First Presbyterian Church of Hollywood, 1760 Gower St., Hollywood, 7 p.m. (323) 463-7161.

* St. Bernardine of Siena Catholic Church, 24410 Calvert St., Woodland Hills, 7 p.m. (818) 888-8200.

* Sinai Temple, 10400 Wilshire Blvd., Westwood, 7:30 p.m. (310) 474-1518.

* Valley Beth Shalom, 15739 Ventura Blvd., Encino, 8:15 p.m. (818) 788-6000.

Orange County

* Cottonwood Christian Center, 3311 Sausalito St., Los Alamitos, 11 a.m. (562) 493-4442.

* Saddleback Church, 1 Saddleback Parkway, Lake Forest, 11:30 a.m. (949) 609-8000.

* The Islamic Society of Orange County, 9752 13th St., Garden Grove, 8 a.m. (714) 432-0060.

* St. Andrew’s Presbyterian Church, 600 St. Andrews Road, Newport Beach, 5 p.m. (949) 631-2800.

Ventura County

* Simi Valley Presbyterian Church, 4832 Cochran St., Simi Valley, noon. (805) 526-5475.

* St. Columba’s Episcopal Church, 1251 Las Posas Road, Camarillo, 6 p.m. (805) 482-8831.

* Our Saviour’s Evangelical Lutheran Church, 905 Redwood St., Oxnard, 7:30 p.m. (805) 486-5383.