We Love U Foundation volunteers gather to clean up Philly plane crash site
Volunteers gather to clean up Philly plane crash site
Volunteers with the We Love U Foundation gathered in Northeast Philly Sunday to help clean up the scene where a medical transport plane crashed on January 31.
PHILADELPHIA - A show of support emerged for a Northeast Philly neighborhood three weeks after it was rocked by a deadly plane crash.
The volunteers wanted to let the people around the crash site know they have not been forgotten.
What we know:
"We love you, we love you," echoed through the streets of Northeast Philadelphia Sunday, which were filled with love as more than 200 volunteers from the We Love U Foundation took to the streets to pick up trash.
Charnett Moffett traveled all the way from Harrisburg for this special cleanup.
"We are one family, one global village, and no one should ever feel alone, so when tragedy strikes, there has to be the situation where people come together," Moffett said.
That’s why the focus of the Northeast Philadelphia cleanup was in the neighborhoods right off of Cottman Avenue, where on January 31, this community suffered the tragic plane crash that killed six people on board and one person on the ground.
What they're saying:
The tragedy hit close to home for many cleaning up, including former Northeast resident Isaiah Dempsey.
"I was really just astonished, very shocked. I didn’t think something like that could happen, especially in my backyard, my own neighborhood," Dempsey said.
For David Pagan, he brought along his son Dean to help beautify the neighborhood he grew up in and where he still has family living.
"It really touched home for me, and I’m really glad that we are able to bring comfort to the people by just picking up a little bit of trash, showing that there are other people willing to help to bring hope to others' lives as well," Pagan said.
"We’ve come to take the trash as well as all the grief, pain, and suffering of everyone here and basically throw it out and allow them to have joy, allow them to have hope that we can move on from a disaster like this," said Dean Pagan.
And that’s exactly what the foundation says it does, replaces that pain and grief with a loving spirit.
"Together we are making a change, together we are making a difference, so when we all are united on those goals, that’s when you see true love, and that’s when I think humanity is best at that moment," a volunteer said.