After fires devastated Sayville businesses on Oct. 25, the community is rallying to offer their support.
John Neely
A fire late last week devastated several small businesses and shops in downtown Sayville, leaving them to try to recover in the aftermath.
Sayville firefighters responded to find flames shooting from the roof of a vacant Main Street storefront previously home to Cafe Joelle, the Press previously reported. The Greater Sayville Chamber of Commerce has begun fundraising efforts to support them, with all of the contributions going directly to the business owners to help them on the road to rebuilding. According to the chamber of commerce website, the businesses — Crushed Olive, Paper Doll Vintage, former location of Cafe Joelle, Boris Barber Shop, Sayville Running Company, and Hammer & Stain — in addition to the upstairs counseling office space of Adrian Fields, have all been affected.
“Now, as the holiday season approaches—a critical time for these businesses—they need our community’s support more than ever to help them recover and endure through the winter months,” wrote Eileen Tyznar, the immediate past president of Sayville’s chamber of commerce, who is rallying the community together to support the businesses. “In the spirit of giving, please consider making a donation.”
Paper Dolls Vintage Boutique saw some of the worst damage, but in a Facebook post, the owner, Dominique Maciejka wrote that Long Island native and renowned fashion designer Michael Kors paid the boutique a visit.
“Michael Kors came by and cried with me,” the post said, which went on to explain how despite his rapport, the designer has been a supporter of the business for years. A GoFundMe for the boutique’s rebuilding has been launched, and as of Tuesday with 524 donations, has raised $32,963. The goal is to raise $500,000.
On Tuesday, Maciejka also posted that the boutique is solidifying a pop-up store location for customers to shop at during the holiday season.
“We are so unbelievably grateful for the outpouring of messages about helping us out,” she wrote on GoFundMe. “We are still accepting vintage donations and used store displays to get us back on our feet and fill out the space. We have a drop off point at our Patchogue location at Paper Doll Curiosity Shoppe.” That store is open from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. all days except Mondays, according to the update on the GoFundMe.
In a post on Facebook, Sayville Running Company said its Sayville location is closed for the time being due to damage from the fire. Smithtown Running Company is still operating as normal, according to the post, along with the online shop.
“Most importantly we are all safe despite the considerable water and smoke damage,” the post said. “We are extremely grateful for the tremendous efforts of the first responders as well as the support from our community.”
The comments on the post were evident of a sense of community. Many offered words of solace, and some even offered to provide support when rebuilding efforts began.
The Crushed Olive also took to Facebook to share about the devastation. In a post it thanked customers for their support and asked them to, “Please bear with us as we assess the damage to our store and figure out how to move forward,” adding that it’s “praying for our neighbors as they do the same.”
Efforts to clean up at the Sayville studio of Hammer & Stain have begun as well, and the business, known for its craft workshops and events, said in a post on Instagram that it isn’t planning to stop. The post encouraged customers to continue to register for workshops and said it is “working on plans and partnerships.”
In addition to the ability to purchase gift cards, the business does offer off site events for 15 or more people, which it, in the post, encouraged customers to engage with.
“Continue interacting with our social media and share with your friends,” the post said. “Don’t let us become irrelevant while the studio is quieter.”
In the post, Hammer & Stain was adamant that it wasn’t closing down.
“We have damage, it may not be visible as you walk by. We have lost contents, displays and interior structure of half the studio,” the post said. “It could have been worse so we are counting our blessings.”
The business reminded its followers that it was one of several businesses directly affected by the fire, and encouraged them to support them all.
“Every single one has a loss of sorts and disruption to business as we enter the holiday season,” the post said.
At this time, it is unclear what damage Boris’ Barber Shop is dealing with, but online it does say the business is temporarily closed. There’s no word on the counseling office space.
