The Village of Schoharie got a shout-out-and hopefully some help-from Late Night Show pal David Letterman Monday.
It was November 2002 that literally half of Schoharie traveled to New York City on 10 chartered busses for a good-natured skewering at the hands of Mr. Letterman.
Mayor John Borst read that night's Top 10 list-one peppered with "inside" references to the Carrot Barn, the Glass Bar, Schoharie Hardware, and the Alley Cat.
All of those businesses were hit hard by Hurricane Irene as were hundreds of homes; Monday, Mr. Letterman asked Late Night Viewers for their help.
Ever the wit, Mr. Letterman started out by poking fun at New York City's sigh of relief when Irene raced right by.
"Mostly because we were just interested in our own welfare...All we really got was a good soaking," he said.
But within a couple of days, the damage to Upstate New York and Vermont became evident; a couple of weeks later Late Night heard from still-Mayor Borst and Assemblyman Pete Lopez, Mr. Letterman said.
"Like so many other small upstate communities...Schoh-arie endured a great deal of damage," he said. "$30 million in damages...tiny, tiny town...Listen to this: 80 percent of the village was under four to eight feet of water...
"Now listen to this: Relief from insurance and FEMA will not come close to covering the damages. And Schoharie, that wonderful little town...is in desperate need of some kind of assistance as winter approaches."
Though other communities were equally hard hit by Irene, Mr. Letterman said Late Night continues to have a "special connection with this town."
As he talked, a list of places viewers can donate to appear on the TV screen.
That same list is available at CBS.com/late_night/late_show/.
Listed are:
• The Schoharie Recovry Fund, PO Box 111, Schoharie, NY 12157.
• Schoharie County Community Action Program, sccapinc.org.
• Habitat for Humanity, habitat.org.
Mr. Letterman's Schoharie segment starts about 10 minutes in to Monday's show and runs about 5 minutes
"We wish we could do something for every-body...Good luck to the folks in Schoharie, New York," he added.