Large prayer services were held in the BAPS Swaminarayan Temple, Edison on 4th Feb, 2001. After the presentation of the relief work done by BAPS volunteers, the Mayor of Edison Hon. Mr. George Spadaro, said that, "As a Mayor I know what happens in even a small disaster. I can understand how impossible it is to cope up with a disaster of this magnitude. Our help is needed not only now but in the months to come."
US Senator Hon. Robert G. Torricelli addressed the assembly. He said, " We as American citizens have a duty to do whatever we can to mend the wounds of countless who have been affected by this quake. At moments like this, when incredible loss of life has happened, people from all faiths and cultures reach out for relief aid. The challenge is now, more next month and more so the next year. Because the relief agencies will leave one by one and that's when we still have to be working for this cause. Sometimes when people migrate they tend to forget the place where they came from. I am happy that BAPS and the Indian community has not forgotten their beloved ones back there."
At the end prayers were conducted in the traditional Hindu tradition of chanting the holy name. The Mayor of South Brunswick Hon. Mrs. Debrah Johnson, Mayor of Franklin Hon. Mr. Chivakula, and other leaders joined in prayers.
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