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By Colin Mixson
Brooklyn Daily
Talk about some chicken soup for the soul!
Anatolian Gyro — a Sheepshead Bay Road staple — is still bouncing back from Hurricane Sandy, but workers now have a new mission: feeding hungry Gerritsen Beach residents left devastated following the Oct. 28 super storm.
Ever since Hurricane Sandy left the borough, workers have joined the growing group of neighbors helping neighbors by trucking gallons of hot lentil and chicken soup and fresh bread to the nearby neighborhood — which Anatolian Gyro owner Metin Turan has adopted.
“One hand washes the other, and both hands wash the face,” said Turan. “Many of these people are my clients. They need help and I want to give something back.”
Turan decided to help out after watching footage of a Federal Emergency Management Agency meeting at Resurrection Church on Gerritsen Avenue, where more than 1,000 teary-eyed residents turned out to hear what the government can do to help them. The footage showed residents sleeping in buses just to keep warm.
“I’m used to seeing this on TV, not in reality,” Turan said. “I’ve been here 25 years and I’ve never seen anything like this.”
Anatolian Gyro was hardly spared from Sandy’s wrath: Turan suffered about $25,000 worth of property damage.
“We had three-feet of water on the ground floor, and the basement was filled,” Turan explained. “It took 12 people three days to get everything cleaned up.”
The restaurant lost power for the second time during last week’s nor’easter — forcing Turan and his employees to serve lamb and chicken gyros by candlelight, Turan said.
Reach reporter Colin MIxson at cmixson@cnglocal.com or by calling (718) 260-4514.