Fish-a-Thon Aims to Save Bait and Tackle Shop

For Marc Palazzolo, owner of Alex's Inlet Bait and Tackle in Point Pleasant Beach, the government's promise to help Sandy-ravaged businesses is just a fish tale.

So he's relying on his friends and customers to help him keep his

Five months later, Palazzolo, like so many other business owners at the Jersey Shore, is still struggling to open for good. Last week, he was finally operating on a limited basis, but the "open" sign on the door threatens to drop off the nail, like a fish wriggling off a hook.

"I thought we would need $15,000 to $20,000 to clean out and re-open," Palazzolo said on Tuesday afternoon. "But we're close to $30,000 already and I still need to replenish a lot of inventory."

He has used every penny he could scrape together and maxed out every credit card to come this far.

Now Palazzolo is counting on a Fish-a-Thon fundraiser this week to help keep his shop on the Manasquan Inlet open. The event runs from 8 a.m. Thursday until 8 a.m. Friday. Guests can buy bait and tackle and leave donations if they wish. (See the Facebook event page.) He is hoping to raise $25,000.

"That would bring us back to Oct. 28," he said, marking the day before Sandy struck.

The funds are sorely needed since he only received about $3,996 in state Disaster Unemployment Assistance, in payments of about $333 per week for 12 weeks (rather than the 26 weeks he had thought he was entitled to). He hasn't seen one of those checks since mid-March.

Palazzolo was turned down for an SBA loan and is appealing, but doesn't expect to ever see that money either. He got nothing from insurance because he had not been able to afford a flood insurance policy.

As Lt. Gov. Kim Guadagno recently visited businesses that have re-opened in Point Beach and Bay Head, she said repeatedly that any business having trouble cutting through red tape or getting enough assistance should call Donald Newman, manager of the Call Center and Small Business Advocate for the NJ Business Action Center, or email her.

"I tried that," Palazzolo said. "I never heard back from them."

But he has gotten help from friends and loyal customers. One local resident gave him a spare freezer. He has even gotten checks from strangers around the U.S., thanks to his close friend, Father Stepanos Doudoukjian of St. Peter Armenian Church, Watervliet, NY, near Albany.

Doudoukjian has been spreading the word far and wide about his friend's financial needs, is running the fish-a-thon and accepting donations for Palazzolo at his church address (see bottom of story and event flier as attached PDF).

Doudoukjian's father used to take him to the inlet wall to fish when he was little, now he takes his own 11-year-old son.

"If it wasn't for Father Stepanos, I would have walked away in December or January," Palazzolo said. "Friends and customers have really stepped up, like nothing I have ever seen before in my lifetime, except maybe for Sept. 11th. It's really restored my faith in people. It gives me the incentive to want to come back.

"It's about that bond with people, it's a labor of love," Palazzolo said.

As for the fish-a-thon, Palazzolo will be serving coffee, doughnuts and danishes and will be selling bait, tackle and Sandy-themed Point Pleasant Beach T-shirts and sweatshirts.

"I would have liked to have had burgers and hot dogs cooking on the grill, but my barbecue is somewhere out in the Atlantic Ocean," he said, laughing.

Anyone interested in contributing can make checks payable to Marc Palazzolo and mail them to 839 Pearse Road, Niskayuna, NY 12309.