Long Beach , New York ( CNN ) -- Some New Yorkers mark the anniversary of the September 11 attacks by going to a memorial service or observing a moment of silence . For the past 10 years , Jeff Parness has been helping others . Every September , Parness brings hundreds of volunteers from New York to help another disaster-stricken community in the United States . `` It was our way of saying , you know , New Yorkers will never forget what people from around the country and the world did for us in our time of need after 9/11 , '' said Parness , a 2011 CNN Hero . `` So that 's how the mission started . It was just to pay forward the kindness that we experienced . '' Over the past decade , Parness ' nonprofit , New York Says Thank You , has assisted victims of wildfires in San Diego , tornadoes in the Midwest and Hurricane Katrina in Louisiana . Many of those who receive help are so inspired that they travel across the country the next year -- often at their own expense -- to volunteer with Parness ' group and help someone else . The result is a unique disaster-response organization . `` All of our volunteers are survivors . They survived , whether it was 9/11 or Katrina or tornadoes . So they all share that common bond , '' said Parness , who quit his job as a venture capitalist to work on his nonprofit full-time . This year , Parness ' mission has come full circle . Last weekend , more than 300 volunteers -- at least half of whom were from outside the New York area -- helped rebuild 13 homes damaged by Superstorm Sandy in October . For Parness , a native New Yorker , the work carried extra significance . Triple-amputee veteran gets 'smart ' home on September 11 . `` Being able to travel to other disaster sites and help people is one thing . When it happens in your own backyard , you go into shock , '' he said . `` I woke up and realized this was ( like ) Hurricane Katrina . '' He pointed out around 650,000 families in New York and New Jersey had damaged or destroyed homes . More than 2,000 members of New York City 's police and fire departments were severely impacted by the storm . And because first responders are a core part of his group 's volunteer base , Parness decided to help them . With the support of corporations , foundations and private donors , his group is planning to rebuild 200 homes in all for active-duty first responders in the New York area . Police officer Charlie Sadler and his wife , Gina , had been married for less than three months when Sandy destroyed their Long Beach home . `` The damage to our home ... sea foam , seaweed , shells and starfish , '' Charlie Sadler said , `` there 's no way to understand the sheer devastation that was in the house . The mold , the breathing problems ... our home was completely unlivable . '' All of the couple 's wedding gifts were under water as well . Ultimately , the house had to be razed , and they did n't have the resources to rebuild . Their challenges intensified when Gina had a cancer scare in the spring . But on the day of her exploratory surgery , they got the news that Parness ' group would rebuild their home . `` We could n't believe it , '' Charlie Sadler said . `` From sitting in that hospital room and wondering what was going to happen ... to building a brand new home from the ground up . `` It 's a feeling of elation . It was unbelievable . '' More than 100 volunteers worked on the Sadlers ' home last weekend , including Mark Ford , who came from Slidell , Louisiana , to lend a hand . Ford , a former police officer , lost his home in Katrina . This is his third volunteer trip with Parness ' group . `` ( After the storm ) , I had a lot of people help me . The Sadlers needed our help , and so here we are , `` Ford said . `` Being here gives the Sadlers the confidence to know that they 're not alone in this adventure . '' For Parness , bringing people together is the most important part of his work . `` We want to lift up spirits and remember not just the tragedy of ( 9/11 ) , but also the humanity of 9/12 . `` We tell people it 's never about the buildings . It 's always about the people . At the end of the day , it 's about giving them hope . '' Note lets family know 9/11 victim went down fighting . CNN 's Marissa Calhoun contributed to this report .
Every September , CNN Hero Jeff Parness organizes help for a disaster-stricken community . The idea is to spread the kind of help that New York received after the 9/11 attacks . Many of the volunteers have been helped in the past and want to `` pay it forward ''