As the city nears the third anniversary of Hurricane Sandy, one Far Rockaway woman is finally back in her house. The cost of construction came from charities, including the Mayor's Fund to Advance New York City. NY1's Josh Robin filed the following report.

Mattie Eddy had a wall painted mud brown with the coarse touch of sand, a reminder of what the storm left behind in her home.

"There's a song that we sing, 'We've been through the storm and the rain, but we made it.' I made it," she said.

Made it, she has, with the help of charities like the Mayor's Fund to Advance New York City. The city's first lady, Chirlane McCray, is chairwoman of the Board of Directors.

"We have a lot of happy people. It's a good story," McCray said.

A story that, of course, started in the 2012 flood. It tore through the home Eddy bought 40 years ago, forcing her upstairs to a vacant apartment.

The city's Rapid Repairs program brought her heat and electricity. Why further renovation didn't come from the city's Build it Back program is a matter of dispute. The city says federal rules made her ineligible. Eddy insists she couldn't deal with the bureaucracy.

"The papers? Forget the papers, for now, and help me. Know that I'm on your list. I'm writing my name and saying, 'Just give me an open door,'" Eddy said.

Charity stepped in. It took longer than she wanted, but Wednesday, Eddy was showing off the glisten on her floor before accepting a pillow from the first lady.

The home is one of 501 aided in the program.

"We are so grateful to the tens of thousands of New Yorkers who donated to the Mayor's Fund, and our partners," McCray said.

In fact, those close to the program say more could be helped, but that program ran out of money. The Mayor's Fund raised almost four times as much in the year that included Sandy than in the fiscal year that ended June 30, 2014. As for Build it Back, of the nearly 10,000 applicants, roughly 5,000 have been reimbursed. Seventeen hundred have homes in construction, and about 1,100 homes have been completed.

As for the second-floor apartment that was Mattie Eddy's refuge it is now vacant. She says she's reserving it for someone else who may still be displaced by Sandy.