Romney urges prayers for those in Sandy's path

AVON LAKE, Ohio – As the East Coast began to experience the initial flooding from Hurricane Sandy on Monday, Mitt Romney appealed to his supporters to consider donating to the Red Cross and to keep those in the path of the storm in their "hearts and prayers."

"I don't think there's been a hurricane in Ohio in a long time, but there's been some hurricanes that have caused a lot of damage across this country," he said. "We've faced these kinds of challenges before …this looks like another time when we need to come together all across the country, even if you are in Ohio, and make sure we give of our support to the people who need it."

Romney told the crowd that his grass-roots campaign offices -- called Victory Centers -- in the state were collecting donations for victims of the storm.

The campaign announced the cancellation of most events with Romney and running mate Paul Ryan, as well as all events on Tuesday, out of respect for those impacted by the storm. Romney will still attend a rally in Davenport, Iowa, on Monday afternoon.

Romney spokesman Rick Gorka said that although the campaign rallies were canceled, it did not mean Romney would not have any public events but declined to give further details.