Local Residents Pitch in to Help Mahopac Fire Victims
Mahopac resident Denise Dundrea is a popular person in town.
She is accommodating to those who come to the Fulmer Road Elementary School where she works at the front desk, greeting visitors with a smile.
She is also helpful to the customers she works with at the local Stop & Shop.
Dundrea’s daughter, Corrin, is also a familiar presence at the school, working with the physical education teachers and recently serving as volunteer as she is in the process of earning her degree from SUNY Cortland.
Now, it is the Dundrea family that needs help.
A devastating fire destroyed the Dundrea family’s single family home on Jan. 25. It took more than 50 firefighters to put out the fast moving blaze, but they could not save the house. The family escaped without serious injury but lost everything in the fire.
The day after the devastating fire a group of local residents mobilized to assist the Dundrea family A team being led by Christine Russo-Mayer and including the efforts of many others, including members of the school’s parent-teacher organization and gym teacher Mimi Murphy, are trying to raise $10,000 for the family via the GiveForward website.
In addition to providing donations, the Dundrea family can be contacted through the GiveForward site, Russo- Mayer noted last week. The Dundreas are temporarily living in Yorktown
Though the fund raising began only a few days ago, it has taken off. As of the early evening on Friday, $7,544 has already been donated.
Denise Dundrea is a popular figure in Mahopac both at the elementary school and Stop & Shop where “she’s always very friendly” and helpful, Russo-Mayer said.
The fundraising drive is a “show of support” for the family, Russo-Mayer said.
Russo-Mayer said she understood
the charitable effort is not the entire answer to the financial difficulties of the Dundrea family, but it is a way to provide some needed assistance. “It’s not going to buy a house, but it will help them,” Russo-Mayer said. “They’re such a great family.”
To contribute to the Dundrea family, visit https://www.giveforward.com/ fundraiser/t2h7/denise-dundrea-and- family-fire-recovery-fund.
