The unexpected death of a Colonie man has rallied friends, and even a local celebrity, to help out the family he left behind in ways they would have never imagined.
On Father’s Day, June 20, Donnie Anderson, 36, a local firefighter with the Midway Fire Department, died suddenly after falling down the stairs in his home and hitting his head on the concrete floor.
When friends and co-workers Jake Forst and Rob Sammons, who is the chief of the Midway Fire Department, heard the news of Donnie’s death, they organized a fundraiser in his honor entitled Rock to Remember in order to raise money to help out Donnie’s wife of 15 years, Caryn, and his two children Bret, 10, and Kierstin, 4.
`He was a big-time musician, he was heavy into the drums,` Forst said. `Every time you’d see Donnie he was just playing air drums.`
The benefit, which will take place Saturday, Aug. 21, at noon at the Midway Fire Department, will feature performances from local bands such as British Steel, King Friday, Do Not Attempt and Untaymed, which Donnie used to record drums for. For the kids, there will be a magician, face painting, balloon animals, a bouncy bounce and a dunk tank.
Forst said the benefit features everything Donnie would have loved.
`If there was anything he wanted, it was music and beer,` he said. `That was his life.`
The money will go toward helping out the Anderson family, Forst said. Kiersten suffers from a severe case of scoliosis and must wear a half cast from her waist to her shoulder and be frequently driven out to Rochester Children’s Hospital for treatments.
There were also several things with the family’s house that needed to be fixed, one of them being a leaking roof, missing shingles and windows broken with only a plastic sheet covering them.
Forst enlisted the help of a high school friend, Justin Haas, owner of Orange Roofing, to help with fixing the roof. Haas was willing to do the roof for free, all he requested was Sammons and Forst provide the materials. Another local firefighter who works at Allied Building Supplies was able to get the company to donate the materials to help build the roof.
On July 30, Haas was able to repair the roof.
`I took us a day,` he said. `She’s going to benefit from this roof for 30 years.`
Haas had recently lost his father, so he said he understood what the family was going through and wanted to help out.
To get funding for the materials, Sammons and Forst got an unexpected call from friends at the Farmer Boy Diner on Central Avenue saying car dealership owner Billy Fuccillo wanted to help after he saw a flier for the fundraiser hanging in the diner.
`I walked into the diner down there and Cynthia [the hostess], I saw her selling T-shirts and I go, ‘Cyn, what are you doing?’` Fuccillo said. `The two guys came over, and I said, ‘Show me the house.’ It did need a roof, but it also needed a lot more.`
Fuccillo hired a contractor to get an estimate on how much it would cost to get new siding, a new porch and new doors. He even tried to get into the house to see what the interior looked like.
`I just wanted to see if there was anything that stuck out,` he said. `I wouldn’t be a good thief.`
Fuccillo, Sammons and Forst all agree that the Anderson children are the most important thing and that they will do anything to help them out.
`It’s very important to me that at the end of the day, when I put my head on the pillow, in my heart I believe I did the right thing for everybody,` Fuccillo said. `I don’t know the lady, but I think I’m doing the right thing to help her and other people in the community, and that’s very satisfying to me.`
Sammons said the Fuccillo is donating around $30,000 to the effort. The dealership owner has also donated shelters for foster children and has donated a 2010 Chevy Malibu the ALS Foundation.
`The more people see somebody like myself step to the plate, it’s like a snowball effect,` he said. `I think it’s important to be a leader and to show community service. And when you do that I think other people will follow your lead.`
`The whole thing is a really bad situation that’s brought so much positive out of it,` Sammons said. `Caryn’s suffered a huge loss in her life, but now, because of this she’s going to have something really good come of it.`
Forst said he wants people to understand that there is more than just the house that needs help.
`We still do need the money because she’s got a lot of other things that need to be done,` he said, adding that Caryn Anderson has racked up the mileage on her car from driving to Rochester every three months. `Even though the house is paid for, I still want to get as much as I can for her because she has a long road ahead of her. They had nothing financially planned. [Donnie] had no life insurance.`
Sammons also said that her family lost a $50,000 plus yearly income through Donnie’s death, as well as the health insurance he received through the state.
Still, Caryn said she is grateful for all the help she has received and added it is great to see a community of Donnie’s friends come together for his family.
`I’m floored,` she said. `It’s just amazing to see how much his friends cared for him.`
The fundraiser will be held on Saturday, Aug. 21, at noon. at the Midway Fire Department on 1956 Central Ave. Tickets can be purchased at the door for $10 and children under 12 get in for free.
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