With an abundance of donations to fi re
victims, organizers urge monetary support
BY ALIYA SCHNEIDER
Too much too soon!
People eager to help residents
impacted by the fi re Sunday
at the Twin Parks North
West apartment complex, 333
E. 181 St., accumulated heaping
piles of donations on Monday
in an outpouring of support
that stretched far beyond
the Bronx’s geographic boundaries.
Organizers have urged people
to stop donating items, and
donate fi nancially instead.
“We’re just trying to process
everyone’s needs,” State
Sen. Gustavo Rivera told
Bronx Community Board 5
Monday night, emphasizing
that no more physical donations
are needed.
Hundreds of thousands of
dollars have also been raised
for the victims over the course
of just a couple of days.
The Red Cross provided
emergency housing in local
Bronx hotels to 22 families that
consisted of 56 adults and 25
children Sunday night, which
rose to 34 families consisting
of 124 people Monday night,
Red Cross spokesman Michael
de Vulpillieres told the Bronx
Times. Other residents of the
118-unit building found lodging
through family, friends
and community support.
While all residents were displaced
Sunday, fl oors 12 and up
were permitted to return Monday,
according to Vulpillieres.
Councilman Oswald Feliz,
whose district includes the
Fordham Heights neighborhood
where the fi re occured,
told the Bronx Times Tuesday
morning that families will
continue to move back home
Tuesday and Wednesday. The
next step is assessing the extent
of the property damage
and seeing what needs to be
replaced.
He said people from all
over New York state, and even
as far as Baltimore, have offered
support.
“We are so privileged and
lucky to have so many people
willing to help some of our
most vulnerable communities
in times of tragedy,” Feliz
said. “We received a lot of
clothing, a lot of food — more
than we can eat — which is a
great thing.”
Councilwoman Pierina
Sanchez, who represents the
district next door, said an excess
of perishables were passed
on to other community organizations
who could consume
them in time.
BRONX TIMES REPORTER, J 10 JAN. 14-20, 2022 BTR
“We’ve been overwhelmed
at many different places with
physical goods donations,” she
told the Bronx Times Monday
evening. “We’re so thankful
and it’s so beautifully refl ective
of the solidarity that is outpouring
from different parts of
the city and the Bronx.”
Sanchez said the hefty
amount of physical donations
from Monday poses a “logistical
challenge.” Meanwhile, fi -
nancial donations are easier
to disseminate and allow families
to self-determine their
needs.
East 181st Street’s Gambian
Youth Organization collected
items Monday — receiving so
many donations they had to
close their doors to more —
and also created a GoFundMe
for fi nancial donations.
As of Monday morning, the
organization raised $328,173
across 6,500 donations. By the
evening, it reached more than
$600,000. At 11 a.m. Tuesday,
the funds exceeded $800,000.
The goal was initially set at
$200,000.
The New York City Mayor’s
Fund to Advance New York
City also created a fund for impacted
residents, but on Tuesday
the mayor’s offi ce declined
to share how much the fund
had raised.
The Bronx Community
Foundation is also collecting
monetary donations for affected
families through Jan.
17; the Salvation Army New
York Division set up a Bronx
Fire Relief Fund; and FoodtoEat
founder Deepti Sharma
raised $6,865 on a separate Go-
FundMe for those impacted by
the fi re, as of 11:30 a.m. Tuesday.
On Monday, drop-off locations
for donations were set up
through the Bronx Democratic
Party at state Assemblywoman
Yudelka Tapia’s Jerome Avenue
offi ce, Rivera’s Grand Concourse
offi ce and Feliz’s East
Fordham Road offi ce.
The Democrats’ sites were
planning to accept items
throughout the week, but after
an abundance of donations
on Monday, the Red Cross said
they no longer need physical
donations, so the sites will
only accept gift cards and
monetary donations for the duration
of the week.
The city’s Offi ce of Emergency
Management set up
shop at Monroe College’s Ustin
Hall on Jerome Avenue, and is
continuing to offer resources
to families impacted. The college
site also accepted drop-off
donations Monday.
People impacted by the fi re
receiving emergency services
were able to walk down the
hall Monday to directly pick
out dropped-off items, and do-
Volunteers sort through clothing donations on Monday, Jan. 10, at the Gambian Youth Center, 214 E. 181 St.
Photos Adrian Childress
Volunteers sort donations for Bronixtes impacted by the fi re at Ustin Hall at Monroe College.
Members of Masbia Soup Kitchen hand out hot food outside of the Masjib-Ur-Rahman mosque for victims of
the fi re and volunteers gathering donations on Monday, Jan. 10.