The Oneida Daily Dispatch (Oneida, NY)
Couple donates to fire department
VERONA, N.Y. >> Inmemory of their son, William and Mary Alessi, of Verona, donated $2,000 to theVerona Fire Department for the purchase of a new defibrillator.
WilliamAlessi Jr. passed away in 1987. Mary described her son as a very caring person who always helped others. When he was 16-years-old, William Alessi Jr. saved a woman’s life when her car went off the road and he helped her get out of it. He earned a merit for it through the Boy Scouts, receiving an Eagle Scout dedication in 1971.
WilliamandMary donated the money to the Verona Fire Department for a new defibrillator, as the departmentwas in need to replace their old one.
“The Alessi’s have been very supportive of us over the years. They support all of our dinners and any event we have,” Fire Chief Mark Nell said. “Mary came to us and said she’d like to do something and askedwhatwe needed. And we were in the market for a new AED.”
The new defibrillator is more modern and updated than their current one, Nell said.
William and Mary Alessi said they hope that more Verona residents who can donate will donate to the Verona Fire Department to help them get the necessary equipment to save lives.
Nell said the Verona Fire Department has been working to try and obtain grants and additional funding for self-contained
breathing apparatus.
“Ours are currently going to expire next year,” Nell said. “And obviously, to go into a burning, you need an air pack.”
Over the last severalyears, Nell said the department has tried for grants but hasn’t been successful.
Anyone looking to help the Verona Fire Department can do so by volunteering or making a monetary donation.
To learn more about the Verona Fire Department or how to help, visit http://veronafire.org/