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Two days after a massive four-alarm fire gutted 201 West 107th Street — displacing more than two dozen households and forcing a full vacate order — the scope of the disaster is coming into sharper focus. Entire lives were upended in minutes, from longtime tenants who had called the six-story rental building home for decades to students who had only recently moved in.
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As families navigate temporary housing, sift through what little can be salvaged, and confront the reality that the building may be indefinitely uninhabitable, community-led fundraising efforts have begun to multiply. Four GoFundMe campaigns have now been launched for different residents, each illustrating a distinct piece of the building’s story and the people who lived there (click each headline to contribute).A Documentarian and His Daughter
The first campaign, which ILTUWS reported on earlier this week, has since gained enormous momentum — raising more than $31,000 of a $35,000 goal for Geoff and his nine-year-old daughter, Alix.
In their family’s words, Geoff — “an award-winning documentary filmmaker” — lost not only all physical possessions, but his “life’s work — all of his films and hard drives.”
Their campaign notes that they will likely be unable to return for “around two years,” and any funds raised beyond their needs will be shared with neighbors also affected.
A Writer and His Teenage Daughter
Another campaign tells the story of Louis Venosta, a longtime resident, award-winning writer and director, and mentor to young neighborhood creatives. His home — and decades’ worth of archives, notebooks, and collected art — was destroyed. His teenage daughter, Sasha, is now trying to maintain stability through her junior year of high school as they search for a new permanent place to live.
Organizer Xavier Venosta writes that while possessions can be replaced, “the ability to be together” and safe is what they are fighting to preserve.
So far, the family has raised nearly $6,000 of a $47,000 goal.
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A Grandmother and Multi-Generational HouseholdA third fundraiser highlights the experience of a family that escaped with only pajamas, coats, and purses after awakening to frantic banging on their door.
Ivon, who created the campaign, describes watching a “horrific 4-alarm fire destroy the home my grandmother has lived in for 45 years.” The family does not know whether the building can be restored — and has been warned that water damage may render even unburned belongings unsalvageable.
Beyond supporting her grandmother, Ivon is raising funds for other longtime residents who are not fluent in English or tech-savvy enough to seek aid on their own.
This campaign has raised about $1,600 of a $7,500 goal.
The fourth campaign centers on a group of full-time students whose fourth-floor apartment sat just beneath where the fire erupted. They had only moved in last fall.
According to the organizer, most of their possessions — clothing, furniture, appliances — are likely unsalvageable due to asbestos and mold contamination. Currently living in Red Cross-provided lodging, they are trying to replace essentials and secure new housing while continuing their studies.
The campaign has raised about $5,000 of a $6,500 goal.
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A Building Filled With StoriesWhat’s striking about these fundraisers is how clearly they illustrate the breadth of who lived inside 201 West 107th Street: a grandmother who spent nearly half a century there; artists and storytellers with decades of work stored on hard drives and in notebooks; students pursuing degrees; neighbors raising children; families rooted in the community for generations.
According to the Red Cross, 25 households and 46 individuals have now registered for emergency assistance. Three residents and three firefighters suffered minor injuries. As ILTUWS reported earlier, the FDNY established a collapse zone and the Department of Buildings issued a full vacate order Tuesday night. Fire Marshals’ work to determine the cause of the blaze remains ongoing.
While Ascension Roman Catholic Church’s emergency reception center has since closed, donation drives and aid efforts continue — both from institutions and from neighbors who, as one resident told ABC News, step in because “when everything else falls apart, all we really have is each other.”
As the building’s future remains uncertain and some families face the possibility of never returning home, these campaigns have become one of the most immediate ways for New Yorkers to help. And with winter setting in and holiday expenses mounting, organizers say that even small contributions — or simply sharing the links — can make a meaningful difference.
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