The outpouring of support for the Soumare and Magassa families continues to flow from the city of New York.

On April 17, at the Ladder 49, Engine 68 firehouse on Ogden Avenue, representatives of the families joined a crowd that included New York Daily News Editor-in-Chief Martin Dunn, Bronx Borough President Adolfo Carrión, officials from the city fire and police departments, and students from P.S. 89 on Mace Avenue.

The occasion was the presentation to the families of a check for $86,263 from the Daily News, which established the Mali Family Fund after the March 7 fire on Woodycrest Avenue claimed the lives of nine children and one adult from the two families; the News gave an initial donation of $5000, and the remainder came from readers.

The P.S. 89 students— who were joined at the ceremony by their teacher, Ms. Pagano, assistant principal Karen Shapiro, and parent coordinator Fran Palmieri—  contributed $250 they had raised through a bake sale. As a sign of gratitude, the fire department presented the children with “FDNY” hats at the end of the press conference.

Carrión thanked everyone who donated to the fund for their support of the families, and said the tragedy of March 7 was still affecting the U.S. in a profound way. The borough president was one of several speakers to mention the massive school shooting at Virginia Tech that had occurred the previous day.

“It has gripped the entire American family, just as this [the fire] has” Carrión said. “It is entirely different ,but it has gripped us.”

Cheiek Fidi Diarra, the U.N. Ambassador to Mali, thanked local elected officials, various city and state agencies, and the P.S. 86 students for their continued spiritual and monetary support. “The gesture is more important than what’s been collected, actually,” Diarra said.

The event was organized by Jennifer Mauer, Director of Communications at the Daily News, and Sid Dinsay, a spokesman for the publication’s PR firm, Dan Klores Communications.

Mauer said she was really impressed by the initiative of the students. “These kids were fantastic,” Mauer said. “Just the fact that they took it upon themselves to show their support.”

Sheik Moussa Drammeh of the Islamic Cultural Center, a spokesperson for the Soumare and Magassa families, said after the event that the tragedy had inspired unity.
“As a human being, we are all interconnected,” Drammeh said. “Sometimes, we focus on the minor things, like culture, religion, nationality. But a tragedy like this removes those barriers.”