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It's unusual for a local parish to earmark a special collection for specific parishioners. But Our Lady of Mount Carmel parish in Schenectady took that step last weekend for a family devastated by a house fire on Bradley Street late last month.

Four members of the family - an elderly couple, their adult daughter and their adult son, who has autism - escaped the April 21 fire unscathed with the help of fire crews and neighbors, according to news reports. (Names have been withheld for privacy.)

Three of the family's cats perished. Two cats, a dog and a cockatoo survived. Both the husband and wife had already been dealing with serious illness and injury over the past year, so the fire was an additional blow.

The couple and their daughter stayed in a motel with no kitchen until they found a place to rent. Their son returned to a group home.

"We're living in a suitcase," the senior man said. "I'm still in shock. I don't know what the heck happened."

The likely cause of the fire was a portable heater, according to reports. It is still unclear whether the home will be habitable.

"Their house was virtually destroyed," reported Rev. Robert Hohenstein, pastor of Our Lady of Mount Carmel.

The collection "is an exception because of the family's exceptional problems," he said, describing a year marked by hospitalizations for both members of the couple. The senior woman received medical care in the motel room.

The parish collection was presented in OLMC's bulletin "as a way to show our loving concern for this beautiful family in their hour of need." It raised $3,669 at last count. Parish men's, women's and seniors' societies also plan to donate to the family.

"If somebody gives a helping hand, we appreciate it," the senior man told The Evangelist. "We're going day by day."[[In-content Ad]]

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