Responding to a call to action after a fire left a 10-year-old boy dead and 11 others injured just blocks from the main campus last month, Northeastern Illinois University’s Foundation, faculty, staff and students raised $6,080 for the families in need.
Northeastern President Sharon Hahs was joined by Vice President for Student Affairs Frank Ross and students Nicholas Martinez and Brenda Bedolla on Dec. 1 as they presented the check to not-for-profit Friends of Peterson. The ceremony took place at Peterson Elementary School, where Ans Khan, the boy who died in the fire, was a student.
“I’m personally blown away by the generosity of Northeastern,” said Friends of Peterson Vice President Catherine Korda, who also teaches child advocacy and women and gender studies at Northeastern.
The donation from Northeastern, which included a $2,500 matching gift from the NEIU Foundation, brings the total donations to about $30,000 since the fire, Korda said.
“It’s been overwhelming,” Korda said. “The generosity of different businesses and individuals and institutions, it’s been extraordinary.”
The money will be used to support the Khan family as well as other families who were displaced by the fire. Friends of Peterson continues to accept donations on its website.
