Firefighters To Host Collection Effort For Pershing Road Children

The and the local fire union, International Association of Firefighters Local 1950, will now be accepting donations for three children, ages 3, 5, and 15, who are now under the care of family following a house fire and discovery of a murder at 16 Pershing Road on Jan. 22.

Donations can be dropped off at Johnston Fire Headquarters, 1520 Atwood Ave. Phone: (401) 351-1600.

Click here for the Local 1950 website and more infromation on the collection drive.

Donald K. Grenslit, 52, is currently being held without bail at the Adult Correctional Institutions after reportedly admitting to killing the childrens' mother, Stacie Dorego, and attempting to burn her remains.

Firefighters and police officers responded to the home on Sunday night after reports of a house fire and discovered the children in an upstairs bedroom.

"The kids left with whatever clothes they had on their backs, and I'm sure that's about all they have," fire union President Keith Calci explained during a phone interview this morning.

Family members of the children also posted a note on the union's website, which read, in part: "Out of this unfathomable tragedy have emerged angels. Happily, we have our niece and nephew with us; however we cannot even begin to imagine what all their needs will be. What we do know is that the support and gifts you are offering will make a difference."

Calci said that gift cards to supermarkets and stores like Wal-Mart and Target are needed the most; family members are currently working on setting up bank accounts for cash donations, he added.

"As soon as [bank accounts] are set up, we'll have information on the site for people for where the account is set up and where donations can be sent," Calci added.

During a separate phone interview this morning, Fire Chief Timothy McLaughlin said the firefighters' work in coordinating the donation effort is "going to give them a purpose, that maybe they can do something good for these kids, and I think in the end it's going to make them feel better that they stepped up to the plate."

McLaughlin also recounted the firefighters' work in removing the kids from the home and ensuring that they didn't see the crime scene in the basement — at least as they were leaving the house.

"They were taken from the upstairs bedroom by our rescue people, right out the front door to a rescue," McLaughlin said. "What they saw before we got there, we really have no idea."

The chief explained that fire and rescue staffers "have been offered the opportunity" to meet with trauma counselors after discovering the murder scene.

"They've declined at this particular juncture, but that offer is still on the table," said McLaughlin. "They were exposed to a lot — the smell, alone, is something [that] is hard to get rid of from your senses."

McLaughlin said that he hopes the current effort helps the children as they grow up and learn about what happened.

That's a tragedy in itself — that they're going to grow up and ultimately find out what happened, and it's not going to be good for them," McLaughlin explained. "I'm hoping that wherever they are, they're going to be put in a safe haven and a good familiy situation, and I think the guys want to do all they can to make that happen."

To read more coverage of this story, click here for a full listing of recent articles.