YONKERS, N.Y. David Schildwachter was walking down the stairs of his East Yonkers home in April when his heart started racing a mile a minute.
Short on breath, he told his wife to call 911. As it turned out, Schildwachter was suffering from a pulmonary embolism a blood clot was clogging a main artery in his lung.
Thankfully, he said, within three minutes, emergency responders from the Yonkers Fire Department were in his living room.
They saved my life, said Schildwachter, who also serves as president of the Rotary Club of East Yonkers. These guys were on the ball.
So five months later, when Schildwachter and the Rotary Club were looking for a beneficiary of their annual fundraiser and dinner, Schildwachter knew where he wanted the money to go: the Yonkers Fire Department.
These guys do really good things and they are not always given credit for it, he said.
Schildwachter and the club proposed donating the money to be used for new chairs, couches and other furniture for city fire stations.
But as it turned out, the fire department had other plans.
While firefighters said they were thankful for the offer, they suggested giving the money, along with some funds of their own, to the Elizabeth Seton Pediatric Center in Yonkers.
We saw other people in need and said we dont need new chairs and couches. We can do with what we have, Yonkers Fire-Local 628 President Barry McGoey said.
Last week, the Rotary Club held the fundraiser at the Empire City Casino, drawing more than 100 people and raising an estimated $5,000 for Elizabeth Seton. In addition, Local 628 has agreed to kick in some $2,500 from its own charity fund to go towards the pediatric center.
I look it as a win-win, Schildwachter said. We wanted to benefit the fire department but they had wisdom to say these kids are in worse shape than we are.
The donation came as a surprise to Brian Harrington, senior vice president of the Elizabeth Seton Pediatric Center, who said the center plans to use the money to help the severally disabled children who call the rehab facility home.
It will be used for activities they dont normally get to do, like taking trips to local places so they can get to know their new neighborhood better, he said. And really, they will have that opportunity because of the Rotary Club and Local 628.
McGoey said he hopes it is the start of a new relationship between Yonkers firefighters and the pediatric center.
Every penny they can get they can really use, he said. We want to try to do more fundraising to help them fulfill their cause.
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