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On Saturday, Feb. 26, a fire tore through the Queens home Zakai Zeigler, a prominent guard playing in the SEC for the Tennessee Volunteers who grew up on Long Island, in Wyandanch in Suffolk County.
In the fire, Zeigler’s mother, who is raising her special-needs 4-year-old nephew, lost all of her belongings, including accessibility equipment for the child, including wheelchairs and splints.
In response, Zeigler set up a GoFundMe page for his mother, which raised more than $350,000 in less than 24 hours, prompting organizers to temporarily disable new donations to the fundraiser due to the overwhelming response.
The initial listed goal had been set at $50,000. In total, there were nearly 5,500 donations made to the fundraiser in approximately 23 hours, including several over $2,000.
“The East Tennessee community has embraced Zakai in such an impactful manner that his mother is exploring opportunities to relocate to Knoxville so that the family can spend more time together and Zakai can assist with Nori's care,” organizers wrote on the GoFundMe page noting that it was approved by the Tennessee Athletic Department.
“In the short term, funds will be used to fill immediate needs such as temporary housing, clothing, and airfare.”
Zeigler said that he has been “absolutely blown away” by the outpouring of support and generosity, and any contributions that were made to his mother’s cause that go unused will be donated to charity.
The GoFundMe page can be found here.
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