Outpouring of support for victims of Plum house explosion

Aug. 13—A deluge of donations poured into the Plum community to benefit victims of a devastating house explosion Saturday that killed five people.

"My daughter gathered her money and wanted to donate," said Donna Colamarino of Plum as her daughter Sophia, 9, placed money into a marked basket Sunday morning at the home of Angels in DaSkys founder and president Melissa DiPasquale."We felt the explosion at our house five miles away. We live on OhioPyle Drive. Our house shook and I immediately thought, explosion."

Angels In DaSkys has partnered with Renton Volunteer Fire Department to handle relief efforts for Plum residents in need after experiencing the traumatic explosion-related events from Saturday.

Donations of gift cards and money are being accepted on the doorstep of DiPasquale's home.

A white basket labeled with the nonprofit's name is monitored 24/7 by video surveillance and DiPasquale keeps records of all donations.

"We check it constantly since we can see it on camera," DiPasquale said. "We thank everyone for their kindness and generosity and always remember to pay it forward."

One donation Sunday morning was for $1,000.

Any amount is welcome and will go directly to the explosion cause, DiPasquale said.

Volunteers are asking for the public to pitch in with donations of gift cards and money but to stop bringing food and water, both of which they have in abundance.

As of Sunday afternoon, thousands of dollars worth of food and drinks had been donated to the Renton fire company and Angels In DaSkys.

"We need gift cards and monetary donations," DiPasquale said. "Some of these people that lost their homes have absolutely nothing. We will be giving cash to one of the families today."

Donations of clothing and other items are not needed, organizers said.

Preferred gift card suggestions include Walmart, Amazon, department stores such as Target and Macy's and gift cards from local businesses.

DiPasquale founded Angels In DaSkys 20 years ago and reached out to firefighters to offer help in organizing and distributing donations.

A resident for 13 years, Colamarino said she heard about Angels in DaSkys, a nonprofit based in Plum that helps families in need. "We just wanted to help in any way we could. No family wants to go through that. No neighborhood wants to go through that," Colamarino said.

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"Never could I have imagined that one post would result the level of outpouring from the community. Thousands of upon thousands of people. 100% of what we collect will go to the families," DiPasquale said.

Anita Maydak-Neace, president of Renton VFD, led donation efforts Sunday from the fire department located next to the Plum Municipal Building.

"Keep positive thoughts for the families and make sure you know who you're donating to. Nobody should contact you asking for money or donations. We're not going to call," Neace said.

Neace said residents from up to 12 houses are in immediate need of donations.

"I'm proud to be a part of Plum Borough. We have more water than we can probably use but we will distribute it to other fire departments and other rehab centers. It will all be used. It will not go to waste," Maydak-Neace said.

"Right now we are focusing on the families most devastated by this tragedy," DiPasquale said.

GoFundMe accounts to aid victims of the Plum explosions have been established, one specifically for the Smith family and the other for all victims.

The accounts can be found at www.gofundme.com under the names of Danielle DiVittorio and Bryan Corbett.

Joyce Hanz is a Tribune-Review staff writer. You can contact Joyce by email at jhanz@triblive.com or via Twitter .