Neighbor Establishes Fund for Victim of Washington Street Fire

A Westwood official and neighbor of the victims affected by is working hard to help rectify the situation as best he can.

Joe Previtera, Chairman of the Westwood Conservation Commission and a long-time neighbor of Jean Donovan, the resident of the home that was severely damaged in the fire, has set up a fund through The Cooperative Bank to raise money to help.

"I was just the facilitator in this," Previtera said. "A number of our neighbors approached us and asked the best way to do it. There was such a flood of calls."

As such, Previtera found help through the staff at The Cooperative Bank, whom he said were more than helpful in setting up the fund.

Donovan and her niece Shauna were in the house at the time of the three-alarm fire that broke out early in the morning on Thursday, March 31.

Luckily, the two were able to escape with the help of Westwood Police Sgt. Bruce McDonald, who sounded the siren on his cruiser when he first discovered the fire while on shift that night. The siren awoke the two occupants, who were exiting the house as off-duty firefighter Ed Brown, also a neighbor, rushed to the scene to help.

The fire most likely sparked outside the front porch, according to the Westwood Fire Department, and .

Previtera said seeing the house burn was utterly devastating.

"I was heartbroken," he said. "Absolutely heartbroken. When the police officer lit up his siren, almost in front of our house, I could see all the homes across Washington Street in a bright red glow."

But there was relief, he said, in seeing that the two were able to get out of the house and to safety.

"I've known them for years," Previtera said. "I was just crushed. And when I ran outside, our other neighbor, (Brown), had already helped Jean and her niece get out of the house."

Donovan has not been back to the area much since the incident, Previtera said. She was not immediately available for comment on Wednesday.

Those interested in donating can do so by making checks out to the Donovan Family Fire Relief Fund and submitting them to The Cooperative Bank, located at 265 Washington Street in Westwood.

For more information, contact Branch Manager Mary Perry at the Cooperative Bank at 781-329-5200.