Help Nora and Marshall recover after fire

My name is Ken Aptekar, and I’m launching this GoFundMe Campaign on behalf of my friends Nora Ligorano and Marshall Reese.

 

On Thanksgiving night, they lost their Williamsburg Brooklyn home where they’ve rented and lived for almost 40 years.

 

When they first moved to 67 Devoe Street in 1984, a friend said, “People in New York don’t move into their apartment, they marry it.”

 

And marry it they did. 2024 would have been their Silver Anniversary. Their home was a living monument with soul and history.

 

Now it’s all but a memory.

 

They are among the first artists to reside in the neighborhood and witnessed it change from working class vicinato, to artist enclave, to what it is today.

 

That all changed Thanksgiving night.

 

 

172 firefighters battled the four-alarm fire over 3 hours before getting it finally under control. Thankfully no one was injured.

 

But in the process, 12 families from 3 buildings lost their homes.

 

Nora and Marshall’s building has no roof. Its top floor is gone. And all the tenants have been forced to vacate the building.

 

The firemen had to break through their rear walls and windows ripping out radiators, doors. The water to extinguish the fire cascaded down floors, taking most of Nora and Marshall’s history with it.

 

 

Their cherished backyard that they shared with their friends for so many years is in rubble and debris.

 

 

All their art, furnishings, clothing, books, photos, cds, records, appliances and electronics are ruined due to water and smoke damage. Their repainted apartment is now brackish with water damage.

 

It is heartbreaking.

 

They are grieving and now they have to pick up the pieces.

 

They don’t know how long they will be out of their home. They are so thankful to friends for their help in searching and finding a temporary relocation.

 

Your help will go far in getting Marshall and Nora back on track for the next stage of their lives.

 

Every donation, of any size, counts. Thank you.

 

 

LigoranoReese

Bldg 30, Suite 102

63 Flushing Ave. Brooklyn Navy Yard

Brooklyn NY 11205