GoFundMe created for Westchester family to help boy get into special program & recover from Ida damage

Friends, family and total strangers have pitched in to help the Callahan's get back on their feet from Ida and get their son get into the program he desperately needs.

News 12 Staff

Sep 15, 2021, 2:13 AM

Updated 1,184 days ago

Share:

Hurricane Ida caused a lot of damage in the Hudson Valley, but for one Westchester family, it pushed them to the brink.
The Callahan family has lived on Shelley Avenue in Hartsdale for 45 years, but Ida washed that all away in an instant.
Six feet of rain and sewage flooded their home during the storm.
"I heard my front door crack, and I grabbed my son from playing with his train table and I ran like hell up the stairs," says Taryn Callahan.
Their house is uninhabitable, and it could be months before it looks like home again.
But the storm took away more than just their personal belongings and memories - it's threatening to take a major opportunity away from their son, Shane.
The bubbly, energetic 5-year-old with a disability was recently diagnosed with Behçet's Disease.
"It's affecting his ears and his ability to speak," says Callahan.
The money the Callahan's put towards getting Shane into a special speech immersion program is now needed to rebuild everything they lost.
Over the last two weeks, friends, family and total strangers have pitched in to help the Callahan's get back on their feet and get Shane into the program he desperately needs.
"It's very heartwarming and overwhelming that people that you don't even know would take the time to donate to you," says Callahan.
A GoFundMe raised more than $10,000 and people have been donating things to help them recover.