New foundation aims to be 'safety net' for FDNY firefighters in need, families who have fallen through the cracks

A new nonprofit has been created by the Uniformed Firefighters Association of New York to help firefighters and their families in time of need and to help survivors who may not qualify for standard benefits from the FDNY.

The New York Firefighters Foundation aims to support New York City firefighters and their families who experience the death of the firefighter, as well as illness or catastrophic events, such as the loss of a house due to a natural disaster, union president Andrew Ansbro said at a Mineola news conference Monday.

The initiative was launched after the death of probationary firefighter Derek Floyd, a decorated Marine Corps veteran who lived in Northport and lost his FDNY job after four years due to department budget cuts.

A few months after being let go, Floyd died of a heart attack at age 36. His widow, Christine Floyd, along with their two young children, were not entitled to medical coverage or death benefits because he was not on the job.

In an interview, Floyd described the time after her husband's death as “abysmal,” and adding, “It's as if you're drowning and you're just overwhelmed and consumed with sorrow and emotions and pain.” 

She said that Ansbro reached out to her, offering help.

“It was such a heavy burden, and so with how they showed up to support my family and how they donated, that definitely lightened the load and they just carry the grief with me, so I'm just really appreciative,” Floyd said.

Ansbro described the foundation as a “long overdue safety net” that is “built by firefighters for firefighters.” He said its first donation of $50,000 will go to the Floyds.

“Derek, he was a probationary firefighter, so therefore he wasn't entitled to the same benefits as a firefighter, and there was this gap,” said Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman, who also attended the news conference. “And these guys behind me, they said, ‘Well, we're not going to let Christine and her children not get the benefits and the help that they need so that they can survive.’ ”

The foundation is currently relying on private donations and events, such as a golf outing held Monday at the Garden City Country Club after the news conference. In an interview, Ansbro described the foundation as “just getting started,” adding, “We've left our chartering kind of vague because we want to be able to catch everybody.”

Other nonprofits come to the aid of firefighter families, such as the Tunnel to Towers Foundation, which pays Floyd's mortgage, but many assist only families of those who died in the line of duty.

“We're not specific to line-of-duty deaths because Derek Floyd's death was not considered line of duty. It was off duty, but to us it makes no difference,” Ansbro said, referring to the new foundation.

“It was a member of the family, and we're gonna step in and provide whatever assistance we can.”

Newsday's Nicholas Grasso contributed to this story.