Communities across Massachusetts continue to lend their support to the people whose lives were changed forever by the Gabriel House fire in Fall River.
Frontline Café and Bakery in West Bridgewater is among the businesses offering help to survivors.
“With all the people that have been displaced by the fire, the least that we could do is try to help out with some donations,” explained Frontline Café and Bakery Owner Heather Littlefield.
Littlefield said they started collecting donations last Tuesday, but they quickly ran out space to store the number of items they were receiving from the community. However, a generous person came to their aid and loaned them a moving truck with more room.
Littlefield said people have been donating brand new items as well as belongings that hold a lot of sentimental value.
“A lot of people are coming in because their mother or their father or their grandparents passed away, and they’ve been waiting for the right time to kind of go through their clothes, and to go through their things. And this was the time, and that means a lot,” Littlefield said.
Ultimately, Littlefield’s goal is to fill the entire truck with donations before they drive it to Fall River on Monday.
While Littlefield said she is happy to be offering this type of help, she really wanted to be there for the victims the night the fire broke out.
Before she opened her café and bakery in April 2024, Littlefield was a paramedic for 16 years. Seven of those years were spent in Fall River where she took care of many patients from Gabriel House.
“It’s heartbreaking to see what everybody is going through,” she explained.
Frontline Café and Bakery will be accepting donations until Monday at 2 p.m. She said they are looking for toiletries, medical supplies, clothing, blankets and other non-perishable items.
For those who donate, they will receive 10 percent off their purchase at Frontline Café and Bakery that’s located at 450 East Center St.
If the business isn’t open when people try to donate, Littlefield said they can leave items outside of the truck.
Learn about Littlefield’s café and bakery here, and the support her business offers to veterans and first responders year-round.
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