By Howard Koplowitz
Dindial Boodram, the Floral Park widower who lost his wife after their home exploded in April, has set up an irrevocable trust to pay for the education of his three young sons and the school his kids attend is encouraging the community to help out.
A teacher at PS 115, where Ryan, 11; Kevin, 8; and Chris, 7, go to school, urged anyone who wanted to donate to the account to contact the Capital One branch at 257-03 Hillside Ave or the school.
“Any kind of financial donation would be superior,” said Elana Gorchov, who is helping to lead collection efforts at the school.
She said local businesses have pitched in, with Stop & Shop donating two $100 gift cards and Nina’s Pasta offering dinner for the family.
The school also sent out an application to the show “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition” to get the program to build a new house for the family.
Ghanwatti Boodram, a Guyanese immigrant whom family members said made sure her sons understood the value of an education, died after her home at 80-24 260th St. was rocked by a gas explosion April 24. She was the only one inside the home when the blast occurred.
Gorchov said Dindial Boodram visited the school last week to help Ryan celebrate his 11th birthday.
“Mr. Boodram, after suffering this unspeakable loss, is first and foremost a wonderful parent,” said Gorchov, who was Ryan’s teacher last year. “He’s an awesome guy. It’s the nicest family and [Ghanwatti] was a pleasure to deal with.”
Ryan is scheduled to graduate from the school Friday and his teacher said he would be receiving a “major award” during the ceremony.
Boodram could not immediately be reached for comment.
The gas explosion sparked an outcry among the Floral Park community who believed Con Edison should have evacuated the block quicker.
Con Ed told Community Board 13 last month that it had changed some of its procedures for gas emergencies due to the blast.
These included door-by-door checks and evacuations of buildings that would be triggered by high gas readings in the street and having the Fire Department help with evacuations as the utility investigates a gas leak.
While an investigation into the blast is ongoing, the utility said it believed an electrical failure damaged a conduit housing an electrical cable that had pre-existing damage.
Con Ed said the damage may have been caused by prior excavation work but the utility was unsure who was responsible.
Reach reporter Howard Koplowitz by e-mail at hkoplowitz@cnglocal.com or by phone at 718-229-0300, Ext. 173.
