Neighbors Raise Thousands For Waltham Man Displaced In Thanksgiving Fire

WALTHAM, MA — A Thanksgiving day fire displaced 15 people in Waltham, including an employee of the Charles River Museum of Industry and Innovation.

Now, thanks to a fundraiser started by one of his co-workers, thousands of dollars have been raised to help him.

Bob Perry, the executive director of the museum, began the fundraiser online for Joe Niedbala, the museum's director of operations.

Neidbala was among the 15 people displaced by the fire on Moody Street when a family home's back deck caught fire around 5:15 p.m. In total, the Waltham Fire Department estimated that the fire caused $1 million in damages.

As for Neidbala, Perry wrote that his condo didn't sustain fire damage, but did get hit with water damage that has his unit unlivable.

"Every person and pet safely escaped, but the fire caused extensive damage," Perry wrote.

"Fortunately, Joe's condo escaped fire damage but did sustain water damage. Unfortunately, he will be displaced for quite some time to come."

Created four days ago with the goal to help Neidbala find temporary housing, the fundraiser swiftly surpassed the initial $10,000 goal.

Still, Perry said Neidbala could use additional funds.

"We've increased the goal for this fundraiser because it's slowly becoming clear what Joe's up against in both the time it's going to take to restore his home to move-in condition, and how much more expensive life is going to be for Joe during that time, in ways outside of what insurance can be expected to cover," he wrote.

Since the creation of the fundraiser, over $12,000 has been raised as of Nov. 28 at 10:40 a.m.

To view the fundraiser, click here.