Daughter Needs Help To Bury Her Father

MATTITUCK, NY — In times of great sorrow, the North Fork community rallies to help their own.

This week, Melanie Lorenz created a GoFundMe page, "Help Ronnie Diachun To His Final Resting Place," after the death of her father, who, she said, was born in Mattituck and struggled in his last years.

"I am still in shock and lost for words," Lorenz wrote. "I received a call tonight informing me of the passing of my father Ronnie. Ronnie has passed from heart failure due to his sickness. We had our ups and downs over the years but I need to do the right thing for him. He is no longer in pain or suffering," she said. "Please help me give my father his last resting place."

His last years were pitted with challenges, she said.

"My father was homeless, living in his van for past nine years going from place to place," Lorenz wrote. "He made bad decisions that led him to that life. I want to do the right thing for him and bring him home to his last resting place — a safe place for him now. Any little bit will help me get him where he can fly high with the angels. Dad, I love and miss you! RIP, free of all the pain."

Sharon Sailor said she has "known Ronnie my whole life. Ronnie is Mattituck. He met with hard times and had some personal issues and we all knew that."

She added: "While no one could fix them, that didn't change how anyone who knew him felt about him."

His love of cars and what made them tick was as much a part of his persona as his love of the outdoors, she said.

"Even when he faced hard times he always had time for a friendly wave or to chat it up when we ran into each other," Sailor said. "That’s why it is so important for me to help his daughter, Melanie, make sure he gets a proper burial. Ronnie spent his life as a thread in the fabric of our community. We are not the type of community that would deny him a proper burial, at least not while I am in it."

Sailor added: "Even $5, the cost of Starbucks, can help! No amount is too little."

To donate, click here.

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