"Sharing the Love of Saving a Life" with M&T Bank

"You can't put a price on someone's life," says Lashanna Walker from M&T Bank. "So if it's as little as making sure they have smoke detectors, and for free, that time invested is absolutely priceless."

Walker was one of four volunteers from M&T Bank who invested some of their time on Valentine's Day helping Sound the Alarm, joining Red Cross volunteers from the Western New York Chapter to install free smoke alarms for families while providing them with important fire safety information. Walker regularly volunteers with Buffalo Promise Neighborhood, but when WNY Chapter Board Chair Susan MacDonald presented this opportunity to her colleagues at M&T, Walker was eager to sign up.

"There was a fire right before Christmas Eve on Shirley Avenue. I have a girlfriend who lives on Shirley, and my heart dropped because I thought it was her house," Walker said. "I confirmed she was safe, but then I heard the story, two kids died in the fire plus an adult. It was so sad, literally a few streets over from where I live at. So when the email popped up about Sound the Alarm, I was like, absolutely. I want to make sure something like that doesn't happen again."

After some training over coffee and donuts this morning by Red Cross instructor Dennis Scott, Walker and fellow M&T Bank volunteers Vincent Gagliano, Scott Maciejewski, and Joan Polanowski joined Red Cross volunteers and visited 18 households in the Buffalo area. Together, they made those families safer by installing 43 free smoke alarms, helping them create escape plans, and teaching them about fire safety.

"The gentleman at the first house was worried because they didn't clean up or anything," Walker said of her first installation experience. "We just explained to them, we could care less about any of that, what we're doing is more important than if you have some clothes on the floor. We're here to put the smoke detectors in, save lives."

This was the beginning of what will be an ongoing partnership, as M&T Bank volunteers will be participating in Sound the Alarm installation events on a quarterly basis. Walker already has her calendar cleared for the next time.

"It's one of those where you may not see the immediate results, but you never know when this little effort and no matter how many hours were invested are going to pay off," Walker said. "It just made me feel good to know, on Valentine's day, we're out there sharing the love of saving a life."

If you'd like to help share that love by volunteering, making a donation to help keep Sound the Alarm free, or if you or someone you love needs working smoke alarms, visit www.soundthealarm.org/wcny for more information.

-Story and Photos by: Jay Bonafede, Regional Communications Officer