White Plains Firefighters Help Locals Cope With Breast Cancer

Kesha Emery-Portee had given birth five months before being diagnosed with breast cancer in March 2010. Raising a newborn while battling cancer was one of the harder things the White Plains resident has had to cope with.

Though there is little others can do to ease all of the struggles the disease brings, White Plains Professional Firefighters Local 274 reached out to Emery-Portee to help ease what they could. City firefighters presented the 40-year-old mother of two with a check for $1,000 on Monday to help with the cost of co-pays, treatments and other expenses.

 “I was ecstatic,” said Emery-Portee. “There was no words for it.”

The local firefighters union raised funds for Emery-Portee, the sister of White Plains firefighter Percy Johnson, as well as $6,000 for Sole Ryeders & Friends, a Rye-based breast cancer awareness organization, by selling pink t-shirts during National Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Local 274's members also wore the t-shirts—which read “Care Enough to Wear Pink"—from Oct. 9 to Oct. 23. Click for a story on the fundraiser.

“If we couldn’t help out one of our own, then what’s the point in helping out and doing a fundraiser,” said Lt. Kevin Clampet, secretary treasurer for Local 274. “It’s great anytime we can help out local residents.”

Emery-Portee said she was touched by the gesture that will help to lighten a few of her worries as she focuses on getting healthy and bringing back normalcy to her home. 

Sole Ryeders & Friends—which began as a group of women from Rye who raised money to walk in the Avon Walk for Breast Cancer—raises money for a variety of breast cancer organizations including,  based in White Plains. 

"We're so honored to be the recipient of the money that the White Plains firefighters worked so hard to raise," said Sole Ryeders founder Sandy Samberg.

Sole Ryeders & Friends will use the donation for their new iniative The Wig Exchange (www.thewigexchange.org), which provides wigs to women who have cancer, as well as for cancer-related non-profit organizations that Sole Reyders & Friends partners with. 

"I was very moved by the stories that the firemen shared about how their lives have been affected by cancer," said Samberg. "It was heartwarming to hear how appreciative they are that the money is going to be used to help those in our local community."

Clampet says Local 274—which also does charitable work with other organizations, including the John Coleman School for special needs children—is planning to do an even bigger fundraising event next year for Sole Ryeders & Friends during National Breast Cancer Awareness month.

“We became firefighters to help people,” said Clampet. “This just takes it a step further, allowing us to help people we might not be able to help out everyday as firefighters.”

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