‘Stay Strong’: Mount Kisco Rallies Around Melissa Beristain After Biking Accident

By Ava McGinty

Mount Kisco firefighter John Ohannes moved quickly after his wife, Melissa Beristain, was paralyzed in a mountain biking accident a little over a month ago, on April 22.

John, 61, knew their current home was no longer an option for Beristain’s needs, and the pressure to find accessible housing mounted quickly. 

“We live in a three-story walk-up, which, if you’re in a wheelchair, you can’t use,” said Ohannes, who has been with the department for the past half dozen years.

Within weeks, he found another home nearby — Woodcrest, the senior living residence — determined not to leave the community they’ve called home for a quarter century now. He expects to close on the house by the end of the week.

Beristain’s active lifestyle, along with her long-standing involvement in environmental and community causes, was upended by the devastating mountain biking accident that left her paralyzed from the chest down.

After being found by a Good Samaritan, she was rushed to Westchester Medical Center’s trauma ICU, where she has since begun rehabilitation, as part of a long recovery process.

The community has since rallied to support Beristain, with the Mount Kisco Fire Department hosting an online charity auction that begins in two days, this Saturday, June 7. 

“I have been shocked and amazed by how many people I know,” said the 61-year-old Beristain, a Mount Kisco resident since 2000 who has served on the Marsh Sanctuary Board of Directors, where she ran the solar water system for the community garden.

“I don’t think I know that many people and it turns out, I know so many supportive people who have been tremendous, either volunteering to help me while I’m in the hospital or rehabilitation, because I’m still not able to feed myself,” continued Beristain, who has also volunteered with the Mount Kisco Nature Conservancy Advisory Council, and the local ambulance crew.

Kisco Rallies

Michael Curtis, a former Mount Kisco Fire Department commissioner, said he and his wife Laura quickly contributed to the GoFundMe campaign after hearing about the accident. Within days, Laura proposed organizing a charity auction to expand the effort. Curtis and Gina DiLeo, a commissioner with the Hook and Ladder company, began visiting local restaurants and bars to solicit donations.

“[We] put on our Class B uniforms and started visiting restaurants and bars to collect gift cards,” Curtis said.

Laura Curtis, who is organizing the auction in coordination with the fire department, wanted to offer another way for people to contribute — especially those who might not be able to donate money but could give items or services instead.

“I’ve done auctions before with groups and various organizations, so it seemed like a good idea,” she said.

Hosted through AirAuctioneer, the auction features items including gift cards to Mount Kisco area restaurants, handicraft and art tutorials, fire engine rides for kids, signed books, wine and spirits-related items, and other unique experiences.

“The winning bidder will send that money to the GoFundMe and we will personally deliver the gift,” Michael Curtis explained. “If they are out of town, we will get it to them.”

The GoFundMe campaign has been active since late April, already receiving more than 300 donations, raising over $44,000. The fundraising goal is set at $50,000.

Liz Peck, the GoFundMe organizer, expressed gratitude for the community’s generosity and reminded supporters of the power of collective effort.

“As we say about so much in life, it takes a village, and this effort is no different,” she wrote in the campaign description.

‘Stay Strong’

The money donated from the fundraiser will provide financial support for medical treatments and the transition to more accessible living arrangements.

“The department has really stepped up,” Michael Curtis said. “Both the company as a whole and the community.”

Laura Curtis, for her part, highlighted the fact that Mount Kisco “is a very giving town.”

“We have a food pantry, secondhand shops, and different places like that,” she said. “It is a good place. The places where people gather, like the fire department, everybody is very close, and everybody in town, if they find out you need something, they do something about it.”

As for Beristain, she emphasized just how blown away she’s been by the outpouring of support.

“The number of texts that I get, I must get 30 texts a day saying, ‘Thinking of you, stay strong, or we know you can do this,’” Beristain recounted. “That’s great to see.”

Laura Curtis is welcoming donations up until June 6. To contribute, email laura.kramarsky@gmail.com. The auction will run from June 7 through June 22 at https://airauctioneer.com/auction-for-melissa.