Retired firefighter who led ‘Fill the Boot’ later diagnosed with ALS

By Alana Cerrone

acerrone@abc6.com

@Alana_Cerrone

The end of summer means one thing for firefighters across the country.

Every August, they get out on the streets to ‘Fill the Boot’ for the Muscular Dystrophy Association.

And in North Providence, you could say David DiIorio is a veteran.

"I was on the fire department 30 years…went out and collected for 30 years."

Then, the unthinkable happened.

"A couple years after I retired I was diagnosed with ALS. It’s not what I expected…I never thought I’d be collecting for myself."

After DiIorio’s diagnosis North Providence firefighters kicked their fundraising up a notch.

Several years in a row, they’ve raised the most money out of all the departments in the state. Last year, they brought in over $24,000…that’s about 10% of all the money raised statewide.

This year, they made special t-shirts with DiIorio’s nickname, ‘Ditz’.

"It’s more of a personal touch all the years he gave back we can give back now."

DiIorio’s partner on the job, Battalion Chief Louis Charello, says before he retired, DiIorio dedicated himself to this campaign.

In fact, he never took a vacation in August.

“The MDA boot this was his thing…he’d work extra shifts for guys just to be able to collect."

Now, DiIorio has passed the torch to his brothers and sisters in North Providence to collect for the cause near and dear to his heart.

"I appreciate what they’re doing. I wish I was out there with them."

North Providence firefighters will be collecting money for about 3.5 weeks.

Over the past 5 years, they’ve raised over $100,000. That money goes to help people with ALS and other related diseases to live more independently.

© WLNE-TV 2016