Mother Dies After Fire That Claimed Daughter, Donates Organs to Save Others

The house fire on Campbell Avenue in the village of Yorkville, located adjacent to the city of Utica, that claimed two lives has triggered a series of compelling related events and an outpouring of love and donations.

Heather Mishlanie, 41, and her 7-year-old daughter, Taylor, perished in the fire, the young girl in the blaze itself. Her mother, a registered nurse at Central New York Psychiatric Center, had remained in critical condition following an emergency airlift to a Syracuse hospital. She died after being on life support and her organs were donated in order to help others, consistent with a life spent helping others.

Mishlanie also had three other sons who were not involved in the fire. A page has been established at GoFundMe.com and donations have been flowing in to aid the family and help pay for funeral expenses.

One of Mishlanie's lifelong friends, Jess Dapson told us she'll remember Heather as "a loving mother, who worked hard, graduated college, accomplished her goal of obtaining the career she had always wanted, and enjoyed family time with her children."

Dapson also said her friend was "reliable, funny, and will certainly be missed by everyone whose lives she touched."