A retired Connecticut firefighter died Christmas morning from cancer, more than a week after he was admitted to a local hospital's intensive care unit.
Former Lt. Christopher "Opie" Skurat, of the Shelton Fire Department, had been battling non-Hodgkin's lymphoma since the summer of 2017, a social media post by the department's Echo Hose Hook & Ladder Co. stated. Skurat, 38 and an Ansonia resident, had been taken to the ICU at Yale New Haven Hospital on Monday, Dec. 17, after being diagnosed with a rare blood disorder while still fighting the cancer, according to a GoFundMe page set up for his wife, Carla, and their two sons, Jake, 13, and Ryan, 10.
"Now more than ever Carla, Jake and Ryan really need our prayers, love and support," an update on the fundraising page stated.
The GoFundMe campaign, which was started by Alex DaSilva on behalf of the Skurats, has a goal of $15,000. So far, more than $6,000 has been raised.
