LAWRENCE - Carol Kalil-Hamilton lives in Shrewsbury, but the devastation 45 miles away in Lawrence seemed close to home.

"I still can't get over how bad it was," she said.

Her plan before Monday was to sell all of the furniture in her family's vacation home in Narragansett, R.I., because they're selling the house.

But instead, she's now packing up three bedroom sets, three televisions, a dining room set, couches and coffee tables - all virtually brand-new - and loading them onto a truck and driving to Lazarus House in Lawrence to be distributed to victims of the fire.

"I think these people need it so much more," said Kalil-Hamilton, who owns a mortgage company in Worcester.

Generosity in the wake of the fire has flowed from neighbors in Lawrence, to residents in Andover, North Andover, Haverhill and Methuen, and far beyond the Merrimack Valley to people like Kalil-Hamilton in Shrewsbury.

Yesterday morning, 4-year-old Catherine Gilligan of North Andover came into The Eagle-Tribune offices with her grandfather, Jerry Haley, also of North Andover.

Catherine had been saving up money, but during their morning trip to Starbucks, she announced to her grandfather that she'd like to give her savings to the fire victims, instead of buying something for herself.

"We want to help," Catherine said, handing over $20 to The Eagle-Tribune Santa Fund.

Claire Hoffman of Methuen had the same idea when she gave $100 to the fire victims yesterday, saying aloud she only wished she could give more.

"It's so close to home," she said. "They just walked out with just their pajamas on. They don't have anything. I wanted to try to do something."

So far, $28,945 has been donated to the Santa Fund which will go directly to help victims of the fire.

Over at Lazarus House, Executive Director Bridget Shaheen said she received 30 voice mail messages yesterday from people asking what they could donate and what the victims needed. She said she also received calls from Wal-Mart, which is donating gift cards so the victims can buy the basics - pots, pans, ironing boards. She's receiving gift cards donated from grocery stores as well.

"People are good," Shaheen said.

One of those people is Jerry LaBarre of Andover, who had a perfectly good 27-inch television that he said they just didn't use enough. He called Lazarus House and said he'd like to donate it, particularly to those who have children.

How can I help?

* Enjoy food at Salvatore's on Feb. 4. From 4 p.m. to close, a total of 20 percent of the sales will go to victims of the fire. Salvatore's is on 354 Merrimack St. For more information, call 978-291-0220.

* Metro Credit Union on 215 S. Broadway is collecting money for the victims. It also offered a grace period on loan payments to those affected by the fire.

* Sovereign Bank, which already donated $25,000 to the recovery effort, is accepting donations at any of its locations. Everyone who donates will receive a receipt for tax purposes.