In memory of Danielle: Riverhead McDonald’s to host fundraiser for Lawrence family

Workers and management at the Riverhead McDonald’s on Route 58 have gotten together on a fundraiser for the Lawrence family.

Danielle Lawrence, who was murdered with her mother in their Wading River home on Feb. 15, was a friend of many of the workers there, the restaurant’s assistant manager told RiverheadLOCAL.

“Of our 48 crew members, 30 are under 18 and they all go to Riverhead High School, where Danielle went,” assistant manager Jennifer Matnick said. Danielle’s best friend, Amaya Coach, works at the McDonald’s,too.

“When she told me, I wanted to do something, so I spoke with the store manager William Atkinson and he spoke to the owner, who agreed,” she said.

The Route 58 McDonald’s will donate 20 percent of all profits from sales at the restaurant on Wednesday, March 18 from 5 to 8 p.m., Matnick said.

“We’ll be writing a check that the school superintendent will present to Danielle’s father.”

Her father Tony Lawrence is a physical education teacher at Phillips Avenue Elementary School. His younger daughter, Brandy, 14, safely escaped from the family home after calling 911 on the night of Feb. 15, when an argument between her mother and her estranged boyfriend, Thomas Calhoun, 44, became violent. Calhoun shot and killed Tanya Lawrence, 43, and Danielle, 17, before killing himself, according to police.

Since the double-murder of his ex-wife and older daughter, there has been an outpouring of community support for the Riverhead teacher and his family. Fundraising efforts by Lawrence’s former students and players have collected more that $30,000 to help pay funeral expenses. Lawrence started the Riverhead lacrosse program and was the boys varsity lacrosse head coach for eight seasons, until 2010.

“We all wanted to do something to honor Danielle’s memory and help her family,” Matnick said.