Kerry Fitzsimons services set for Friday

Family and friends paid their respects Thursday to a Commack woman who died in a Poughkeepsie fire last week.

Kerry Fitzsimons, 21, was one of three people killed Saturday when a fire swept through an off-campus home rented by six students from Marist College, authorities said. Four others escaped the fire by jumping from windows.

Visitation for Fitzsimons, a senior at the college, was held Thursday at Commack Abbey Funeral Home. A funeral Mass will be celebrated Friday at 9:45 a.m. at St. Matthews Roman Catholic Church in Dix Hills, followed by burial at Commack Cemetery.

The two others killed in the fire were Kevin Johnson of New Canaan, Conn., and Eva Block of Woodbridge, Conn., both 21.

At a Wednesday memorial service at the school, college president Dennis J. Murray said the Marist family was "heartbroken. We have lost three of our best in the prime of their lives -- young adults full of promise, hope and love," Murray said in a statement.

A scholarship fund at Marist has been set up in Fitzsimons' name. Donations can be sent to Marist College Office of College Advancement, Poughkeepsie, NY 12601-1387.