$2 million paid to victims and community groups following Super Bowl mass shooting

Surprised. Blessed. Overwhelmed. Already gone.

Those are the reactions of some of the 20 victims of the Kansas City Chiefs Super Bowl parade shootings who received $1.2 million from the #KCStrong fund on Thursday, with individuals receiving payments ranging from $22,000 to $100,000.

Chris Rosson, president and CEO of the United Way of Greater Kansas City, said the payments will help these survivors, although he acknowledges that gun violence like the Feb. 14 shooting occurs every day in Kansas City, usually in the low-income communities that already are. underfunded.

“When launching the fund, it was important to us to first and foremost support the direct victims of the violence that day, but also to allocate critical financial resources to violence prevention and response organizations, mental health support services and first responders,” he said.

The shootings at the end of the rally near Union Station left 24 people injured and one dead. Lisa Lopez-Galvan, 43, a mother of two and a popular Tejano DJ, was killed.

Since the shooting, some victims and their families have had to pay thousands of dollars in medical bills for emergency room care, ambulance rides, ongoing medical care for gunshot wounds or mental health consultations. Some are still struggling to return to work and are relying on a mix of aid from GoFundMe accounts and a local church group.

Erika Nelson, whose 15-year-old daughter Mireya was shot in the chin and shoulder during the parade, said the United Way money was a blessing but her daughter still suffered from the physical and emotional injuries caused by violence. .

“I don’t care how much money it is. It could be a million dollars. It could be a billion dollars. It’s never going to change what my daughter goes through every day,” Nelson said.

The #KCStrong fund was launched by the United Way on Feb. 15, with an initial $200,000 donation from the Chiefs, the NFL and the team’s owner Hunt family. The Kauffman Foundation and an anonymous individual are among the top donors, each with $250,000.

The funds are unrestricted, so they can be used for medical expenses, school fees for children injured during the victory celebration or any other needs the families have. Rosson said the group believes victims and their loved ones should decide how best to spend the money.

“Giving unrestricted funding directly to these verified gunshot victims allows them to make the decisions that are right for them and their families and for their path forward,” he said.

Kera Mashek, communications director for the local United Way, said the money falls under needs-based aid and will not be taxed.

United Way worked with the Jackson County, Mo., district attorney's office to verify the victims. Only 20 of the 24 victims were compensated, as two did not apply and a third refused the donation, United Way officials said. A fourth victim, whose name has not been released, was denied funds because she is connected to the criminal case, according to Jackson County Prosecutor Jean Peters Baker.

None of the victims were named in the June 27 announcement.

Emily Tavis said she felt “beyond blessed and overwhelmed with appreciation” to receive the help. Tavis; her partner, Jacob Gooch Sr.; and her stepson, Jacob Gooch Jr., were all shot and killed during the parade.

“It’s a huge relief to know that the bills are going to be paid and then some,” Tavis said. She had already started paying her credit card bills with her share of the amount paid.

Antonio Arellano, whose 11-year-old son Samuel was shot in the side, said the money was a “really valuable help” to the family.

He said Samuel hoped to take a vacation to Florida and get season tickets to see the Chiefs play football. But being in a large crowd is always difficult for Samuel, so Arellano said they will try to catch a game first to see how it goes.

James Lemons, who recently had the bullet removed from his leg, said he appreciates the help and feels blessed, but he also feels the money is already gone. He wants to repay the help the family received in the wake of the shooting, including money he borrowed to help them move after their landlord sold their rental home shortly after the parade.

So far, three adults and three juveniles have been charged in the shooting, along with three men who face federal charges of trafficking illegal weapons or lying to FBI agents.

More than 80 people were trampled in the melee that followed the shooting, Baker said, adding that they were also among the many victims of the attack. However, they will not receive money from the fund.

Campaigns like #KCStrong that emerge in the wake of mass shootings must balance the distribution of money broadly enough to include those directly affected without dissipating available resources, according to Jeff Dion of the Mass Violence Survivors Fund. The nonprofit has helped communities across the country distribute these funds.

The OneOrlando Fund, created after the Pulse shooting in 2016, for example, made a series of payments, including $350,000 to the families of each of the 49 people killed, but also $25,000 to each of the 182 people who were in the nightclub but were not physically harmed. This fund raised $29.5 million, compared to $2 million in Kansas City.

The $31.4 million fund set up in Las Vegas in 2017 after a mass shooting at a concert attended by 22,000 people did not include payments to people who were not injured. As many as 1 million people attended the Super Bowl parade in February.

“When it comes to real dollars, you have to figure out a way to be able to serve the most people with the most money possible,” Baker said. “So I think that’s probably one of the decisions that had to be made in this case, which is difficult, tough, but also necessary.”

The community groups, which each received $59,410, are: AdHoc Group Against Crime; Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Kansas City; Center for Conflict Resolution; Guadalupe Centers; Kansas City Metropolitan Crime Commission; KC Common Good; KC Mothers in Charge; Lyrik's Institution; Newhouse Domestic Violence Shelter; Rose Brooks Center; Transition Zone; The Battle Within; Uncornered; and University Health.

Other initiatives have also raised money for survivors of the Super Bowl parade shooting. GoFundMe accounts have raised $667,785. A church group called “The Church Loves Kansas City” has raised $184,500 and has so far spent more than $50,000 on funeral expenses, medical procedures, counseling and living expenses, said Gary Kendall, one of the leaders.