Honoring the man that saved thousands of students from a gunman during the Seattle Pacific University shootings last week, television executive producer Jessamyn McIntyre has launched a crowdfunding campaign on GoFundMe for 22-year-old Jon Meis. Originally looking for $5,000, the campaign has raised close to $40,000.
On Wednesday, 26-year-old Aaron R. Ybarra walked onto the university’s campus and opened fire. He killed a 19-year-old male student and injured two other students in his path. While reloading his gun inside Otto Miller Hall, Mr. Meis managed to pepper-spray and tackle the gunman. Upon his arrest, Mr. Ybarra stated to Seattle police that he wanted to kill as many people as possible before taking his own life.
According to the campaign’s website, the city’s authorities say if he didn’t take action that day, there was almost certain to be more loss of life. He and his fiancé Kaylie Sparks are getting married on June 21st and the campaign is simple for those in the community who wish to show gratitude towards this local hero. This couple hasn’t asked for anything, but many wish to contribute to their future.
Ms. McIntyre took to her Twitter account to explain the campaign.“People asked why I started the fund page for Jon Meis. I don’t know him, and nobody asked me to do it. People found his registry online for his wedding and bough all the present they could, then started to wonder what else they could do. The page was/is where they could do so.
“The community support for Jon has been so strong, and I wanted to give a place to continue.”
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