Following the terrifying mass shooting at Umpqua Community College, Oregon, hundreds of people have rallied behind one of the victims of the attack.
34-year-old Amber McMurtrey was shot eight times when Chris Harper Mercer, 26, opened fire open a class on October 1st. Ten people were killed including the gunman, with another nine injured.
The mother-of-two was attending college in order to obtain a nursing degree which would help her provide for her family.
Since the shooting, Amber has battled through intense rounds of surgical interventions and has now begun physical therapy, which is helping her to walk and talk again.
But the multiple surgeries and physical therapies have begun to rack up quite a bill, which is why friends of the family created an online fundraising campaign in order to raise money for her treatments.
Originally aiming to raise just $15,000 to pay for her pre-existing medical bills, the page has so far raised $37,256 in just five days.
“She’s always been a caregiver,” said Amber’s niece Maddie Chane, one of the family members who created the Gofundme, “She’s always there when someone else needs her. Now it’s her time to have people there for her. “
“She wanted to go back to school for her kids,” she said, “I wanted to take this really horrible thing and try to make it a really great thing. It’s honestly all we can do.”
But Amber’s account wasn’t the only one set up by family and friends. Several pages have been created for suvivors of the shooting, including Chris Mintz who was shot seven times whilst he charged the shooter. His GoFundMe has raised more than $795,100.
If you would like to donate, the pages are as follows:
