Uvalde aftermath: How to help families of Texas school shooting victims

Several fundraisers have been launched in an effort to raise money for the families and communities reeling from the loss in Tuesday’s Uvalde, Texas, elementary school shooting, which left 22 people, including 19 children and the suspected gunman, dead. 

Donors nationwide are seeking ways to give back to the Uvalde community as it mourns the unimaginable loss of elementary school students and their teachers. At least 17 others remained injured as of Wednesday, Texas Department of Public Safety said. 

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Several Texas-based communities have created webpages and funds to raise money for the grieving families. 

On Wednesday, the Uvalde Consolidated Independent School District announced the creation of the “Robb School Memorial Fund” through an account with First State Bank of Uvalde. The fund will benefit “the families of Robb Elementary.” 

Anyone interested in donating to the Robb Elementary Memorial Fund can do so by following the directions posted on the school district’s Twitter page, and on its website.  

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Those who would like to donate toward the cause can also do so through a fund with San Antonio’s University Health hospital, where many patients were sent for treatment in the aftermath of the attack. 

The University Health Foundation created the Uvalde Victims Relief Fund, which is accepting donations “to support the patients and families we are caring for,” according to a tweet on Wednesday.

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“These funds will be used to support the families while their loved ones are at University Hospital, to cover unpaid medical expenses and other needs identified by our social workers,” a second tweet stated. 

GoFundMe has also compiled a list of verified fundraising pages created to benefit families of victims and the community. 

Collectively, the 10 verified fundraising pages featured on the GoFundMe site had raised more than $2 million as of Wednesday night. 

Thursday was supposed to be the last day of classes at Robb Elementary School before summer break. But on Tuesday, suspected gunman Salvador Ramos, 18, entered the school property armed with a rifle and ultimately opened fire. 

Earlier on Tuesday, Ramos was involved in a domestic disturbance with his grandmother at his grandparents’ Uvalde home, where he had been living, when he shot the woman in the face and seriously injured her, authorities said.

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Approximately 30 minutes before the events unfolded, Ramos allegedly wrote in a series of Facebook messages, “I’m going to shoot my grandmother,” “I’ve shot my grandmother,” and then: “I’m going to shoot an elementary school.”

He then fled and crashed his vehicle near Robb Elementary School, authorities said. 

Ramos entered the school and encountered a school police officer who confronted him at the front door, officials told Fox News. The pair exchanged gunfire and Ramos allegedly dropped his bag of ammunition, which authorities say saved lives. The officer was wounded during the exchange. 

Ramos then allegedly barricaded himself inside a fourth grade classroom, where he opened fire on students and school staff, officials and law enforcement sources said. 

He barricaded himself inside the first classroom “that he was able to gain access to,” Texas Department of Public Safety Lt. Chris Olivarez said. He then began targeting the students and teachers inside, Olivarez says.

  

According to law enforcement sources, local police tried to breach the classroom doors, and officers were shot at and injured. A team with the Border Patrol Tactical Unit were then able to enter the classroom, and one of the agents was able to fatally shoot the gunman.

Ramos was described as being a loner. He was unemployed and had no criminal history and no gang affiliation, officials said. Gov. Greg Abbott said he had “no known mental health history.”

Investigators are still working to determine a possible motive. 

Fox News’ Bill Melugin contributed to this report.