More than 50 people attended the first of two Oregon District Tragedy Fund public meetings at Sinclair Community College Monday. The meetings are designed to gather public comments on how the fund’s $3 million in donations should be distributed to survivors and victims’ families. Many people who testified pleaded with the fund's oversight committee to help people living with shooting-related injuries.
Under the Dayton Foundation’s draft protocol for disbursements, 75 percent of the Oregon District Tragedy Fund would go to family members of people killed in the attack. The rest would go to eligible survivors with serious injuries.
At Monday’s meeting, nearly a dozen community members stood up to share stories of the Aug. 4 shooting’s impact on their lives.
Among them was Trotwood resident Britney Nicole Jones. The 19 year old lost a thumb to a bullet and told the fund’s oversight committee she’s someone who’s struggling to afford treatment for her emotional and physical injuries.
“Someone who is 19 and has to live with no thumb, someone who is off work for three months, has no income and can't get nowhere, has nothing, can’t get my therapy paid for, can't get my counseling done," she says. "When I wake up every day I'm scared to go outside. I'm scared to get shot again."
Many people who testified at the meeting asked the committee to consider dividing the fund's assets evenly between all applicants who qualify for compensation. Others talked about experiencing mental trauma that continues to disturb their sleep.
Dayton Foundation officials say the oversight committee with consider all comments gathered and incorporate them into the final application guidelines.
Those guidelines are expected to be made public October 1. Read more at the Dayton Foundation website.
The next public forum is set for Monday, Sept. 16 at 6 p.m. at Sinclair Community College, 444 West Third Street, Building 12. Free parking is available on site.
Comments can also be submitted by email at TragedyFund@daytonfoundation.org. The deadline for comments is noon on September 20.
For anyone experiencing trauma related to the Oregon District mass shooting, click here on the ADAMHS website for a list of mental health resources.
