Over two million dollars has been raised for the family of Joe and Irma Garcia, a teacher who was killed during the shooting in Uvalde, Texas, and her beloved husband, who died days after her, Newsweek reported Friday.
A few days after she was killed during the shooting inside Robb Elementary School, her husband died of a heart attack. They had been married for 24 years.
She was one of two teachers and 19 students killed during the shooting.
Photos showed the couple together, and Irma at school next to a banner that read, “Teacher of the Year Irma Garcia.”
They had four children, 23-year-old Cristian, 19-year-old Jose, 15-year-old Lilyana, and 12-year-old Alysandra, the Newsweek article said, adding relatives initially set up two fundraisers but merged them to help with funeral costs and additional expenses.
As of Friday afternoon, the GoFundMe page had raised $2,150,490 of its $10,000 goal.
“Hi, my name is Debra Austin, Irma Garcia was my cousin and one of the teachers killed at Robb Elementary in Uvalde, Texas,” the page read, noting Irma was a “wonderful person” who would do anything for anyone.
“She loved her classroom kids and died trying to protect them. Please donate anything you can to help her family. 100% of the proceeds will go to the Garcia family for various expenses,” it continued.
“I am equally devasted to report Irma’s husband Joe has tragically passed away this morning (5/26/2022) as a result of a medical emergency,” the fundraiser added. “I truly believe Joe died of a broken heart and losing the love of his life of more than 25 years was too much to bear.”
Donors expressed their sadness on the page, one person writing, “I wish I could donate all the money I have. I am so sorry this happened to your family.”
“My deepest condolences. No family should ever have to bear such tragedy. I know money will not bring them back, but I hope their 4 children know they have a community behind them,” another commented.
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