One was a man who died shielding his wife from gunfire on their wedding anniversary. Another was a city of Las Vegas employee who died in his boyfriend’s arms. And two others were a veteran corrections officer and his girlfriend who died on the trip they had planned for weeks.
At least 58 people were killed and nearly 500 others were injured Sunday night, authorities say, when a gunman fired on an outdoor country musical festival from the 32nd floor of a Las Vegas hotel in the deadliest mass shooting in modern American history.
Here are some of the victims’ stories:
Andrea Castilla
Andrea Castilla was holding hands with her sister, Athena, at the music festival when the gunfire erupted, according to aGoFundMe pageset up by her family. She was shot in the head.
Her boyfriend, Derek Miller, Athena and her fiancé, Shane Armstrong, carried Andrea out of the concert venue as bullets continued to rain down, according to the fundraising page. They stopped a passing truck to take her to a hospital, where she died.
“Her beautiful soul will live on forever,” her father, Gus, wrote on Facebook. “I will think of her every day not… I feel Andrea is now an angel in heaven.”
In another post, her father added, “I will cry my self to sleep… Daddy misses you.”
Castilla worked at Sephora in Huntington Beach, California. A company statement said she was “known to her colleagues … for her vibrancy, liveliness, caring and consideration of others.”
Carrie Parsons
Carrie Parsons, 31, was “always the life of the party and had the biggest heart,” her aunt Barbara wrote on Facebook.
“We lost our beautiful niece to a totally senseless act in Las Vegas,” Barbara Parsons wrote. “There really are no words to describe the pain of missing Carrie on our whole family. … Recently engaged, she had her whole life in front of her.”
A Seattle-area resident, Parsons was at the Las Vegas music festival on a trip with her girlfriends, CNN affiliate KOMO reported.
“She would always say, ‘live, laugh, love’ and she did that,” her friend Laura Cooper told KOMO.
Parsons, a lover of country music, had a “vibrant, bubbly personality,” her friend Robbie Walden told CNN affiliate KCPQ.
Austin Meyer
Austin Meyer, a Marina, California, resident, was at the concert with his fiancée Dana Getreu to celebrate his 24th birthday, according toCNN affiliate KSBW. They were also celebrating an upcoming anniversary.
Meyer had recently moved to Reno, Nevada, where he was an automotive student at Truckee Meadows Community College, the school said in a statement.
“He was a wonderful young man and my future son-in-law,” Getreu’s father, Gary, said in the statement posted on the college’s Facebook page.
“He loved attending the automotive program at your school and praised it all the time. … The loss and grief his family and mine feel at this time is beyond belief.”
Mayer hoped to open his own auto repair shop after graduation, according to his sister, Veronica Meyer.
“He was excited to get married and start a family,” she told KSBW.
She described her brother as “ambitious, smart, and hard-working,” and said he “always had a smile on his face.”
Brett Schwanbeck
Brett Schwanbeck, 61, attended the music festival with his fiancée, Anna Orozco, who survived and told his family he had been fatally shot, according to his niece, Carla Van Hoosen.
“Brett was a great man that was funny, generous, kind, loving and so full of joy,” Van Hoosen wrote on a GoFundMe page she started for his family’s expenses.
“He would drive 500 miles to help you if you needed it. He loved his family dearly and cherished lake trips, family gatherings, hunting, camping and spending time with his kids and grandkids.”
The Bullhead City, Arizona, resident died from his injuries Tuesday at Sunrise Hospital & Medical Center in Las Vegas. The retired truck driver is survived by five siblings, three children and five grandchildren.
Teresa Nicol Kimura
Teresa Nicol Kimura, known as Nicol, was at the concert with six friends, said Ryan Miller, pastor at For His Glory Community Church in Fullerton, California.
Miller was among those friends. He said they all scattered when the shooting started. After the rest of the group reconnected, the friends learned Kimura had died.
Kimura, 38, of Placentia, California, worked for the California Department of Tax and Fee Administration in Irvine.
“Nicol’s heart was bigger than most human beings, her spirit was beautiful, her laugh was infectious, and she just had a way of making every time we gathered an awesome one,” Miller wrote on a GoFundMe page he started for her family. “She made you jealous of how much she loved life. And if you didn’t know her, you missed out on a better life than the one you have.”
Responding to the news, the press office of California Gov. Jerry Brown wrote on Twitter, “Sad to learn @cdtfa employee Teresa Nicol Kimura was a victim of the Las Vegas shooting. We send sincere condolences to family & coworkers.”
Keri Lynn Galvan
Keri Lynn Galvan, 31, lived in Thousand Oaks, California. The mother of three was a server at Mastro’s Steakhouse.
“Her days started and ended with doing everything in her power to be a wonderful mother,” her sister Lindsey Poole wrote on a GoFundMe page created for the family. “She was senselessly murdered on October 1st, 2017 while enjoying a night out with her husband and friends.”
Tilman Fertitta, chairman and CEO of Landry’s Inc., Mastro’s parent company, said the company is deeply saddened by Galvan’s death.
“Keri was with our Mastro’s family for almost 10 years and was a valued member of our team,” Fertitta said. “Our condolences go out to her family and all those who knew and cared for Keri. We are raising funds internally to help support her family during this difficult time.”
Rocio Guillen Rocha
Rocio Guillen Rocha and her fiancé were in Las Vegas to celebrate a friend’s birthday, and the couple were at the concert when she was shot.
She was taken to a hospital but didn’t survive, her family said.
A resident of Anaheim, California, she leaves behind four children, including a son born just weeks ago.
She was an assistant manager at a California Pizza Kitchen restaurant — and she once struggled through what was once feared to be permanent paralysis, said her eldest son, Marcus Guillen, 18.
“She was paralyzed having my brother” years ago, Guillen told CNN. “She had a blood clot in her spine. The doctors said she would never walk again. She proved everyone wrong. She was able walk. After that, she ran half marathons.
“She did everything she could. She always fought for us. I want (people) to remember just how much a fighter she was and how much she worked and how much she provided for us.”
She is survived by her fiancé, Chris Jaksha, and her children: Marcus; Christopher, 13; Sofia, 1; and a 1-month-old, Austin.
Patricia ‘Pati’ Mestas
Patricia “Pati” Mestas, 67, attended the festival with some friends and was near the front of the stage when the shooting began, her cousin Tom Smith said.
Mestas was a retired gas station, convenience store and deli manager from Menifee, California, and she loved country music, traveling and her family, Smith said.
“This was the best part of her life,” Smith said, adding she talked of having time now to be with her grandchildren. “I remember the almost constant laughter.”
Smith recalls spending time with Mestas in March after their last remaining uncle died. He sat next to her at dinner. “It was difficult for life to defeat her,” he said. “I remember her being able to talk about the good things, rather than talk about illnesses, like older people do. She loved to laugh, loved to smile — a big smile that would line up the whole of her face.”
Mestas leaves two brothers, three children, eight grandchildren and one great-grandchild.
Brian Fraser
Brian Fraser of La Palma, California, attended the festival with about 20 people that included his wife and children. Nick Arellano, the oldest of Fraser’s four children, described him as “the most involved parent.”
He coached his children’s football and baseball teams and was in the school parents’ association. Arellano was 11 when Fraser married his mother and adopted him. The couple had three other children, who are ages 17, 10 and 4. “He took care of all (of) us,” Arellano said. “Every person he was in contact with saw his love and compassion and honesty.”
Jason Aldean, the last act of Route 91 Harvest, was Fraser’s favorite country singer. Fraser and his wife were walking toward the stage for his favorite Aldean song, “Dirt Road Anthem” when he was shot, Arellano said. A friend performed CPR on Fraser and loaded him into a wheel barrow to seek medical attention. Doctors and nurses did everything they could, but Fraser died of his injuries. “We don’t know who they are, but we want to thank them,” Arellano said.
Fraser was vice president of sales at Greenpath Funding. The company released a statement after his death: “Brian Fraser impacted everyone who crossed his path with his infectious positive energy, his tenacious will to succeed, and his willingness to help others.
“Our hearts are broken, and the Greenpath family will never forget you, Brian.”
Denise Cohen
Denise Cohen of Carpinteria, California, was a property manager in Santa Barbara with two children. She attended the concert with her companion, Derrick “Bo” Taylor.
The couple had been planning the trip for weeks, her friend Leana Orsua told CNN affiliate KEYT. Cohen was planning to volunteer at the California Avocado Festival the following weekend.
“She was a very active, social person. She touched so many lives. She was a super positive, genuine, kindhearted individual,” Orsua said.
She said Cohen and Taylor met at a social gathering and quickly became friends, then roommates. Orsua shared a text message with KETY from Cohen’s son, Jeff Rees, remembering his mother.
“Our mother was such a strong, beautiful and happy woman who made a difference to the lives of everyone she knew,” he wrote. “She was such a happy person and enjoyed doing the things in life that she loved. We can see by the last photo of her that she was indeed happy and with a person that loves her, Bo.”
Derrick ‘Bo’ Taylor
Derrick “Bo” Taylor, 56, was a veteran with the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation.
Taylor joined the department about 30 years ago, rising to the rank of lieutenant. He worked at the Ventura Conservation Camp, which houses up to 110 adult male inmates. The camp helps train inmates to become regional firefighters.
He attended the concert with his girlfriend, Denise Cohen.
Taylor’s loss will be felt deeply, Warden Joel Martinez wrote in a memo to staff, according to a department newsletter.
“There are no words to express the feeling of loss and sadness regarding Bo’s passing. Our thoughts and prayers are with his family and friends,” Martinez wrote.
In the comments section of the notice on his death, people praised Taylor as a good co-worker and friend. As one person said, “Bo was a great man, as a supervisor he set the bar so high that no one will ever be able to touch it.”
Kurt von Tillow
Kurt von Tillow of Cameron Park, California, and his wife Mary Jo were best friends who did everything together. They golfed together and recently brought their two grandchildren to Disneyland. Together, they attended the country musical festival with their daughter and two more relatives.
Von Tillow’s wife and daughter escaped unharmed. But the 55-year-old truck driver died of his injuries, a relative told CNN. Von Tillow’s sister and niece were hospitalized Monday and are expected to survive, Janet Carson-Tenney said.
“He lived a perfect life. He was loved by everybody, he didn’t have an enemy, he didn’t have a mean bone in his body. He was the life of the party,” Carson-Tenney told CNN. She’ll remember his laugh and how much he loved his family.
Jack Beaton
Jack Beaton of Bakersfield, California, and his wife Laurie were celebrating their 23rd wedding anniversary with friends at the concert.
He was shot while shielding his wife from the gunfire, CNN affiliate KBAK reported.
“He never passed up an opportunity to give somebody a hand,” Beaton’s father-in-law Jerry Cook told KBAK. “He always had a smile on his face. He had countless friends. Everybody that came in contact with him loved the guy.”
Three hours before the shooting, he posted a blurry photo on Facebook of the gang lounging on the lawn, koozie-covered beers in hand.
The day after the shooting, Beaton’s son shared a picture on Twitter of his father and asked for prayers.
“He jumped in front of my mom and got shot,” he wrote. “I love you dad.”
Later, he posted on Facebook: “Lost my best friend. I love you so much more (than) you could ever imagine.”
John Phippen
John Phippen, a 56-year-old father of six, was fatally shot while shielding a woman from the gunfire, Phippen’s neighbor said.
Phippen was hit after his son stopped to help someone else, said Leah Nagyivanyi, Phippen’s neighbor and close friend for 17 years. His son was wounded in the arm, she said.
Phippen lost his wife three years ago, said Nagyivanyi. Her family went on camping trips with Phippen and his clan. He was the kind of person who got along with both children and adults, she said.
“Our kids look up to us, and look to us for guidance, but these kids considered John their best friend,” Nagyivani said. “That tells a lot about the kind of person you are. He was everybody’s best friend.”
One time, when a boat flipped over during a camping trip, Phippen and his son sprang into action just like they did at the concert, she said.
“He was a man of integrity who always had your back,” she said. “There is nothing he couldn’t do for you, wouldn’t do for you. You didn’t even have to ask.”
Thomas Day Jr.
Thomas Day Jr., 54, of Riverside, California, was with his four children at the festival, said Bruce Abbey, a vice president of a California construction company where Day worked.
His daughter Whitney Day wrote the following about her father:
“My sisters Candice and Kelsey and brother Nolan and I just want to say that he was our rock, he was our everything. Anyone he came across he put a smile on their face. All our friends would call him Daddy Day because he treated everyone like one of his own and it was an honor to us all to be able to share our dad with the world.”
Day was an estimator at Portrait Construction in Corona, California, and had been at the company for more than 20 years, Abbey said.
Austin Davis
Austin Davis, a pipefitter from Riverside, California, was at the concert with a friend and her family. The friend’s father, Tom Day Jr., was also killed.
His girlfriend of nine years, Aubree Hennigan, said he loved playing softball. Katelyn Hood, who said Davis was her best friend and her baby’s godfather, described him as a man’s man with a contagious smile.
“He worked so very hard and took the most pride in that and anything he did. Austin didn’t half-a** anything in life. If he knew you, he loved you. That’s just how he cared for people,” Hood said.
Davis’ mother, Lori Quick, said he was her everything. In his last text to her, he said, “I kinda want to come home, I love home,” Quick said in a Facebook post.
“He is coming home not in a way that any parent would want him to. We wanted to bring him home in our arms,” she said.
Chris Hazencomb
Chris Hazencomb, 44, was excited to see one of his favorite artists, Jason Aldean, at Route 91 Harvest.
Hazencomb went to the festival with his friend Nikki Torres. Torres said she and her husband knew Hazencomb for years and considered him part of their family.
“He was the nicest person I have known. He loved to help people and thought of others before himself,” she told CNN.
Like many attendees, they thought the first round of gunshots were firecrackers. “After the second or third rounds, we realized that it was bad,” Torres said. “That is when I looked over and he was on the ground.”
After that, Torres said her memories blur together. She saw a man try to help Hazencomb while others led her away from the scene.
Hazencomb’s mother told the Ventura County Star that he was a sports a junkie who worked at the Walmart Neighborhood Market in Camarillo, California.
Laura Shipp
Laura Shipp, 50, spent two days at the festival with her son, Corey. They were “big concertgoers, especially when it came to country,” a family friend said in an online fund-raiser.
At some point during the shooting, the two became separated, and Corey Shipp spent the day afterward looking for his mother. By Wednesday, she had been identified, her brother told CNN.
Shipp, an avid Dodgers fan, moved to Las Vegas about five years ago to be closer to her son, the Ventura County Star reported.
“She was his world and he was hers,” her brother Steve Shipp told the newspaper.
Aimee Mack, one of Shipp’s friends, told CNN that they’d been close since they met in the ninth grade, and that Shipp was generous and “was smart as a whip and had a huge heart.”
“Laura made friends with everyone,” Mack said.
Victor Link
Victor Link of Aliso Viejo, California, described himself on his company’s website as a “tequila quality control tester.” He also enjoyed traveling, snowboarding, golfing, cooking and wine tasting with family and friends.
Andrew Soss said that Link worked for his mortgage originator business.
“He was the most genuine, stand-up guy you’ll ever meet. He brought a smile to everyone’s face,” Soss said.
Link was attending the concert with his fiancée and their friends.
“They came back from a two-week trip from Europe a month ago, and they were traveling and living life,” his nephew Vincent Link told The Bakersfield Californian.
Christiana Duarte
Christiana Duarte had recently started working for the Los Angeles Kings after graduating from the University of Arizona in May with a degree in mass communications. The NHL team put out a call for information about her Sunday night.
“Our organization is overwhelmed with grief over the loss of our colleague Chrissy,” Kings President Luc Robitaille said in a statement. “In just a brief period of time, Chrissy had an immeasurable impact on all of us. We want to make every effort to ensure that everyone knows how special she was and the impact she already had made on so many people.
She had worked with the Los Angeles Rams as well as the Arizona Diamondbacks. She enjoyed playing intramural soccer, softball and volleyball.
Her alma mater confirmed her death. The school said it is reaching out to those who knew her, including her Sigma Kappa sorority sisters.
“All of us in the University of Arizona community are saddened that Christiana Duarte, one of our graduates from this past May, is among the victims from Las Vegas on Sunday night,” President Robert C. Robbins said in a statement. “This attack is a terrible tragedy for hundreds of families, and it is a shocking and horrific event for all of us. I know I speak for the UA community in expressing our deepest condolences to Christiana’s family and in asking for their privacy to be respected.”
Carly Kreibaum
Carly Kreibaum’s passion for art lives on in a Sutherland, Iowa, flower shop, where she painted flowers on the storefront. Florist Bonnie Wallinga, owner of The Menagerie, told CNN affiliate KTIV that the married mother of two didn’t have a mean bone in her body.
Kreibaum’s sister-in-law confirmed that she was among the victims of the mass shooting.
Brennan Lee Stewart
Las Vegas native Brennan Lee Stewart shielded his girlfriend and helped others to safety before he was shot dead, his family said in a statement.
“Brennan was the kind of guy who always put others before himself, including up to the moment he lost his life,” the family said.
Stewart loved country music, played the guitar and wrote music, his family said.
Last year he posted to Facebook his cover of the Cole Swindell song “You Should Be Here.” As of Wednesday, the post received more than 134,000 views and more than 1,170 shares.
“His love for country music was shown through the songs that he wrote, and the music he played on his guitar. Brennan rarely missed an opportunity to attend a country concert,” his family said.
Dana Gardner
Dana Gardner of Grand Terrace, California, was the deputy recorder of the San Bernardino County assessor-recorder-clerk’s office.
“We are devastated and still in shock trying to comprehend what happened last (Sunday) night,” her daughter Kayla Gardner posted to Facebook on Monday. “My family and I appreciate the outpouring of love and support and ask for prayers at this time.”
Dana Gardner was a county employee for more than two decades and was known for her “can-do” attitude and vibrant energy, said Bob Dutton, San Bernardino County’s assessor-recorder-clerk.
“Dana will be dearly missed by family, friends, and co-workers. San Bernardino County mourns her loss. We offer our deepest condolences to Dana’s loved ones and to all those impacted by this horrific event,” Dutton said.
“Our mom was an amazing human being and she stood for everything good in the world,” Gardner’s daughter, Kayla, told CNN. “She had a contagious smile that would light up a room and a sense of humor that would make everyone laugh.”
“She instilled in us the importance of love and caring for human beings, and was a person with no hate who saw people for their character and always saw the good in them,” she said.
Cameron Robinson
Cameron Robinson lived in southwestern Utah but commuted to Las Vegas, where he worked as a legal records specialist, said his sister, Meghan Ervin.
He was at the concert with his boyfriend, Ervin told CNN affiliate KUTV.
Dorene Anderson
Dorene Anderson, 49, of Alaska, was at the concert with her daughters, CNN affiliate KTUU in Anchorage reported.
The Alaska Housing Finance Corp., which employs her husband, John, confirmed her death.
Dorene Anderson’s family released this statement through the employer:
“Due to this horrific and terrible situation, our family is dealing with a great loss. She (Dorene) was the most amazing wife, mother and person this world ever had. We are so grateful and lucky for the time that we did have with her. We are greatly appreciative and want to thank everyone for the thoughts and prayers you have been sending us. We are dealing with the situation as a family, and would appreciate our privacy as we grieve for our loss.”
Lisa Patterson
Lisa Patterson, from Los Angeles’ San Pedro community, was a mother of three. She was attending the concert with four friends.
Patterson was active in church, helped coach in a girls’ softball league and was devoted to her family, said her husband, Robert Patterson.
After hearing about the shooting, he drove to Las Vegas with his son and eldest daughter on Monday morning but couldn’t immediately find out what happened to his wife.
A coroner called him Monday evening to tell him she’d passed away. He returned to Los Angeles, where he broke the news of her death to their youngest daughter, who’s 8.
“I can’t believe she’s gone. … She was such a warm, caring person. There was nobody that cared more about people and life than my wife, Lisa,” Robert Patterson told CNN affiliate KCBS.
“She was such an amazing person. She cared for so many people,” her eldest daughter, Amber Patterson, told CNN. “She was so enthusiastic. She was literally the best mom, and she was my best friend.”
Amber said she appreciated hearing people’s fond memories of her mother.
“When I got my belly button pierced and her going with me … that kind of stuff really is what makes me think of her and makes me happy to remember her,” she said.
Steve Berger
Steve Berger of Wauwatosa, Wisconsin, was killed in Sunday’s attack, his father told CNN affiliate WTMJ.
He was celebrating his 44th birthday with friends in Las Vegas, the TV station reported.
Berger moved to Minnesota about 10 years ago and was a financial adviser for EFS Advisors.
“Steve was passionate about his work as a financial adviser, and was beloved by his clients,” the company said in a statement. “He cared so much for others and was always willing to take time to listen to clients, friends, and co-workers to offer a helping hand.”
The father of three children was able to run a successful financial planning business, get his kids to school in the morning and off to soccer practice in the evening, his father, Richard Berger, told CNN affiliate WCCO.
“He was the greatest father for his three kids that you’d ever want,” the elder Berger told the TV station.
Bill Wolfe Jr.
Bill Wolfe Jr. was a youth wrestling coach in Shippensburg, Pennsylvania.
“It is with the most of broken hearts, the families of Bill Wolfe Jr. and his wife, Robyn, share that Bill has been confirmed to be among the deceased as a result of the mass attack in Las Vegas,” the Shippensburg Police Department said on Facebook.
Carl Bert, owner of a surveying and engineering firm, told CNN affiliate WPVI that Wolfe had once worked for him as an engineer. Bert described him as personable, fun, easy to work with and a devoted Christian, WPVI reported.
Jordyn Rivera
Jordyn Rivera was in her fourth year at California State University, San Bernardino. The university released a statement confirming her death.
“It is with the utmost sadness I must report that a member of our campus community is among the victims,” university President Tomás Morales said.
Rivera was warm, optimistic and kind, he said.
Katie Ortega, who has known Rivera for years, said they played softball together as kids.
Rivera “was and always will be a role model to many,” Ortega said. “She would always make it a point to make every single individual feel special, always laughing at my stupid jokes.”
She was passionate about softball.
“That softball diamond was her heaven,” Ortega said.
Heather Warino Alvarado
Heather Alvarado, 35, was a mother of three and married to Albert Alvarado, a firefighter in Cedar City, Utah. The couple loved traveling with their three children.
“She always saw the good in others. She spent her whole life serving others in her family and community,” the Cedar City Fire Department said in a Facebook post.
“She was happiest when she was together with her family, especially her children and she would do anything for them.”
“They appreciate your many words of kindness and concern,” the post said.
Candice Bowers
Candice Bowers was a single mother of three. Her family described her as a superhero who loved country music.
“It was a gift that she was able to spend her final moments doing what she loved with those she loved even more,” her family said.
“Her strength, fierce loyalty and memory will live on through their lives and those of her family and friends who loved her so dearly.”
Her children included a recently adopted 2-year-old, her family said in a statement.
Adrian Murfitt
Adrian Murfitt, 35, was a commercial fisherman from Alaska.
Murfitt had surprised his friend with a weekend trip to Las Vegas when the shooting happened. His friend Brian MacKinnonheld him in his lap as he passed away from gunshot wounds.
His mother, Avonna Murfitt, told CNN that her son was jolly and caring.
ʺEvery one of his friends was his best friend,ʺ she said. ʺHe will be missed by all who knew him, and most of all by me.ʺ
The outpouring of love has been amazing, Avonna Murfitt said.
“We are humbled by the way everyone who knew him has offered assistance to help in bringing him home and celebrating his life,” she said.
Kelsey Meadows
Kelsey Meadows, 28, was a substitute teacher in California’s Taft Union High School District.
Meadows graduated from Taft Union High School in 2007 and later earned a bachelor’s degree from Fresno State University. She returned to the Taft community, where she had worked as a regular substitute teacher with the district since 2012, the district said in a statement.
Taft Union High School Principal Mary Alice Finn said Meadows was “smart, compassionate and kind.”
“She had a sweet spirit and a love for children,” Finn said. “Words cannot adequately capture the sorrow felt by her students, colleagues and friends in learning of her passing.”
Melissa Ramirez
Melissa Ramirez graduated from California State University Bakersfield in 2014 with a bachelor’s degree in business administration.
Flags at the school were lowered on Monday in honor of Ramirez and the other victims and will remain so through sunset on Friday, the school said in a statement.
“We are terribly saddened to learn that we lost a member of our CSUB family in this senseless act of violence. Our entire CSUB campus community is heartbroken, and we send our deepest sympathies to Melissa Ramirez’s family and friends,” the school said.
Rachael Parker
Rachael Parker was a 33-year-old records technician for the police department in Manhattan Beach, California. She also had eyes on higher education.
Parker earned her bachelor’s degree in social work from Colorado State University in June 2016, Manhattan Beach Police Department said. She was in the process of applying to graduate school, police said.
She worked for nearly a decade at the front desk of the police station. Even in those stressful confines, she was known for her “cheerful and compassionate demeanor,” police said.
“Rachael’s smile could light up a room, even on the most difficult of days.”
She had a particular passion for working with older adults. She completed her undergraduate practicum by working with Manhattan Beach’s Older Adults Program.
She loved her two adopted dogs, Maddie and Izzy. She enjoyed baking, country music and Los Angeles Kings hockey, police said.
“Rachael, we love you and we miss you. Our hearts are breaking,” police wrote. “Please keep Rachael’s family and friends in your thoughts during this difficult time.”
She was one of four off-duty Manhattan Beach police employees who attended the Vegas concert. She died at the hospital. Another police employee, a sworn officer, was shot and suffered minor injuries, the department said.
Jordan McIldoon
Jordan McIldoon, a 25-year-old from Maple Ridge, British Columbia, died holding the hand of a stranger at the concert.
Heather Gooze told CNN she somehow ended up next to McIldoon. Even though she didn’t know him, she held his hand during his final minutes. She felt a squeeze from his fingers, then felt his hand go loose.
Gooze said she knew there was nothing more to do. Yet, she stayed with McIldoon for hours. When his phone rang, she answered it and learned his name and told the caller everything was not OK.
She relayed the news of his death to his long-term girlfriend and his mother, all the while staying by his side, she said.
“I didn’t want Jordan to not have somebody with him,” she told CNN through tears. “I didn’t want him to just be a no-named body. I knew who he was, and now I had an obligation to make sure that everyone knew who he was.”
McIldoon’s mother told Gooze he was a good, nice and fun person.
“He loved his girlfriend and had great family and great friends,” Gooze told CNN.
Christopher Roybal
Christopher Roybal, 28, was a general manager at a Crunch gym in North Colorado Springs, Colorado. He was known there for his “big teddy bear smile and infectious laughter,” said David Harman, managing partner at Crunch.
“More than a team member, we lost someone who was a son, mentor, friend and hero, as a Navy veteran who served in Afghanistan,” Harman said.
Ryan Chiaverini, Roybal’s former brother-in-law, told CNN that Roybal was attending the concert with his mother to celebrate his 29th birthday. He had a really good sense of humor and had a “fun, sweet, innocent way about him,” Chiaverini said.
In a Facebook post from July, Roybal poignantly reflected on what it’s like being shot at from his time overseas.
“My response has always been the same, not one filled with a sense of pride or ego, but an answer filled with truth and genuine fear/anger,” he wrote.
He said his first fight was something he’d never forget. He felt sensory overload and extreme adrenaline, making him “excited, angry and manic.” But as the fights continued, the excitement faded, leaving just the anger, he wrote.
“What’s it like to be shot at? It’s a nightmare no amount of drugs, no amount of therapy and no amount of drunk talks with your war veteran buddies will ever be able to escape,” he wrote. “Cheers boys.”
Hannah Ahlers
Brian Ahlers told CNN his wife of 17 years was “shot in the head while dancing” with him at the music festival.
Hannah Ahlers, 34, was a stay-at-home mom of three who had lived in Beaumont, California, for the last five years, but was originally from Redlands.
“She was a full-time house wife and mommy and she was amazing at it,” he said. “Very active in moms groups and our daughter’s volleyball team. She wasn’t too good for anybody. Beautiful inside and out.”
Ryan Chiaverini, who was friends with Ahlers, told CNN that “she couldn’t hurt a fly.”
“She was one of the kindest people I’ve met,” he said.
Stacee Etcheber
The San Francisco Police Officers Association confirmed Tuesday that Stacee Etcheber was killed in the attack.
Etcheber attended the concert with her husband, Vinnie Etcheber, a San Francisco police officer who was off-duty. When the shooting began, Vinnie Etcheber told his wife to run as he began to render aid to those wounded, the police union said in a statement.
“With heavy hearts, we’ve learned that Stacee Etcheber has passed away. Stacee was a wonderful, caring wife, mother, and daughter. She will be terribly missed,” union President Martin Halloran said in a statement.
“Our deepest condolences go out to the entire Etcheber family and our thoughts and prayers are with all those who lost a loved one during this tragic attack.”
Denise Salmon Burditus
Denise Salmon Burditus, 50, was a retired banking professional who had just returned to college. She was the former president of the Association of the US Army subchapter in Lacey, Washington, according to NorthwestMilitary.com.
She and her husband, Tony, were in Las Vegas enjoying a weekend away from their West Virginia home.
The couple, who were married for 32 years, posted pictures on social media of themselves lounging by the pool and having dinner with friends. About 30 minutes before the shooting, Denise Burditus posted a picture of the two standing in front of the Route 91 Harvest stage.
The couple were dancing together when the gunfire started and continued through the first burst of gunfire, not sure what it was. During the second burst, Tony Burditus said he was leading his wifethrough the crowd when a bullet hit her.
A stranger helped him move her, and someone rode with them to a hospital in the back of a truck. Tony Burditus said his wife died in his arms.
“It saddens me to say that I lost my wife of 32 years, a mother of two, soon to be grandmother of 5 this evening in the Las Vegas Shooting,” he wrote on Facebook. “Denise passed in my arms. I LOVE YOU BABE.”
Charleston Hartfield
Charleston Hartfield was many things: a Las Vegas police officer, an accomplished Nevada Army National Guard sergeant first class and a youth football coach.
But beyond those titles, he “epitomizes everything good about America,” said Brig. Gen. Zachary Doser, commander of the Nevada National Guard.
Hartfield was off-duty and attending the Route 91 Harvest concert when he was shot and killed, the Guard said in a statement.
Though just 34, Hartfield wrote a memoir titled “Memoirs of a Public Servant,” which documented the “thoughts, feelings, and interactions of one Police Officer in the busiest and brightest city in the world, Las Vegas.”
“Charleston Hartfield lived to serve the public and protect his family,” Brig. Gen. William Burks, the adjutant general of the Nevada National Guard, said. “He is the epitome of a citizen-soldier.”
Hartfield — or “Coach Chucky,” as some called him — was also a coach for the Henderson Cowboys youth football program, the group said on Facebook.
“Coach Hartfield touched many lives both on and off the field. He was a great man who we all lost way (too) early,” the program said.
Stan King, the father of one of the players on the team, said he was “an absolute all-American kind of guy.”
“He is one of the nicest guys I know and helped countless youth become winners through NYS football here in Henderson, Nevada,” King said. “This kind of guy comes around once in a blue moon. He was a very special guy to the community.”
Angela Gomez
Angela “Angie” Gomez was a “fun-loving, sweet young lady with a great sense of humor” who loved the stage, the Riverside Unified School District said in a statement.
Gomez attended Riverside Polytechnic High School in California and was a member of the class of 2015. She acted on stage with the Riverside Children’s Theater, was involved in the middle and high school choir, and was a cheerleader for the high school, the school district said.
She challenged herself academically with honors and Advanced Placement courses, the school district said. And she “was always seen with a smile on her face whenever she was on campus.”
“Angie was a loyal friend who loved her family and will be forever missed by all those who knew her,” the district said.
Her English teacher and cheer coach Lupe Avila said the school was “deeply saddened by the loss of a wonderful young woman who had her whole life ahead of her.”
Sonny Melton
Sonny Melton, 29, a registered nurse from Tennessee, was shot and killed in the attack Sunday night, according to the Henry County Medical Center in Paris, Tennessee, where he worked.
His wife, Heather Melton, an orthopedic surgeon at Innovative Orthopedics, survived the mass shooting, the statement reads.
In an interview with CNN affiliate WSMV, Heather Melton said her husband saved her life amid the gunfire.
“He saved my life. He grabbed me and started running when I felt him get shot in the back,” she said. “I want everyone to know what a kind-hearted, loving man he was, but at this point, I can barely breathe.”
Sonny Melton graduated from Union University in 2015 with a Bachelor of Science in Nursing Accelerated degree and was president of his BSNA class, according to the university.
“You know how when you met someone and you just know that they’re good and kind? That was Sonny,” said Christy Davis, assistant professor of nursing at Union. “He just had a sweet, kind spirit about him.”
Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam tweeted that he was praying for those affected by the shooting, including Melton’s family.
“In particular, Crissy and I extend our condolences and prayers to the family of Sonny Melton from West Tennessee who was among those killed in this tragedy,” Haslam said. “We know other Tennesseans were in attendance or performing at the event, and my thoughts go out to them as we grieve and process the enormity of this attack. Tennessee stands with Las Vegas during this difficult time.”
Sandra Casey
Sandra Casey, a special education teacher at California’s Manhattan Beach Middle School, was fatally wounded in the shooting, according to Mike Matthews, the Manhattan Beach Unified School District Superintendent.
Casey had taught there for the past nine years and will be remembered for her sense of humor, her passion for her work, her devotion to her students, and her commitment to continuing her own learning and to taking on whatever new projects came her way, Matthews said.
“Our students, employees, and parents are devastated by Sandy Casey’s death. We lost a spectacular teacher who devoted her life to helping some of our most needy students,” Matthews said.
Several other members of the Manhattan Beach school district attended the music festival as well but were unharmed, the school district said.
Jenny Parks
Jenny Parks, a kindergarten teacher for the Westside Union School District in California, was among those who died in the Vegas shooting, according to Steven McCarthy, her husband’s uncle.
“She was truly one of the most loving people you could ever hope to meet,” McCarthy said. “She always went out of her way to help anybody.”
He said that he never saw her upset, and never saw her sad.
Her husband, Bobby Parks, is currently in surgery after a bullet injured his arm and finger, McCarthy said. He said that Bobby Parks is responsive and aware that his wife passed away.
Jenny Parks has two brothers who lived in Las Vegas, and the couple was visiting them.
Quinton Robbins
Quinton Robbins, from Henderson, Nevada, “was the most kind and loving soul,” his aunt, Kilee Wells Sanders, said on Facebook.
Robbins’ uncle, Mike Wells, confirmed that Robbins died and said his family was in disbelief. Quinton Robbins coached his younger brother’s flag football team, and the two siblings had just attended a Dodgers game together.
“Everyone who met him, loved him,” Sanders wrote. “His contagious laugh and smile. He was truly an amazing person. He will be missed by so many, he is loved by so many. So many awesome talents. I can’t say enough good about this sweet soul.”
Neysa Tonks
Neysa Tonks, a Las Vegas resident and single mother of three, attended a company event before going to the concert with her co-workers from Technologent.
A bullet hit Tonks in the head, killing her. Someone called her family around midnight Sunday.
“I was in my bed and I heard my brother yelling and my dad was crying, which didn’t seem normal,” her 14-year-old son, Greysen, told CNN.
Greysen turned to his dad for answers. “And he said, ‘Your mom was shot in the head. She is dead.’ I froze,” the boy recalled this week.
She also leaves behind her sons Kaden Manczek, 24, and Braxton, 17.
Manczek said although he is numb, “you are so happy for the life that she had.”
“And what an amazing life she lived,” he said.
Tonks’ mother, Debbie Davis, said the family would like to live by something her daughter used to say.
“If you ever said something like, ‘Oh, I just hate that,’ she’d say, ‘Don’t be a hater.’ She said that all the time,” Davis said. “Even if you said you hated broccoli, she’d go, ‘Don’t be a hater.’
“She just (was) a wonderful person with a huge light, that we will not let be dimmed.”
Technologent has established a GoFundMe page on behalf of Tonks’ family. The effort had raised more than $155,000 by Wednesday.
Susan Smith
Susan Smith, a 53-year-old mother who was the office manager for Vista Elementary School in California, was killed in the shooting, according to Jake Finch, the Simi Valley Unified School District’s media relations coordinator.
Smith, who had been with the school district for 16 years, was a “big country music fan” and had gone to Las Vegas with a couple of friends for the music festival, Finch said.
She was “always so welcoming,” Finch said, and served as the “right hand to the principal.”
Smith was married with two young-adult children, Finch said. Her own kids were once a part of the school district and she was very active as a parent, Finch said.
“Everybody knew her,” he added. “She touched a lot of lives.”
The PTA at Vista Fundamental Elementary School posted condolences for Smith on Facebook, saying “she was a wonderful woman, an advocate for our children, and a friend.”
Bailey Schweitzer
Bailey Schweitzer was with her mother watching some of their favorite bands at the Route 91 concert in Las Vegas when the 20-year-old was shot and killed, according to CNN affiliate KBAK.
Schweitzer graduated from Centennial High School, where she was a cheerleader and played volleyball. She was also a member of the Valley Bible Fellowship Church and helped run her family’s business, Bakersfield Speedway.
Matt Woessner, a family friend, watched Bailey grow up and said she “had a heart for people.” He told KBAK that “the whole community has lost a great person in Bailey Schweitzer and she’s going to be truly missed everywhere.”
Jennifer T. Irvine
San Diego-based attorney Jennifer T. Irvine, who was on vacation in Las Vegas to attend the concert, was one of the victims of the shooting, her publicist Jay Jones said.
Irvine practiced criminal and family law and owned her own boutique firm. Her websitedescribes her as a “tenacious litigator” who is passionate about assisting clients during difficult times.
The website also notes other unique interests out of the courtroom. She earned a black-belt in taekwondo, enjoyed practicing hot yoga, was an avid snowboarder, and aspired to learn indoor rock climbing and to experience sky-diving, the site says.
Jones, her publicist, released the following statement:
“Remembering a dear friend & colleague whose life was cut short by an unspeakable tragedy. Our sincerest thoughts to those affected during this difficult time. May our unity & strength shine over the darkness.”
Lisa Romero-Muniz
Lisa Romero-Muniz, a secretary for Gallup-McKinley County Schools in western New Mexico, was killed in the shooting, school district superintendent Mike Hyatt said.
Her son, Anthony Romero, told CNN she was generous and kind.
“She wore her heart on her sleeve … she would give you the last dime she had with no questions asked and treated everybody like family.”
Anthony Romero said his mother’s smile would “brighten the darkest of nights.”
She had worked for the school district since 2003 at three different schools and specifically worked as a discipline secretary, acting as an advocate for students during times of discipline.
“As many students have mentioned in some Facebook posts and to many of us, she was there for them and she respected them and tried to work with them as much as she could,” Hyatt said.
He said Romero-Muniz was outgoing, kind, and considerate of all those she worked with.
“We cannot express enough the loss that our organization feels at this time, and the heartache we feel for Lisa’s husband, children, grandchildren and family,” Hyatt said.
Rhonda LeRocque
Rhonda LeRocque of Tewksbury, Massachusetts, was one of the victims in the shooting, her family said.
Her mother, Priscilla Champagne, told CNN that LeRocque was a “beautiful woman inside and out.”
“A truly great mother, daughter, wife, aunt, sister, worker, and a good, kindhearted friend. She had a great faith in Jehovah God, and had a wonderful family life. She loved Hawaii, Disney, and country music.” she said.
“She was the best of the best. She was the hostess with the mostess … the glue who kept our family gatherings together. She will be greatly missed by us all.”
Her sister, Korina Champagne, said in a Facebook post on Monday that her heart was broken.
“My Beautiful Sister Rhonda LeRocque lost her life in the Las Vegas mass shooting,” Korina Champagne posted. “My heart is broken, I’m numb, I feel paralyzed. This doesn’t seem real. All I can do is turn to God’s Word for comfort, just as she would want me to. May she rest now until her name is called and she is awakened in paradise.”
She added a Bible passage to the end of her Facebook post, “Do not be amazed at this, for the hour is coming in which all those in the memorial tombs will hear his voice and come out, those who did good things to a resurrection of life, and those who practiced vile things to a resurrection of judgment.”
Erick Silva
Erick Silva, 21, was among the victims of Sunday’s shootings, his stepsister Daisy Hernandez said. His family is holding a vigil for him tonight in Las Vegas, where he lived. She said that he had recently started working in security because he loved helping people.
“All I can tell you is that he was a great son, brother, uncle who was loved by so many people,” Hernandez said. “He had just turned 21 this August and I’m pretty sure he died trying to protect people at that concert.”
Jessica Klymchuk
Jessica Klymchuk, a resident of Valleyview, Alberta, was also among the victims of Sunday’s shooting. A single mother of four, she was an educational assistant, librarian and bus driver for St. Stephen’s School in Valleyview, Holy Family Catholic Regional Division Superintendent Betty Turpin said in a statement.
“The scope of this tragedy is worldwide and we are feeling its impact here at home,” the statement said.
Calla Medig
Calla Medig, a resident of Jasper, Alberta, was one of the people who died in Sunday’s mass shooting, her employer confirmed.
Medig was “super mature, light heartened, grounded, down to earth,” said Scott Collingwood, general manager at Moxie’s restaurant in Edmonton, where Calla worked as a waitress since September 2015.
This was her third year attending the festival, Collingwood said. “She left a big hole in our hearts here,” he said.
Tara Roe
Tara Roe was an educational assistant with Foothills School Division in Alberta, Superintendent of Schools John Bailey said in a statement identifying her among the dead.
She also was a model for Sophia Models International, the agency said in a Facebook post.
“She was always a friendly face and had a very caring spirit. We are saddened, shocked and pray for everyone affected by this tragedy.”
Michelle Vo
Michelle Vo, a New York Life Insurance employee in its Greater Pasadena office, was among the victims of the shooting, a New York Life spokesperson said.
“Like all Americans, we are shocked and saddened at the terrible tragedy that has unfolded in Las Vegas. Our grief is deepened by knowing that a member of the New York Life family, Michelle Vo, an agent in our Greater Pasadena office, was among those killed. During this terrible time, our thoughts and prayers go out to her family and loved ones.”
Carrie Barnette
Disney employee Carrie Barnette was one of the victims of Sunday’s shooting, the company’s Chairman and CEO Robert Iger said Monday.
“A senseless, horrific, act, and a terrible loss for so many. We mourn a wonderful member of the Disney family: Carrie Barnette. Tragic,” Iger tweeted.
In a statement, the company said Barnette had worked for Disney for 10 years “and was beloved by her friends and colleagues.”
“Another valued Disney cast member, Jessica Milam, was also seriously injured and we are praying for her recovery,” the statement said.
This article has been updated to reflect a change in the victim death toll.
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