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Victims’ funds could be distributed in November

Julye Keeble 
Staff Writer

Mickey
Gerdes

Families of victims in the Robb Elementary School shooting may receive pooled funds around Thanksgiving, according to Robb School Memorial Fund steering committee chairman Mickey Gerdes.

Being transparent in their process and open to community input is paramount, he said, adding that the draft protocol is expected to be available to the public this week, and they are actively soliciting public input. 

Gerdes said the way the protocol is written, funding in tiered levels may be available to anyone on the Robb Elementary School campus on May 24.

“Essentially, the circle was around Robb, and anyone who was in imminent danger of losing their life,” Gerdes said. “That’s sort of the initial circle, and anyone present within that circle is eligible to apply.”

He said, at this time, law enforcement officers are not included in those who may apply.

In addition to a future online platform for community comment, two town hall events are planned, one in July and the other in August. The events will be open to anyone who wants to comment on the draft protocol.

Gerdes said the 10-person steering committee met at a preliminary event about two weeks ago, and then met June 22 from about 6 p.m. to approximately 11 p.m.

“We came up with a draft protocol for the applicant pool for these funds, and we expect that that draft protocol will be put out to the public for public comment,” Gerdes said, referring to the over $13 million so far collected from public donations.

“It’s a serious task. We’re charged with trying to do the right thing and honor those impacted with this tremendous outpouring of love from around the world,” he said.

The volunteer steering committee includes Gerdes, vice-chair Dr. Erika Garcia, Veronica Conoley, Sheri Rutledge, Bianca Spies, Dr. Virginia Sosa, Edward Treviño, and Julio Valdez; as well as VictimsFirst founder Anita Busch and Paola Bautista, a survivor of the shooting at the Route 91 concert in Las Vegas.

The National Compassion Fund, a subsidiary of the National Center for Victims of Crime, is assisting the steering committee with the fund distribution plan.

The first town hall is set for July 19 at 6 p.m., and various service providers, such as those available at the Uvalde Together Resiliency Center will be on-site to offer any assistance needed.

 The second town hall is set for Aug. 11 at 11:30 a.m. Both events are set to be held at the Uvalde County Fairplex, and Gerdes said the committee hopes to also livestream them.

The steering committee is set to meet again after that second town hall meeting, when they will take into consideration all public comments, and attempt to create a final protocol by Aug. 18.

Then, he said, the National Compassion Fund will create an application for those affected by the school shooting.

Gerdes said the current timeline calls for applications to be available online by around Sept. 8, and they expect to have people available to help fill out applications upon request.

He said he expects the various entities involved in funding the Robb School Memorial Fund will cease accepting donations around Oct. 20, and then evaluate the amount of funds available. 

Around that point, accountants will come in to perform an audit.

“Once we have those hard numbers that we’re working with, after the funds have been closed, then we’ll come up with a distribution plan,” Gerdes said.

Then, shortly before Thanksgiving, the National Compassion Fund should start cutting checks or transferring money via Zelle, depending upon applicant preference, Gerdes said.

jkeeble@ulnnow.com, 830-278-3335