Seattle: People have donated more than $22,000 in less than a day through an online fundraiser for the student who thwarted a shooting at a small Seattle university.
Jon Meis and other students stopped the gunman on Thursday at Seattle Pacific University.
Meis has been credited with pepper-spraying and pinning the gunman while he was reloading his shotgun.
Soon after Meis was identified, praise began to pour out on social media sites.
Someone found Meis’ wedding registry, and people quickly bought out the gifts listed.
That’s when sports radio producer Jessamyn McIntyre got the idea to begin a GoFundMe site for Meis and his fiance’s honeymoon and future. The site quickly went viral.
According to the page’s statistics, more than 700 donations have come in as of Saturday afternoon - tallies that are expected to increase.
Ms McIntyre said she hasn’t had direct contact with the Meis family, who has asked for privacy.
But she has left them her contact information. She also contacted university officials.
Ms McIntyre will leave the fundraising page up for a week, unless the family asks her to take it down, she said.
On the donations page, people continue praising Meis. One person posted, “Only one word needed: Inspiring,” to go with a $20 donation.
A 26-year-old man shot a teenager dead and injured two others wounded in Seattle on Thursday.
