A local survivor of the Las Vegas shooting is channeling her grief towards helping victims.
Lisa Fine, a professional organizer and personal trainer from Roseville, has co-created Route 91 Strong, an organization that will provide financial and emotional support for those impacted by the deadly mass shooting at the Route 91 Country Music Festival on October 1.
The group’s first event is a benefit concert on Nov. 10 at the Strikes Halftime Bar & Grill in Rocklin. Tickets are on sale now and range from $25-$50.
“It’s amazing what we’ve accomplished in such a short period of time,” Fine told ABC10 at a recent planning meeting. “The really great part about the artists doing this concert, they’re donating their time. The venue is donating the space. Everybody that’s come together has really pulled together for us.”
Route 91 Strong started after Fine did a joint-interview on CNN with Brian Claypool, a Las Vegas shooting survivor from Los Angeles.
The two have still never met in person, but say they feel a bond like family.
“The greatest part about talking with the other survivors is there’s this instant connection,” Fine explained. “We are completely one.”
Fine and Claypool realized they both wanted to continue to help others.
“The reason why we formed Route 91 Strong is to carry on the legacy of the event. In other words, we never want to forget these victims,” Claypool said. “And years from now there might be another tragedy in our country and we want to have the recourses ready to help the victims of that tragedy as well.”
They say they plan to create an application process for victims of the shooting to help determine to who and how the funds they raise get distributed.
Fine and Claypool are two of several survivors from the shooting who, while not physically injured, are still greatly traumatized by the event. Fine says she cannot sleep and is scared by loud noises. Claypool says he has been getting panic attacks from sitting in traffic because he feels trapped.
They both still wear their wristbands from the Route 91 country music festival.
“I just cannot take this bracelet off because I feel like I’ll lose this connection to those who died or were injured,” Claypool explained.
After the Rocklin concert, Claypool is planning a second concert on Nov. 29 at the Avalon in Los Angeles.