Milwaukee Club Q shooting vigil honors 'lives that were lost'
MILWAUKEE - Milwaukee LGBTQ+ groups came together in Milwaukee Tuesday to remember the five people killed in the Club Q mass shooting in Colorado Springs, Colorado.
The vigil was organized by Courage MKE, The Milwaukee LGBT Community Center, Zao MKE, Cream City Foundation and Diverse & Resilient and held at the Milwaukee LGBT Community Center.
Organizers said the vigil would include a safe space to mourn and heal with the community, a short memorial word, condolence cards to sign for the victims and families and an opportunity to support the victims and their families directly.
A 22-year-old man armed with multiple firearms, including an AR-15-style semiautomatic rifle, who went on a shooting rampage Saturday night at Club Q, a well-known gathering place for the LGBTQ community in Colorado Springs. Five people were killed and at least 17 wounded.
Colorado Springs Club Q shooting: Victims identified
A 22-year-old gunman opened fire with a semiautomatic rifle inside a gay nightclub in Colorado Springs, killing five people and leaving 25 injured before he was subdued by "heroic" patrons and arrested by police who arrived within minutes, authorities said Sunday.
Daniel Aston, 28, grew up in Tulsa, Oklahoma and moved to be closer to family in Colorado Springs two years ago. He worked as a bartender and entertainer at Club Q and cherished the venue as a sanctuary where as a transgender man he could be himself and perform to a lauding audience, his mother Sabrina Aston told The Associated Press.
Derrick Rump, 38, a bartender at Club Q, was remembered as a loving person with a quick wit who adopted his friends as his family.
Kelly Loving, 40, had been talking to a friend on a FaceTime call from inside Club Q just minutes before the shooting started. Natalee Skye Bingham told The New York Times that the last thing she said to Loving was: "Be safe. I love you."
Raymond Green Vance, 22, went to Club Q on Saturday night with his girlfriend, Kassy Fierro, and her father, Rich, the co-owner of Atrevida Beer Co., a local brewery in Colorado Springs. The group was there to celebrate a friend's birthday.
Ashley Paugh, 35, was a loving mother and wife with a "huge heart," said her husband, Kurt Paugh. She volunteered with an organization that helped children in foster care and delivered Christmas trees to the homes in which they were placed to brighten their holiday seasons.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.