THE family of a Filipino American man killed during a Lunar New Year shooting in Monterey Park, California has launched a GoFundMe campaign to help with funeral costs.
Valentino Alvero, 68, was one of 11 individuals killed during the mass shooting at Star Ballroom Dance Studio on Saturday night, Jan. 21 as the Asian American community celebrated Lunar New Year festivities nearby.
“We want to honor his memory the way he would want, with a big funeral Mass and party,” the fundraiser page created by Alvero’s daughter Kristenne Reidy, reads.
Previously, his family confirmed in a statement that he was among the victims and remembered him as “a loving father, a dedicated son and brother, a grandfather who loved his three granddaughters fiercely, an uncle who loved his nieces and nephews like his own.”
“He loved people and hearing about their lives, and in return he shared his own stories with so much gusto and enthusiasm that you couldn’t help but listen and laugh along with him,” the statement continued.
“He loved ballroom dancing, he loved his community, and was the life of any party.”
Alvero was a hospitality worker who was planning to retire in his home country of the Philippines, according to his son Val Anthony Alvero’s interview with CNN.
Alvero’s GoFundMe can be found at: www.gofundme.com/f/valentino-marcos-alvero.
The identities of the remaining victims, according to the Los Angeles County Coroner’s Office are: My My Nhan, 65; Xiujuan Yu, 57; Lilian Li, 63; Ming Wei Ma, 72; Diana Tom, 70; Chia Yau, 77; Yu Kao, 72; Hongying Jian, 62; Muoi Ung, 68; Wen Yu, 64.
GoFundMe has a centralized page with verified fundraisers for the victims and their families affected by the shooting.
In addition to the individual campaigns for the victims, a GoFundMe campaign named the “Monterey Park Lunar New Year Victims Fund” has been organized by community groups, spearheaded by legal and civil rights organization Asian Americans Advancing Justice Southern California. It seeks to provide financial support to families who have experienced loss as well as those who have been physically harmed by the shooting. The page has raised over $916,000 of its $1 million goal, as of Friday, Jan. 27.
