Orange community mourns victims, donates to families
After the March 31 shooting that took the lives of four Orange residents at the Unified Homes office suites, community members are showing their support for victims’ families. SAM ANDRUS, Photo Editor
The comments came flooding in — outpourings of grief supported by financial assistance from community members.
“Sending prayers from Virginia,” Raven Maye wrote. “Love from Minnesota to you all,” Jill Schiller said. “I can’t begin to know your pain but we all have you all in our hearts and prayers,” Jerry Primm typed.
Two days after the news of a mass shooting March 31 at the Unified Homes office suites on West Lincoln Avenue, that took the lives of 58-year-old Leticia Solis Guzman, 50-year-old Luis Tovar, 9-year-old Matthew Farias and 28-year-old Genevieve Raygoza, Thalia Tovar — the daughter of Tavor and sister of Raygoza — started a GoFundMe page to raise money for the medical expenses and funeral services. As of April 4, just two days after it was created, the fund has raised over $49,000 from 705 donors.
“My heart is so sad and broken,” wrote Sandy Smith, with a $25 donation. “Luis was very kind and he just did my taxes for free on Monday. I wish I could give more.”
The Orange community was left reeling after the mass shooting, but has seen an outpouring of both grief and support in recent days in attempts to heal.
Many Orange County residents like Thalia Tovar and Marlene Alcaraz, who started a GoFundMe for Farias, have tried to both raise awareness and money for the victims and their families. Not long after the shooting, Candice Gautier Meares realized Luis Tovar, a childhood friend who was a classmate of hers in elementary school, was among those deceased. Gautier Meares shared her sentiments on Facebook, wishing the victims to rest in peace.
“We grew up in the 1980s when breakdancing was all the rage. Luis was one of the best at it,” Gautier Meares told The Panther of her friendship with Tovar. “One day I asked him if he could show me how to do a few moves. He tried his best to teach me despite my lack of athletic or dance ability. It was a fun experience that I will always remember.”
“We grew up in the 1980s when breakdancing was all the rage. Luis was one of the best at it. One day I asked him if he could show me how to do a few moves. He tried his best to teach me despite my lack of athletic or dance ability. It was a fun experience that I will always remember.”
The Chapman University community, meanwhile, is also trying to move forward after the shooting, which came within just a few miles of its campus.
“It was so scary to hear about, because it occurred only 10 minutes from my house and was the closest that I have ever been to a mass shooting,” said Kaila McCord, a sophomore integrated educational studies major.
In addition, Chapman President Daniele Struppa and SGA President Phillip Goodrich both released statements April 1 to the community, lamenting the lives lost and encouraging students to utilize resources such as the Student Psychological Counseling Services.
“As members of the Orange community, we are deeply saddened by yesterday’s shooting,” Struppa wrote in his announcement. “While every death is tragic, a mass shooting within our community feels especially personal and I want to acknowledge that many of us are hurting.”
Despite the messages, some students were displeased that the university did not issue a safety warning immediately when news broke March 31.
“They had used Panther Alert not too long before the shooting to let us know that the WiFi was down on campus,” wrote Claire Urban, a Chapman sophomore music education major, in a direct message to The Panther. “They chose not to do this for the shooting in Orange, and that could have put students in direct danger.”
Chief of Public Safety Randy Burba told The Panther that Public Safety has a close relationship with the Orange Police Department (OPD) and is constantly informed of potential safety risks. If a danger presents itself, the Chapman community will be alerted in order to mitigate threats. Currently, he said Public Safety isn’t increasing safety measures or security presence in direct response to the shooting due to OPD deeming the situation stabilized and nonthreatening. He mentioned resources such as Panther Guardian, the Panther Alert system and the Public Safety line as methods to stay informed and get in touch with any concerns.
“It can happen anywhere. That’s why we partner with OPD and why we practice responding to those things,” Burba said. “A lot of that stuff is in place to try to prevent or be a safety net to catch these things before they happen, obviously, and it’s just a good reminder of A. why we do all those things, and B. for our students and our community to stay vigilant.”
As Chapman students and the Orange community moves forward in an attempt to stay safe and support the victims’ families, those closest continue to reflect on lives lost.
“I would tell (Tovar) that he was truly one of the good guys and is seriously one of the best people I’ve ever been lucky enough to know,” Gautier Meares said. “The world will not be the same without him, but is forever better because he was in it. Rest easy, old friend.”
Jasmin Sani contributed to this report.