Trump rally attendee remembered as "hero" who died protecting his family
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A person holds up a U.S. flag at former President Trump's July 9 rally in Doral, Florida. Photo: Giorgio VIera/AFB
Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro identified the victim who was killed in an attempted assassination of former President Trump as Corey Comperatore on Sunday.
Driving the news: Comperatore, the former Buffalo Township Volunteer Fire Company chief, dived on his family members to shield them from the attack, Shapiro said at a press conference after speaking to Comperatore's wife and daughters.
- Shapiro said the "girl dad" of two attended church every Sunday and was an "avid supporter" of the former president who was "so excited" to rally with members of his community at Saturday's campaign event.
What they're saying: Family members remember Comperatore as a loving father and dedicated community member.
- "The PA Trump Rally claimed the life of my brother, Corey Comperatore," Facebook user Dawn Comperatore Schafer wrote in a post shared Sunday. "The hatred for one man took the life of the one man we loved the most."
- "My baby brother just turned 50 and had so much life left to experience," she continued on the post, which showed Comperatore smiling with gold birthday balloons. "Hatred has no limits and love has no bounds."
- A post written by his daughter, Allyson, that circulated online described how her father, who she called a "hero," "threw my mom and I to the ground" and "shielded my body from the bullet that came at us."
- "He loved his family," she wrote. "He truly loved us enough to take a real bullet for us."
His widow, Helen Comperatore, told the New York Post the last words she heard from her husband and childhood sweetheart were "Get down!"
- She said President Biden tried to call following her husband's death, but she did not wish to speak to him because her husband "was a devout Republican." Trump had not reached out.
- "I don't have any ill-will towards Joe Biden," she said. "I'm not one of those people that gets involved in politics. I support Trump, that's who I'm voting for, but I don't have ill-will towards Biden," she added.
- "He didn't do anything to my husband," she added. "A 20-year-old despicable kid did."
Zoom out: A GoFundMe started Sunday to raise money for his family has accumulated over $1 million in donations as of Monday evening.
Go deeper: Trump urges Americans to show "True Character" after assassination attempt
Editor's note: This article has been updated with the latest fundraising total for Corey Comperatore's family and with comment from Helen Comperatore.
