Las Vegas shooting survivor opens up about coping with loss
Jonathan Hunt sits down with Jenn Gibson nearly two months after the deadly attack.
Many survivors of last month's Las Vegas concert massacre have found an important tool to help them move forward: each other.
"Nobody knows how they are supposed to feel after something like that,” said 36-year old Jenn Gibson of Las Vegas, one of the 22,000 people who attended the Route 91 Harvest Festival that ended in gunfire the night of Oct. 1.
She says a tight-knit community has emerged among the survivors, both locally and out of state, who are scheduling events like meet-ups, brunches and potluck dinners as means to help heal. Some also meet for drinks while others gather at a new Las Vegas healing garden, where a tree has been planted for each victim.
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"When we get together, it’s not the conspiracy theories, it’s not what everyone thinks happened,” Gibson said. "It’s more, 'I'm so glad you're here. I’m so glad you're safe and when’s the next concert?'"
"We’re getting through it together," said Clark County Commissioner Steve Sisolak. "Las Vegas is a big but relatively small community. Everybody knows somebody who was there."
Sisolak launched a GoFundMe page in the hours after the shooting, which combined with the Las Vegas Victims’ Fund has so far raised about $15 million for those impacted by the shooting.
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"I'm proud of the community," Sisolak continued. “The hate that [was] rained down on the festival was met with an outpouring of love."
That's the type of love Gibson has found among her fellow concertgoers, specifically from Todd Riley of Thornton, Colo. That night, despite being hit by shrapnel, the 48-year-old Riley stopped running to perform CPR on Gibson’s friend, 34-year-old Carrie Barnette of Garden Grove, Calif., who was fatally wounded.
Gibson initially didn’t know Riley's name but a few weeks after the shooting, as a way to help overcome the magnitude of that night, she tracked him down. Thanks to the Facebook page "Find My LV Hero," Riley returned to Las Vegas earlier this month to meet with Gibson.
Questions remain about the Las Vegas massacre
Investigators are still trying to determine whether Paddock acted alone.
"He did everything he could to try to save [Barnette]," Gibson said. "[We] felt that it was really important to meet face to face and kind of begin the healing process together."
In Barnette’s honor, the pair shared drinks, visited her tree in the healing garden and retraced their steps from the night of Oct. 1. It was a reunion Gibson said helped put few pieces of her heart back together.
"Just coming out here and meeting with me and allowing me to hug you and tell you thank you in person, it’s just indescribable,” said Gibson, who now considers Riley and his fiancée members of her family. "That bond — there are no words."
Fox News’ Jonathan Hunt contributed to this report.
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