MINNEAPOLIS — A fundraiser to support the victims, families and friends impacted by a shooting at a Minneapolis punk show Friday night has more than doubled its goal in a matter of days.
A GoFundMe created in the aftermath of the shooting in south Minneapolis has raised more than $110,000 as of Monday afternoon and will go toward the "medical bills, lost wages, rent, food and other basic needs" of those impacted.
On Friday, Aug. 11, Minneapolis police said officers responded to the 2200 block of 16th Avenue South around 10:15 p.m., where they found multiple shooting victims at a house venue called Nudieland.
Thirty-five-year-old Nicholas Golden, known to friends and the community as August, was killed in the shooting. Six other people were injured, at least one person with a potentially life-threatening injury, police said.
Jenny Dotson is one of the survivors of the shooting. They said they were shot through their right thigh, and initially thought they were stung by something. Dotson said this all happened as they stood a couple of feet away from Golden, who was giving them sparkling water.
"I saw him fall to the ground and scream," Dotson said. "And I thought it was fireworks because I saw the light from the gun go off, and I realized that I had been shot."
Dotson described the scene as chaotic. They were taken to Hennepin Healthcare for their gunshot wounds. Dotson said it wasn't until later they realized the scope of the violence when their roommate Grace Birnstengel called to let them know that Golden did not survive the shooting.
"It's incredibly violating as a community to feel like we open up our homes and yards so we can all share a space like this together," Birnstengel said. "And for such a horrific and awful--the worst thing to possibly happen-- it's really hard to wrap the mind around."
Both Dotson and Birnstengel said their hearts are heavy for a community that is filled with love.
"I have a lot of survivor's guilt," Dotson said. "I am feeling a lot of love from my friends and community. That's the main thing. I haven't really spent any time alone."
"There's so much amazing stuff happening in Minneapolis all the time, and for this to be reduced to something as simple as the 'city is unsafe,' would just be doing a disservice to August and all the victims," Birnstengel added.
Over the weekend, Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O'Hara held a news conference.
"We believe at least one of the persons was being targeted by a shooter," O'Hara said.
On Monday, O'Hara clarified that "targeted" in this case meant that it was not a random shooting and the shooter was likely known to people at the scene. "We know two suspects ran from the scene. I can't confirm that there were two shooters though," he said."
As of Monday afternoon, police have not said if they have any leads on suspects or made any arrests.
A separate fundraiser created to support August's partner has also raised more than $75,000.
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