VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. _ Following Friday's mass shooting in Virginia Beach that ended with at least 13 dead and four injured, people from all over the world are offering help.
The city has created a landing page at loveforvb.com, where people can donate to a fund for the victims or volunteer their time.
Through United Way South Hampton Roads, the city started a Virginia Beach Tragedy Fund, which says 100% of the donations will go to the victims affected by the tragedy.
It started off with a big gift: TowneBank announced a $500,000 donation around noon Saturday, according to spokesman Joel Rubin.
"This is a horrible tragedy for our entire community but particularly for the spouses, children, parents and others who will be so deeply affected by the loss of their loved ones for the rest of their lives," said Morgan Davis, president of TowneBank in a statement.
The bank, which will accept checks made out to the fund at any of its branches starting Monday, is asking that a portion of its donation be earmarked for burial expenses. People can also text the keyword VABEACH to 41444 to give money.
A local resident also started a certified charity GoFundMe at https://bit.ly/2QKclbK. All of the donations will be transferred directly to the tragedy fund, said Jenny Perillo, a GoFundMe spokeswoman.
And Volunteer Hampton Roads is helping lead the volunteer effort. The organization posted a link Saturday (https://bit.ly/2wylKtu) asking for people to help.
"Within the first 15 minutes, we've had over 100 signups and so many emails offering chaplain and counseling services, comfort and therapy dogs and restaurants offering free meals," said Stephanie Gorham, the executive director of Volunteer Hampton Roads. "It's overwhelming. It's amazing."
She said it's important to go through official channels to offer support instead of just showing up to the scene, which Gorham said can create confusion and get in the way of officials trying to do their job.
She has heard from people throughout the state hoping to chip in. The organization got such a surge in web traffic its form for volunteering briefly crashed Saturday evening. Gorham put up a temporary link for those still willing to sign up.
She said the city is not looking for any specific help at this point, and she encouraged everyone to send in an email indicating their interests and talents.
"Everyone has unique skills, and they're all needed," she said.
