A fundraiser in Laken Riley’s honor created for her Angel Family has already raised well over $200,000 after just a week, a powerful indication of how the public feels about the tragic, avoidable death of Laken Riley at the hands of an illegal immigrant from Venezuela. The fundraiser is meant to help Laken’s family pay for her funeral expenses and endow a foundation that will help raise awareness for issues related to Laken’s death, such as female safety.
As background, Laken Riley was a 22-year-old nursing student at Augusta University in Athens, Georgia. She was brutally murdered on Feb. 22 after going for a morning jog around campus. The arrested suspect is a 26-year-old illegal immigrant from Venezuela, Jose Antonio Ibarra. He has been arrested and charged with her murder. Since then, a GoFundMe fundraiser has been created to help bury Laken and create a foundation in her honor.
In a post about the fundraiser on Facebook, Laken’s mother, Allyson Phillips, wrote, “Please consider donationing to the Laken Hope Riley Foundation – honoring my precious daughter. ALL proceeds will go towards homicide awareness, safety for woman and an organization that provides healthcare to families in need.”
The GoFundMe description provides, “Laken Riley was a class of 2025 BSN student at Augusta University Athens campus and an active member of the Alpha Chi Omega sorority at UGA. She was a sweet and compassionate soul whose life was sadly cut short on Thursday, February 22nd, 2024. No words can express the pain and heartache that Laken’s family and friends are experiencing.”
Continuing, the description goes on to describe Laken and what type of person she was, saying, “She was a wonderful friend, sister, daughter, etc. who touched the lives of everyone around her. Her infectious smile and contagious laugh lit up every room she entered. Not only did she have a kind-hearted spirit, but she also excelled in academics as she previously made the Augusta University Dean’s list in the Fall of 2023.”
Then, describing what the funds raised by it would be used for, the description provided, “This GoFundMe is being established to assist the family with funeral expenses, establish a scholarship in her name, raise homicide awareness, or any other opportunity the family could use it for during this difficult time. Thank you so much for your support, please continue to keep Laken’s family and friends in your thoughts and prayers.”
A later update to it provided, “On behalf of our entire family we would like send out a heartfelt thank you for your donations and overwhelming support. Laken was an amazing daughter, sister, friend and overall person in general. Her love for the Lord was exemplified in every aspect of her life. She will be missed every day, but we promise to honor her life moving forward in a very big way.”
That update also reiterated that the money would be put toward funding the Laken Hope Riley Foundation, providing, “Every single dollar donated will go towards starting the Laken Hope Riley Foundation and will be used to drive homicide awareness and safety for women. Again, thank you for your kind support and we love you all!”
Featured image credit: Allyson Phillips Facebook
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