HIGHLAND PARK, Ill. — More than $2 million has been raised for a 2-year-old boy who lost both his parents during a mass shooting at an Independence Day parade in Highland Park, Illinois.
Irina McCarthy, 35, and Kevin McCarthy, 37, of Highland Park, were among the seven people killed in Monday’s tragedy.
A couple at the parade helped 2-year-old Aiden get to safety while authorities were contacted. The boy was later reunited with his grandparents Monday evening.
The Chicago Sun-Times reports Kevin McCarthy died while shielding Aiden from gunfire.
“At two years old, Aiden is left in the unthinkable position; to grow up without his parents,” wrote Irina Colon on a GoFundMe account she created for the family and Aiden.
Friends of the McCarthys said Irina’s parents would care for the boy going forward.
The GoFundMe fundraiser for Aiden was created Tuesday and had already raised more than $2 million as of Wednesday morning.
The other victims identified by the Lake County Coroner’s Office include Katherine Goldstein, 64, of Highland Park; Jacquelyn Sundheim, 63, of Highland Park; Stephen Straus, 88, of Highland Park, and Nicolas Toledo-Zaragoza, 78, of Morelos, Mexico.
Officials haven’t yet identified the seventh victim.
Anyone interested in donating to the people affected by the shooting can go to www.gofundme.com.
