$6.3m. raised for Pittsburgh synagogue massacre families, survivors

A $6.3 million fund established after the Pittsburgh synagogue massacre will primarily be split among the families of the dead and survivors of the worst attack on Jews in US history, organizers announce. It will also go to help police officers who were wounded in the attempt to stop the shooting.

The Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh set up the Victims of Terror Fund after the October 27 attack at Tree of Life synagogue that killed 11 and wounded seven. The fund took in more than 8,500 donations from 48 states and at least eight countries.

The donations are “expressions of love, generosity, compassion and a desire to help in the healing process,” the independent committee overseeing the fund writes in its report Tuesday. The committee acknowledges that “no amount of money can compensate for the loss of a loved one’s life” or “completely heal our hearts or our communities.”

The fund stopped accepting donations February 27.

An anti-Semitic truck driver named Robert Bowers has been charged in the attack. Authorities have said Bowers expressed hatred of Jews as he opened fire with an AR-15 rifle and other weapons. Bowers pleaded not guilty to federal hate crimes and dozens of other counts, but his lawyer has signaled he might be open to a plea deal.

Federal prosecutors in Pittsburgh have previously indicated their intention to seek the death penalty.

— AP