Last week, a gunman open fired at a Waffle House in Tennessee. And one customer, James Shaw Jr., is being hailed as a hero. He managed to disarm the shooter and save many lives. But his heroic deeds don’t end there. Following the shooting, Shaw raised more than $200,000 for victims and their families.
On April 22, gunman, Travis Reinking, attacked customers at a Waffle House in Antioch, Tennessee, killing 4 and injuring others. Shaw interceded, wrestling the gun from Reinking’s hands.
But he didn’t stop there. That same day, he started a GoFundMe campaign, writing, “Please take the time to donate as all of the proceeds will be given to the families. Thank you again for your generosity and blessings.”
His original goal was to raise $15,000. However, in just a week, Shaw’s GoFundMe took in more than $209,000.
Following the shooting, 29-year old Shaw has been honored by local and nationwide authorities alike, including state lawmakers. However, Shaw remains humble, saying, “I don’t want people to think that I was the Terminator or Superman or anybody like that.”
So, who is this humble hero? Shaw is a father to a 4-year old daughter, and he works for AT&T. And while he is drawing a lot of attention right now, he wants people to remember the victims, too.
In an interview with his local TV station, Shaw said, “There’s four families that are grieving right now. So much life was lost for no reason. I feel like it could be very selfish of me if I did’t point it out. And I apologize.”
