TROY, Mich. — Barbara Soffin is grandmother to Janek and Julen Bebout, and mother-in-law to Johanna Bebout, who were all shot at the Brooklands Splash Pad in Rochester Hills.
She saw just how much blood donations helped her family after the tragedy, and decided to host a blood drive Sunday with Red Cross to help others.
In June, nine people were shot at the splash pad after a man opened fire. Police later found the 43-year-old dead from a self-inflicted gunshot wound.
The Bebout family was heavily affected physically and mentally.
“My daughter in law was shot seven times and each of my grandchildren were shot once. My 8-year-old grandchild is now blind from it because he was shot in the head, but it didn’t kill his spirits," Soffin said.
The family is now recovering, but Soffin highlights just how much blood donations helped them after the incident.
"It got me when I found out that we had not enough blood on the shelves that if we had another mass casualty there wasn’t enough to help people," she said. "My daughter-in-law took two units of blood that we’re aware of and if somebody hadn’t done that for her, she wouldn’t be here.”
That's why Soffin partnered up with the Red Cross to host a blood drive at Faith Lutheran Church in Troy Sunday.
Andrea Calhoon lives in the same subdivision as the splash pad. She didn't witness the tragedy firsthand, but knew she wanted to help in any way she could so she donated at the blood drive.
"It was just important for me to support my community and the families that were impacted," Calhoon said.
81 people registered and they had so many walk-in's that the Red Cross actually had to turn a few people away. Soffin encourages those people and others to still donate at a Red Cross blood drive near them.
