WFAA Dallas Raises $716,000 In Shooting Relief

In the wake of the July 7 police shootings in downtown Dallas, Tegna’s ABC affiliate there, WFAA, activated local resources and helped the community raise $716,000 over a two-week period. The funds will directly aid members of the Dallas Police Department and the DART officer who were wounded or killed in the shooting.

The day after the shootings, under the banner Stand United, WFAA employees along with companies including Tom Thumb Food and Pharmacy; Communities Foundation of Texas; ORIX Foundation; Texas Instruments Foundation and Tegna Foundation, began raising money.

All donations generated by Stand United will benefit the Assist the Officer Foundation (atodallas.org), a Dallas nonprofit that delivers financial support to law enforcement officers facing the loss of income due to a serious injury, life-threatening illness or other catastrophic situations. ATO assistance is also accessible to families in the event of the death of an active duty officer.

Dallas Assist the Officer Chairman Frederick Frazier says the funds raised will be put to good use.

“The outpouring of financial support from across our country proves that when it comes to supporting law enforcement in a crisis, Americans are there for us,” said Frazier.

“We want to reinforce that 100% of the funds raised for the Assist the Officer Foundation are given as financial assistance to the impacted families in their time of need,” he added.

The following is a breakdown of funds collected during the Stand United campaign:

• WFAA (online and phone bank)                     $417,697
• Tom Thumb customers:                                 $173,304
• ORIX Foundation:                                           $50,000
• Texas Instruments Foundation:                      $25,000
• TEGNA Foundation:                                       $25,000
• WFAA/TEGNA Foundation                            $25,000

The day after the shootings, WFAA employees manned a special phone bank that accepted viewer donations. For the next two weeks people were also able to make contributions via the station’s website, WFAA.com.

“Previously we have collected donations online and through phone banks for various charitable causes,” said Mike Devlin, WFAA president-GM. “However, in this case the community response has been beyond anything we have experienced.”

The generosity of the North Texans to assist the law enforcement officers and their families has been significant: WFAA phone bank contributions on July 8 alone, accounted for over $250,000.

Devlin also thanked ORIX Foundation, which agreed to match the first $50,000 in viewer donations, Texas Instruments Foundation, and Tegna, WFAA’s corporate owner, for their contributions.