Former Maine Gov. Paul LePage announced on Tuesday that the fundraiser he hosted along with his wife Ann raised nearly half-a-million dollars to benefit the victims of the October 25 Lewiston shooting.
[RELATED: Paul LePage to Host Celebration of Life Fundraiser for Families of Lewiston Shooting Victims…]
“People from across the state came together in an outpouring of support and generosity. It has taken a couple of months to wrap-up the fundraiser, but it is humbling to announce that we raised $474,702 to benefit the victims and families of this tragedy,” said Gov. LePage on Facebook.
LePage, who lost the 2022 gubernatorial election against Gov. Janet Mills (D-Maine), announced the fundraiser shortly after the shooting, in which Robert R. Card, Jr. murdered 18 people in Lewiston.
The fundraising event, which was held in December, raised $474,702, which will be sent to the surviving victims, and the families of those killed, the former governor said.
LePage has been reluctant to use his relatively large Facebook following to opine on Maine politics following the 2022 election. In fact, his only posts since the election have been in relation to the Lewiston shooting and his fundraising effort. But he posted a subdued update on Tuesday.
In his announcement, LePage thanked everyone who contributed to his “Celebration of Life” fundraiser, and highlighted the contributions of the Lewiston Auburn Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce, which helped with logistics for the event.
“In the months that have passed, Maine has grieved the loss of our friends and neighbors. Although the grief is not gone, we do hope that these funds provide some much-needed relief for the victims and families,” said LePage.
Following the Lewiston shooting, while LePage was raising money for the victims and their families, Maine’s current political leaders were leveraging the tragedy to push for stricter gun control measures.
Mills, Sen. Angus King (D-Maine), and Rep. Jared Golden (D-Maine) have all emphasized gun-control measures following the shooting.
Rep. Golden, who previously portrayed himself as a moderate, and who has said he owns a so-called “assault weapon,” reversed his position on the popular firearm type following the shooting with a call for a federal prohibition on the style of gun he purports to own.
Governor LePage raised an honest standard for Mainers…great man, great governor, great loss for Mainers when he left office!
All this idiot Marxist banshee, Mills Kills with her trickery is raise hell!
Governor LePage makes me think of the good old days when Maine was great ! It’s sad how far our state has fallen since Mills was installed, no doubt as a result of the standard democRAT trickery. I voted for him and would again if he chose to run. I would do anything I could to get him back in office where he belongs, and put Mills behind bars where she belongs.
Why are Mills, King, and Golden so ignorant about firearms? These so called “assault weapons” do the same damage as a regular 9mm. They are all semi-automatic. If a criminal turns any firearm into an automatic weapon, then the damage is much worse. But those kinds of changes to firearms are already illegal. Therefore, it’s the criminal who already goes around the law and makes any firearm worse. Get rid of the CRIMINALS. Tougher laws on CRIMINALS. Not Guns-because those laws don’t work. Makes sense to anyone?
Thank you Gov. LePage and Ann.