Corey Comperatore, a 50-year-old father and volunteer fire chief, was shot and killed during the attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump (R) in Pennsylvania Saturday.
Two others — David Dutch, 57 and James Copenhaver, 74 — were also shot and were reportedly in stable condition Sunday.
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“Corey died a hero,” said Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro (D) at a news conference Sunday.
When the gunshots rang out, Comperatore dove on top of his family members to protect them from the bullets.
“Corey went to church every Sunday,” Gov. Shapiro said. “Corey loved his community. Most especially, Corey loved his family.”
“Corey was an avid supporter of the former president and was so excited to be there last night with him in the community,” he continued.
“Corey was the very best of us,” said Shapiro. “May his memory be a blessing.”
In a statement posted to her Facebook page, Comperatore’s daughter Allyson described him as “the best dad a girl could ever ask for” and said he had “died a real-life superhero.”
“Yesterday time stopped. And when it started again, my family and I started living a real-life nightmare,” Allyson wrote. “He loved his family. He truly loved us enough to take a bullet for us.”
“He threw my mom and I to the ground…[and] shielded my body from the bullet that came at us,” she wrote.
“What my precious girls had to witness is unforgiveable,” added his wife Helen.
His sister, Dawn Comperatore Schafer, described him on Facebook as “a hero that shielded his daughters.”
“His wife and girls just lived through the unthinkable and unimaginable,” she said.
“My baby brother just turned 50 and had so much life left to experience,” she continued. “Hatred has no limits and love has no bounds. Pray for my sister-in-law, nieces, my mother, sister, me and his nieces and nephews as this feels like a terrible nightmare but we know it is our painful reality.”
Matt Achilles, who lived near Comperatore for several years, told the Tribune-Review that he was a “a good friend and neighbor.”
“He was a good person,” Achilles said. “We might not have agreed on the same political views, but that didn’t stop him from being a good friend and neighbor.”
“He donated money to us when I was in the hospital and he would always come by at our yard sales,” continued Achilles. “He always waved hello when I drove past his house.”
A GoFundMe established for the families of the victims of the shooting, which has been authorized by Trump, had raised more than $4 million as of the writing of this story.
The fundraising campaign had received $50,000 from the Heritage Foundation, $50,000 from the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) and another $50,000 from its founder Dana White, $50,000 from pro-Trump rocker Kid Rock, $25,000 from Anthony Scaramucci, $30,000 from Vivek Ramasamy, and many more substantial donations.
More than 54,000 donations have come into the campaign.
