Family and friends of Nicole Perez mourn during a vigil for the victims of the New Year’s Day truck attack during a vigil on Canal and Bourbon Streets in New Orleans, Louisiana on Saturday. Nicole, a 27-year-old mom from Metairie, was killed early Jan. 1 when Shamsud Din Jabbar, a 42-year-old US Army veteran who pledged loyalty to ISIS, drove a truck into a crowd at the edge of the French Quarter, killing at least 14 people and injuring dozens. Photo by Bonnie Cash/UPI | License Photo
Jan. 6 (UPI) — The New Orleans Saints and the National Football League have announced a combined $1 million donation to support victims of the city’s New Year’s terrorist attack.
The team’s owner, Gayle Benson, announced the donation pledge Sunday, stating she and her team will donate $500,000 and the NFL Foundation, the league’s philanthropic arm, will match.
“Our community has experienced an unimaginable tragedy and our collective hearts are broken as we mourn for the victims and survivors on the New Year’s Day terror attack in New Orleans,” she said in a statement.
Fourteen people were killed and several others injured early Wednesday when a driver plowed into a crowd celebrating the New Year on New Orleans’ famed Bourbon Street in what authorities have called an Islamic State-inspired terrorist attack.
The suspect, 42-year-old U.S. Army veteran Samsud-Din Jabbar, was killed in an ensuing shootout with police.
Benson said in the statement that while cities battle one another on the gridiron they stand in solidarity against hate.
“We will vanquish terror and fear with an unwavering resolve and purpose rooted in love, compassion and kindness,” she said.
The team and league have joined The Greater New Orleans Foundation and United Way to ensure the funds support relief efforts for the victims, Benson added.
“Thank you to Mrs. Gayle Benson, the @NFL Foundation and the @Saints for their generous pledge, the GNO Foundation said on X.