In the days since the May 6 mass shooting that killed eight at the Allen Premium Outlets, communities in Allen, Collin County, North Texas, and beyond have felt the grief, fear, and anger that have become all too common when our community spaces are violated. This Thursday, Keller Williams Realty agents all around the world participated in RED Day, an annual day of service for the company, and the Realtors of KW Allen felt a special sense of purpose this year.
More than one hundred local agents gathered to give their time to three Allen-area non-profits. The Allen office also held a community blood drive Thursday for Carter BloodCare, who was on hand to provide emergency service during the crisis on Saturday.
Realtors Jason Otts and Valerie Morales from the Ottsome Realty Team in Allen spent the day at Allen Community Outreach (ACO), a local non-profit that provides free comprehensive human health services. Jason and Valerie said there was a different feeling this year from the usual spirited Red Days they’ve experienced in the past.
“It felt more purposeful,” Morales said.
“It felt good to do something,” Ott said. “Helping the community of Allen helped our office as a whole.”
Afterward, instead of their traditional celebratory drinks or meal together, the Ottsome Team decided to visit the victims’ memorial that has been set up outside the Allen Premium Outlets.
“Some people need to know everything, and read every detail, and that’s okay. Going there meant more to me than reading about it. It was hard. But I felt inspired to make change. You feel the spirit of grief, but also the spirit of hope.”
Jason Otts, Ottsome Realty
Flowers and crosses adorn a memorial erected outside the Allen Premium Outlets, where eight were killed Saturday, May 6. 
Three crosses stand for Kyu and Cindy Cho, and their 3-year-old son James, who were killed. Son William, age 6, survived the attack. 
Victim Aishwarya Thatikonda, 26, was a promising engineer in McKinney who’d come to the U.S. from India. 
Sofia Mendoza, 8, attended Cox Elementary in Sachse. Her sister Daniela, 11, was also killed. 
Votive candles honor the victims. 
In total, eight bystanders were killed, including Christian LaCour, 20, Elio Cumana-Rivas, 32, the Mendozas, the Chos, and Thatikonda.
Morales described the crowd at the memorial — people from all over the area who had come to pay their respects. She said a man from Oak Cliff was there, setting up a canvas and handing out paint and brushes. Another woman from Frisco had driven over on her lunch break to pass out water.
“I don’t know why, but that lady from Frisco taking the time to do that made such an impact on me,” Morales said. “There were no strangers out there that day.”
Otts said, “I highly recommend that people go to the memorial. Stand next to strangers and experience that.”
He spoke about the experience of having a family member die, and how for the first few weeks, everyone is there, but after a while people move on with their lives. “I’m concerned about the families of these victims. I’m thinking about what we can do to help them in the months and years to come.”
“This is the first time this has happened so close to me. I want to be more involved. I want to be that lady from Frisco that just shows up to help.”
Valerie Morales, Ottsome Realty
How You Can Help The Victims of The Allen Shooting
Visit GoFundMe’s landing page that lists the verified fundraisers for victims of the shooting including:
Victims First, a survivor’s network of mass casualty crime that raises funds to give to victim families
Survivor Irvin Walker II, one of the first victims shot as he drove past the shooter’s vehicle
Mendoza Family fundraiser for young Wylie sisters Daniela and Sofia
LaCour Family fundraiser for Christian, who was a security guard and first responder on scene
Kyu, Cindy, and James Cho fundraiser has exceeded its goal and has disabled new donations
In addition, the Support for Allen Fund, established by Communities Foundation of Texas (CFT)
