GoFundMe created for 3-year-old daughter of security guard who died in mall shooting

BOISE (Idaho Statesman) — When 26-year-old Caldwell mall security guard Jo Acker confronted an armed man in Boise Towne Square on Monday afternoon, she was shot and killed, said the Boise Police Department.

“She was confronting the suspect. She was helping people be safe and get out of the way and they shot at her,” Ray Dawn, Acker’s partner of nearly three years, told the Idaho Statesman in a phone interview.

Acker’s family set up a GoFundMe on Wednesday afternoon for her 3-year-old daughter, Everay Acker. According to family, the money will be used to help cover Everay’s needs and “help set up a bright future for Everay.”

Cinnamon Reeves Acker, Everay’s grandmother, said she is thinking the money will go toward college and “maybe braces (or) a vehicle” when Everay is older. Everay lives with her mother and grandparents. According to the GoFundMe page, “all funds will be transferred into an account held by Jo’s father Robert.”

RELATED | Police name Boise mall shooter, say he died in hospital. Coroner identifies victims

“She got the best parts of Jo,” said Reeves Acker, who is also Jo Acker’s stepmother, in a message to the Idaho Statesman. “Curious, bubbly, loves everyone, extremely kind like Jo was. She also has the world’s best manners, loves learning at preschool. She has the brightest eyes in the world and is grateful for everything that is given to her.”

Reeves Acker said she wants to make sure Everay “never has to go without” and wants to be able to tell her the money came from “people who cared…almost like it could be a gift from (Jo).”

“The heroic efforts Jo displayed saved many others from the same fate,” Karyn Kennedy, Acker’s sister, wrote on the GoFundMe page. “From a young age Jo showed compassion and concerned for others well being. Spending time learning/teaching tae kwon do and joining the Army in 2013, Jo was always wanting to make others feel safe. Jo had a quirky sense of humor and was always ready with a good joke or snarky comeback.”

Reeves Acker said people have already begun reaching out with messages of support.

“The entire clan is so grateful for all the love and support that we have received by people both known and unknown,” Reeves Acker said. “Jo was well loved by so many people. I hope Jo knows that.”

Acker was shot by Jacob Bergquist, 27, of Boise, who fired 18 rounds inside the mall before exiting. Two people, Acker and Roberto Padilla Arguelles, 49, of Rupert, died, and two others were injured. Bergquist then exchanged gunfire with law enforcement on North Milwaukee Street, injuring a Boise police officer and a woman who was inside her vehicle. Bergquist died in the hospital on Tuesday.