Mormons Raise Thousands of Dollars for Family of Gunman who Attacked a Michigan Church

Articles | October 2, 2025 | by Catholics for Catholics

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“They will face financial hardship and psychological trauma as a result of this week’s horrifying events.”

By Catholics for Catholics

Consider this: Days after a man carried out a deadly attack on a Mormon church, the congregation of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints raised thousands of dollars to help the family of the attacker.

In the attack, four people were slain and eight more were wounded at the church in Grand Blanc Township, Michigan. But the Mormons who were grieving the heartbreak did the unthinkable: They began raising hundreds of thousands of dollars for the family of the man who shot and killed Latter-day Saints.

According to The Daily Wire, a GiveSendGo fundraiser which was done for the family of Thomas Jacob Sanford has raised more than $265,000, with many of the donations coming from members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

 Sanford drove his truck on Sunday into the temple of a Latter-day Saints church in Grand Blanc Township; he got out of his vehicle and started shooting with his semiautomatic rifle, according to authorities. Sanford allegedly set a fire to the church before countering police officers killed him.

“One of the families that suffered a terrible loss on that day was the family of Thomas Jacob Sanford, the shooter,” states the GiveSendGo fundraiser started by David Butler. “Sanford leaves behind a wife and children who must be grieving. They will face financial hardship and psychological trauma as a result of this week’s horrifying events. On top of that, one of the Sanford sons deals with serious medical challenges that require ongoing care, treatment, and specialized support. In the past, the family attempted to raise funds for him, but with limited success.”

The Wire reported that four people were killed in the attack, which appeared to be driven by the attacker’s resentment toward Mormons. While federal authorities have not officially released a reason for the deadly attack, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told “Fox & Friends” earlier this week that federal authorities believe Sanford “hated people of the Mormon faith.”