INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Kansas City Chiefs coach Andy Reid walked to the podium Tuesday with a message that resonated beyond the football world.
He paid tribute to Lisa Lopez-Galvan, who was killed two weeks ago at the city’s Super Bowl celebration, and he asked Americans to find ways to avoid another mass shooting tragedy.
It marked the first time anyone from the organization spoke publicly about the Feb. 14 shooting that left Lopez-Galvan dead and 22 others injured. The team had previously issued a written statement.
“I want to share my condolences for the Galvan and Lopez family for their loss of Lisa, and for the people of Kansas City,” Reid said as he began his news conference at the NFL’s annual scouting combine in Indianapolis. “She was a personality there, and a very good human being, first of all. We’ll all miss her, as I know her family will.”
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General manager Brett Veach reaffirmed those sentiments immediately after trading places with Reid.
Two people, Dominic M. Miller and Lyndell Mays, have been charged with second-degree murder of the 43-year-old mother of two.
The parade was intended to celebrate another milestone accomplishment for the Chiefs — becoming the first back-to-back Super Bowl champions since New England in the 2003 and 2004 seasons. Instead, it sent the Chiefs and their city into an offseason full of heavy hearts.
“Before we get into the football topics, I’d like to definitely start off by offering our thoughts and prayers to Lisa Lopez-Galvan and her family, all the families that were impacted the day of the parade,” Veach said. “Certainly, a heartbreaking and tragic day for us. Our organization has been in contact with the families, and we will continue to do so and be a pillar of support for them both now and into the future.”
Veach went on to thank the first responders who tended to the victims and helped bystanders navigate their way to safety.
Reid also urged people to understand the violence from the parade shooting is not an accurate representation of Kansas City and said he remains hopeful Americans can find a way to avoid similar violence in the future.
“Just a positive word on Kansas City, that’s not what Kansas City is all about,” Reid said, before addressing young people directly. “You’re our future and as great as we can make this place, we want to do that. We can turn this, which was a negative, into a real positive. With just a little togetherness and love, we can fix a lot of problems.”
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