Las Vegas Mass Shooting Victims Identified

At least 59 people were killed and more than 500 others were injured after a gunman opened fire at a country music festival in Las Vegas. The victims of the deadliest mass shooting in recent American history were beginning to be identified on Monday afternoon.

Authorities say the 64-year-old gunman, Stephen Paddock, fired from the 32nd floor of the Mandalay Bay Hotel and Casino at a crowd attending a music festival below. When police entered his hotel room, they discovered Paddock had killed himself. A motive has not yet been determined.

The White House has announced that President Trump would travel to Las Vegas on Wednesday to meet with friends and family of the victims to offer his condolences and meet with first responders.

These are the victims identified so far:

Jenny Parks

Jenny Parks' death was confirmed by a close family friend April Graves. She was married to her childhood sweetheart and have two children together. Parks just graduated with her Masters degree this past summer.

Parks was a kindergarten teacher in Palmdale, California.

A GoFundMe page was created for Parks.

Chris Roybal

The U.S. Navy confirms that a veteran Chris Roybal was killed in the attack.  He was from San Francisco and he served in the Navy for five years as a master-at-arms.

His wife, Dixie Roybal, said he died from a gunshot wound to the chest. The family is currently trying to figure out how to transport his body to Corona, California, she said.

Dixie Roybal said her husband was an explosive dog handler in the Navy and he adopted their dog out of the Navy but she passed away a few months ago.

Adrian Murfitt

Adrian Murfitt, 35, of Anchorage, Alaska, was among those killed, a family member told The Associated Press.

His sister, Shannon Gothard, said the family heard from a friend who was with Murfitt when he died. They are still waiting for officials to confirm the death.

Gothard described her brother as a man with a hearty laugh and a former competitive hockey player who still dabbled in the game. "His whole life was always around hockey," she said.

After graduating from high school, he became a fisherman, picking up odd jobs in the offseason. He had just come off an extremely successful fishing season when he made the trip to Las Vegas with some good friends, Gothard said.

Her brother "was happy to pay some things off and had made some really good money and decided to go out and celebrate and go to the concert and treat himself to something nice and fun," she said.

Rachel Parker

Rachel Parker, who worked for the Manhattan Beach Police Department for 10 years, was also killed in the shooting, CBS Los Angeles reports. She worked as a police records technician with the department for 10 years.

A second employee, an off-duty officer, suffered a minor injury at the music festival, the department said.

Sonny Melton

Sonny Melton, a registered nurse, died in the shooting, the Henry County Medical Center in Paris, Tennessee, said in a statement to The Associated Press. His wife, Dr. Heather Melton, an orthopedic surgeon, was with him when the shots rang out.

Heather Melton told WZTV in Nashville, Tennessee, that her husband sacrificed his life to save her.

"At this point, I'm in complete disbelief and despair. I don't know what to say. Sonny was the most kind-hearted, loving man I have ever met. He saved my life and lost his," she told the station.

In a White House press briefing, press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said the couple had been married for just over a year.  Sanders said they traveled together from Tennessee to attend the concert: "When the bullets began raining down from above, Sonny shielded her from danger, selflessly giving up his life to save hers."

He was a 2015 graduate of Union College in Jackson, school officials said on Facebook.

"You know how when you met someone and you just know that they're good and kind? That was Sonny," Christy Davis, an assistant professor of nursing, wrote. "He just had a sweet, kind spirit about him."

Lisa Romero

Lisa Romero, a high school secretary in New Mexico, was one of the victims killed in the shooting, CBS affiliate KRQE-TV in Albuquerque reports.

An official with the Gallup school district said the high school would release further comments on Monday.

A friend of Romero's said she was a "sweet and beautiful woman" who worked with children. The friend said many of the students at the high school looked up to her.

Jordan Mclldoon

Jordan McIldoon, a 23-year-old mechanic's apprentice, of British Columbia was also among those slain, CBC News reports.

"We only had one child," Al and Angela McIldoon told the news outlet. "We just don't know what to do."