A volunteer firefighter gunned down defending his family as a sniper fired at former President Donald Trump during a rally in Butler County, Pennsylvania was remembered Sunday for living the “girl dad life” and serving God long before he put himself first.
The man, Corey Comperatore, 50 – died on Saturday night protecting his wife and family from being caught in the line of fire by the gunman.
“It’s just so typical of him, the way it all happened, with protecting his wife and his daughter and just throwing himself on top of them when they hear the shooting,” said Eileen Shamanski, whose children grew up playing soccer alongside Comperatore’s daughters.
“He was an all around good guy that was always there to lend a hand and support not just his own children but all the other kids who were friends of their girls and on the team,” she told Fox News Digital. “He had a just give it your all attitude, [and] a lot of kids respected him for that, just always being there supporting, giving those pep talks to get them going. It’s going to be a big loss.”
Their families have been close for years due to their girls’ common interest in travel soccer, she said.
“We didn’t think it was true at first, when my daughters called me crying,” she said. “Then we saw his wife and daughter on the news, when they were tending to him – it was just a sad thing to see, so sad, but I know he would’ve done it again in a heartbeat if it came down to it.”
“It makes a difference when you’re there in the stands to cheer them on,” she said. “The girls, you could see it in their faces, they just opened up with him, and he would travel for away tournaments. Him and his wife were always there, always being there to support them.”
Now in her 20s, she has two daughters of her own.
“He taught them to be strong, so I’m sure they’ll be there to help their mom work through this,” she said.
The Secret Service agents responded immediately after Crooks fired his first shot and killed him. Sadly, not before he fatally shot Comperatore and wounded two other innocent by-standers, authorities said.
President Trump himself suffered a grazing bullet wound,causing a partial fracture of the right ear. Agents took him off stage and he was photographed with blood on the side of his head. He raised a fist before getting into his motorcade, as the crowd cheered.
“Corey died a hero,” Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro told reporters on Saturday, after speaking with Comperatore’s wife Helen. “Corey dove on his family to protect them.”
The FBI is currently leading the investigation into the shooting. They said Sunday that they had no motive for the killings, and Crooks had no criminal record or reputation of mental illness.
