After 10 people were killed and 14 injured, the school shooting at Santa Fe High School in Santa Fe, Texas, left the community reeling in its wake. This tragedy struck as students were preparing for their upcoming graduation, leaving many at the school shaken, with the injured taken to area hospitals.
Located within the Houston metropolitan area, Santa Fe is a small, close-knit community named after the defunct Santa Fe Railroad. Justin Timberlake, who was preparing for a concert in Houston, went the extra mile in paying a heartwarming tribute to the nearby Santa Fe community.
Known for his support of many charities, Justin Timberlake has no problem with giving back. And what he just did in Santa Fe has left him with many new fans within the community.
Currently on his “Man of the Woods Tour,” Timberlake wanted to honor the victims of the tragedy while at the same time reaching out to the survivors.
At his concert in Houston, Timberlake took time out to dedicate a song to the community, singing his song “Until the End of Time.” Timberlake also played the acoustic guitar during his touching performance.
Additionally, Timberlake acknowledged the recent struggles that the Houston area had gone through, including Hurricane Harvey at the end of summer 2017.
But Justin Timberlake didn’t stop there. In addition to dedicating his Houston concert performance to the victims and survivors of the Santa Fe High School shooting, Timberlake wore a “Santa Fe Strong” shirt while performing to show his solidarity with the community.
Just a few days before the Houston concerts took place, Timberlake also paid a visit to Sarah Salazar, one of the injured student victims of the shooting who was still in the hospital.
Suffering serious injuries during the shooting, Salazar was lucky to make it out of the tragedy alive. Shot multiple times, Salazar was placed in the ICU, though her condition is improving — amazing considering that she suffered such severe injuries, the most serious being a collapsed lung.
According to her aunt, Norma Irlas, on Salazar’s GoFundMe page, “Her shoulder was shattered. Her mandible is fractured and she also has several rib fractures. She was shot from the neck down to her thigh. She is intubated and is recovering from the trauma to her neck vessels. After that, she will require several surgeries.”
Timberlake heard of Salazar’s plight and decided to pay her a visit while in the area. Wearing a medical gown and rubber gloves during his visit, Timberlake brought the young shooting victim a gift, according to her mother, Sonia Lopez-Puentes. He also posed for her in a photo shared on her mom’s Facebook.
While a visit might not seem like a lot to some, small acts of kindness, like what Justin Timberlake did, can go a long way toward the healing process. It lets the victims and their families know that they are in the thoughts and prayers of others around the country.
Watch Timberlake’s heartfelt performance on “Until the End of Time” in the video below and SHARE this story with your friends and family.
