Local bishops offer prayers for victims in Kansas City shooting, Catholic mother killed

Two local bishops offered prayers for victims after a shooting left one person dead and more than 20 people injured at the conclusion of the Kansas City Chiefs' Super Bowl victory parade in front of Union Station on Ash Wednesday.

"Let's offer our prayers for the victims of today's shooting after the parade and rally and their loved ones," Bishop James Johnston of Kansas City-St. Joseph, Missouri, wrote in a message shared on Facebook. "On this first day of Lent, we turn to God for mercy and healing for our broken world."

Archbishop Joseph Naumann of Kansas City, Kansas, called for unity in prayer following the shooting in a statement Wednesday evening.

"As we continue to process the details of the tragic shooting that concluded what had been a unifying celebration for our city, let us now remain united in prayer for healing, both physically and mentally, for the victims, their families, and all who are understandably shaken by the heartbreaking event near Union Station," he wrote.

Lisa Lopez-Galvan, a Catholic mother of two and disc jockey for the KKFI radio station in Kansas City, Missouri, was killed in the shooting.

"It is with sincere sadness and an extremely heavy and broken heart that we let our community know that KKFI DJ Lisa Lopez, host of Taste of Tejano lost her life today in the shooting at the KC Chiefs' rally," the radio station announced on Facebook that Wednesday evening. "This senseless act has taken a beautiful person from her family and this KC Community."

The Kansas City Fire Department said there are three more victims in critical condition and five in serious condition following the incident. Kansas City Police Chief Stacey Graves said two suspects have been taken into custody.

"We are holding in prayer all those impacted by the shooting this afternoon near Union Station," the Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph wrote in a Facebook message. "We also pray in gratitude for the first responders caring for the victims and returning safety to the area."

Lopez-Galvan was an active parishioner at Sacred Heart-Guadalupe Parish in Kansas City, Missouri, where she was fondly remembered by her fellow parishioners.

Ramona Arroyo, director of religious education at the parish, told OSV News that Lopez-Galvan's whole family is "devoted to the church." Her brother, Beto Lopez Jr., is the chief executive officer of Guadalupe Centers, one of the nation's first social service agencies for the Latino community.

Arroyo said the loss was "devastating" to the community. "She was a beautiful person," Arroyo said. She expressed her sympathy for Lopez-Galvan's husband, Michael, saying, "It's a horrible thing that happened to a good family."

The Kansas City Star reported that Lopez-Galvan, who was in her mid-40s with two adult children, died in the hospital during surgery after a gunshot wound to her abdomen.

Arroyo and Palacio said Lopez-Galvan, a known Chiefs fan, was at the parade with her family, including her son and nieces and nephews, and they had heard that other family members had been injured as well.