Orange County

Pulse survivor to become chief visionary officer of Gun Violence Survivors Foundation

ORLANDO, Fla. — Many people know Patience Murray as a survivor who was held hostage during the mass shooting at Pulse.

She was shot in both legs and shattered her femur. But her dreams did not end with tragedy.

The Gun Violence Survivors Foundation helped meet Murray’s emotional needs by getting her back on stage.

READ: Tracking Elsa: Storm weakens as it moves over Cuba, continues on track toward Florida’s west coast

“I just thought, it’s just a pageant, who’s going to care? GVS cared,” Murray said. “And because of that, I was able to get introduced to this amazing team of people who still want to do work, and you still want to help people.”

The founder of the foundation recently passed away, and patience will soon become the chief visionary officer.

She said helping other survivors is already impacting her own healing journey.

READ: Surfside condo collapse: Death toll rises to 27; 118 unaccounted for

“I get to give that joy to other gun violence survivors who feel like they’re broken, who feel forgotten, who feel like they’re never going to get the help that they need, who feel like they’re no one’s ever going to hear their story,” Murray said.

Adam Poulisse, WFTV.com

Adam Poulisse joined WFTV in November 2019.