Haysville blood drive honors Derby shooting victim (+video)

Since Julie Dombo was critically injured in a shooting last month in Derby, she has required 31 units of donated blood.

On Monday, friends, relatives and general well-wishers came to Haysville Middle School, where Dombo was a counselor for many years, to donate blood to the American Red Cross in her honor.

Blood drive organizer Rhonda Landsverk said the drive set its goal at 100 pints of blood. By 3:30 p.m. Monday, 66 people had signed up for appointments to donate – the drive accommodated 75 people.

Organizers stressed that people can still donate in Dombo’s name at the Wichita Blood Donation Center, 707 N. Main, until Saturday.

Dombo, who is recovering at Wesley Medical Center, cannot yet breathe on her own and uses a ventilator, according to family members.

No one outside her immediate family is allowed to see her in an effort to prevent the spread of germs.

A GoFundMe page that has been set up to help pay for Dombo’s medical expenses has garnered $21,845 in three weeks.

Michelle Webb, who has known Dombo for about 16 years, said it’s no surprise the community has reacted so strongly to Dombo’s story.

“She was exactly what everybody talks about: She was helpful, she was kind, and that’s why there’s so much support for her,” Webb said.

Dombo was critically injured while at a Derby AT&T store on Aug. 11, when James Michael Phillips is suspected of trying to rob the store. According to a probable cause affidavit released last week, Phillips shot Dombo twice, once in the forearm and once in the shoulder, “because she would not listen to him and go to the back of the store.”

Dombo is steadily improving, but “she’s got a long way to go,” Webb said.

“She’s such a fighter,” she said. “She’s made it farther than a lot of people would have.”

Her friends are organizing a four-mile walk/run in her honor at 1 p.m. Sept. 27 at the Derby Recreation Center. All of the proceeds from the event, which has a theme of gun violence awareness, will go to pay for her medical expenses, Landsverk said.

The walk/run will follow Dombo’s daily speedwalking route. A short dedication ceremony will take place at around 1 p.m., Landsverk said.

To register for the event, called Making Strides Against Gun Violence, go to www.derbyrec.com and click on “Register for Julie Dombo Walk/Run” under the orange Making Strides Against Gun Violence logo on the right.

“The whole community has really taken interest in her story,” Landsverk said. “The generosity has been really overwhelming.”

This story was originally published September 7, 2015 at 9:30 PM with the headline "Haysville blood drive honors Derby shooting victim (+video)."