"All of us did heroic things" says Club Q hero Richard Fierro

Richard Fierro recalls heroic moments during Club Q shooting one year later

On Sunday, Colorado Springs will mark a year since the Club Q tragedy.

The man who emerged as a hero for subduing the killer is asking others to keep the families of those who died in their thoughts and prayers.

U.S. Army veteran Richard Fierro has received many honors in the last year but at a huge loss.

He gets together every week with his closest friends and family at the brewery his wife Jess founded, Atrevida.

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A key member of the close-knit group is missing. The love of his daughter's life.

Raymond Green Vance is one of the five who perished at Club Q. 

Fierro's daughter Kassy dated him from the time both were 14 until Raymond died at 22.

"And Ray was taken from her. In a violent, very violent way. And for my daughter to lose her hopes and dreams like that in an instant completely unbeknownst to her that that was going to happen that night," Fierro said.

Kassy had said meeting Raymond was the best thing that ever happened to her. Living life without him is a daily struggle.

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"She is a beautiful young woman and she's working really hard to move in a direction that I think Ray would be appreciative of and she says she sees him in her dreams and that gives her a lot of solace," Fierro said.

Many stories have emerged of those who joined Fierro to subdue the mass shooter.

And to provide first aid to the injured.

"It means something to me when I say 'I'm not the hero,' all of us did heroic things," Fierro said.

"Chip, my best friend, was keeping his wife alive by putting pressure on her wounds, she had been shot five times. So, for you to be shot in the knees and on your knees putting pressure on your wife to keep her alive not knowing if this guy's coming back to kill you. Those are heroic moments that you can't describe and people don't really know about," Fierro said.

In the days following the shooting people around the world wanted to support the Fierro's family brewery.

Atrevida means daring, in Spanish.

"We still get that support. We still have folks coming in saying 'thank you,' or whatever the case may be. I thank them because they took the time out of their day to do that for me," added Fierro.

Richard Fierro and his wife Jess at the White House on November 11, 2023. They attended the President's Veteran's Day Breakfast. Jess Fierro

Atrevida will soon open a new location at the Colorado Springs Airport.

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