Chiefs fan’s KC Strong pennies going toward special cause
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — It’s been three weeks since the Chiefs Super Bowl celebration ended in gunfire.
The community is still finding new ways to show support for people who are hurting, or were injured on February 14 outside Union Station.
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The Valentine’s Day tragedy at the Chiefs Super Bowl parade seems like yesterday to Cass County’s Paul Conner. He’s a Chiefs employee who helped greet players on parade day.
For years, Conner has created commemorative smashed pennies as a hobby. The coins are actual legal tender — government issued pennies Conner has smashed with a press.
On Friday, our FOX4 cameras tagged along as he handed out some of them to families outside Crown Center.
This batch of pennies reflects Kansas City’s strength in recovering from the Parade Day shootings, showing a likeness of Union Station, a Chiefs logo and an image of Chiefs Head Coach Andy Reid. Conner said being creative like this brings his personal comfort.
“t was a big source of healing for me. That was my therapy,” Conner said on Friday.
Conner said when trouble broke out on Valentine’s Day, he was one off the people who took shelter inside Union Station. By coincidence, he was housed in the same area as members of Reid’s family.
“I wanted to not show giving up. I mean to show Kansas City holding on, persevering and doing better from there,” Conner said.
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Conner is selling these smashed coins online and donating the money to the Chiefs fundraising effort, which goes to the United Way of Greater Kansas City. Conner said he’s sending proceeds from the coin sales to the United Way once per week.
Connor says you can find his effort to raise money with the smashed pennies on Facebook. Here’s the link Conner provided for FOX4 News to share.
