Main fundraiser photo

Carmen Schentrup Memorial Fund

We started this fund (#CarmensFund) to support advocacy and outreach for common sense gun reform. We have lost our child, Carmen, to senseless gun violence. We know first hand the unbearable tragic pain. We are compelled to do everything we can to make this world a better place for our remaining children and for all children.  Please help us. 

Carmen was our amazing and beautiful daughter. She was murdered during the massacre at Marjory Stoneman Douglas (MSD) High School in Parkland, Florida on Valentine's Day 2018, a week before her 17th birthday.  

While many people considered Carmen mature beyond her years (she joked people had been asking her how she liked college since she was a freshman in high school), she was still a kid at heart. She was silly, playful, and huggable. As parents, we loved that Carmen never outgrew our hugs and would hug us every night before she went to bed. We miss her hugs.

Carmen was funny, in witty and novel ways. When she got on a roll, we’d laugh until we cried. We miss her laughter.

Carmen was strong. When she was 12, she had major surgery that resulted in four metal rods sticking out of her leg for months. She never once complained about it and never attempted to hide the scars. Not one to pass up a good joke though, she would often come up with funny stories about her scars, like when she said she got them “running with the bulls in Spain”. We miss her strength and courage.

Carmen loved a good story and devoured books, routinely reading over 100 per year. Like most teenagers, she also enjoyed TV and movies. We miss her stories.  

Carmen was artistic and loved music. She enjoyed drawing and visiting art museums. She played piano, violin, guitar, and sang is our church choir. We miss her music.

Carmen was a dreamer. A couple of years ago she dreamt of visiting Germany, so she spent a year teaching herself the language. Last year, she planned our family vacation to Germany and played the role of translator and guide. We miss seeing her make her dreams come true.

Carmen was dedicated and accomplished. As a student, she was quite literally a “straight A” student and a National Merit Finalist (although Carmen never knew this. Her award letter arrived the day after she died).  Carmen was accepted into the University of Florida Honors Program and was waiting to hear back from the University of Washington as well. She was exuberant to begin her college experience and wanted to become a medical scientist, so she could discover a cure for like ALS. She was going to change the world.

Carmen was blessed to have great friends. Friends who enjoyed one another’s company and stayed true to themselves. The kind of friends that, in our family’s hour of need, scoured the local hospitals searching for our little girl and stayed with us until our worst fears were confirmed.  Their kindness is beyond measure.

Carmen was on a journey of discovery, running a race against time to see how much of the world she could discover. She couldn’t have known how little time she had.

This is the official GoFundMe page for Carmen Schentrup and was created by her parents. 

Finally, if you would like to know a little more about Carmen and our mission please visit these links below.

See pictures of our beautiful daughter:
https://www.dignitymemorial.com/obituaries/coral-springs-fl/carmen-schentrup-7764559?filter=family#remembering

Find out what Phil, April, and Robert have been doing to try and make practical common sense chagnes.
https://www.schentrup.com/speaking-out

Please also remember the 16 others who died as well:
Cara Loughran, 14    |    Jaime Guttenberg, 14    |    Alaina Petty, 14    |    Alex Schachter, 14    |    Gina Montalto, 14    |    Alyssa Alhadeff, 14    |    Martin Duque Anguiano, 14    |    Peter Wang, 15    |    Luke Hoyer, 15    |    Nicholas Dworet, 17    |    Helena Ramsay, 17    |    Joaquin Oliver, 17    |    Meadow Pollack, 18    |    Scott Beigel, 35    |    Aaron Feis, 37    |    Chris Hixon, 49
Donate

Donations 

  • Jan Knauer
    • $20 
    • 5 yrs
  • Anonymous
    • $500 (Offline)
    • 6 yrs
  • The Episcopal Diocese of Western North Carolina
    • $1,887 (Offline)
    • 6 yrs
Donate

Organizer

Philip Schentrup
Organizer
Pompano Beach, FL

Your easy, powerful, and trusted home for help

  • Easy

    Donate quickly and easily.

  • Powerful

    Send help right to the people and causes you care about.

  • Trusted

    Your donation is protected by the  GoFundMe Giving Guarantee.