Cleveland Captives See Outpouring of Financial Help

Trust fund to be split evenly among four victims
By Arden Dier,  Newser Staff
Posted Jun 7, 2013 7:22 AM CDT
Cleveland Captives See Outpouring of Financial Help
Amanda Berry, left, and Georgina "Gina" DeJesus were freed from captivity inside a Cleveland house on Monday, May 6, 2013.   (AP Photo/FBI, File)

A month after three women and a young girl were found captive in a Cleveland home, Reuters checks in on the victims' situation, or at least their financial state. The Cleveland Courage Fund, a tax-free trust set up in their name, has been flooded with donations and now totals $825,000. The victims have begun dipping into the money, which will be split evenly among Gina DeJesus, Michelle Knight, Amanda Berry, and Berry's six-year-old daughter. "The outpouring of public support has been nothing short of remarkable," the victims previously said in a letter via ABC News.

"The community is acting in a way you would hope they would act," the fund's co-trustee told Reuters, adding the money will help the women with whatever they need. "Ten years out of society means not finishing school, no job training, and not learning how to drive." It's not only money that's being offered up. Doctors and dentists have volunteered their services, while others have donated the use of vacation homes and cars. Meanwhile, Reuters reports neighborhood residents have talked about tearing down Ariel Castro's now boarded-up house and planting four oak trees in its place. (More Cleveland Kidnapping stories.)

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