Billionaire Bill Ackman is a top donor rallying behind a 15-year-old Missouri girl who suffered severe brain damage when another teen smashed her head against the concrete during a high school fight.
The hedge fund investor, 57, contributed $10,000 towards a GoFundMe campaign in support of Kaylee Gain, DailyMail.com can reveal. His donation was confirmed by a partner at Pershing Square Capital Management, L.P.
The crowdfunding account, which is raising funds for medical bills and aims to support the teen’s family as Gain ‘fights hard to stay alive’, has received more than $213,000 in donations in just two days.
Organizers say her loved ones are extremely grateful for ‘overwhelming response’, which has ‘already brought the family to tears’.
Gain suffered a skull fracture and frontal lobe damage when her head was repeatedly smashed into the ground during a brawl last Friday. She was left alone on the ground to convulse before EMTs arrived.
She has ‘major brain bleeding and swelling’ and is in ‘critical condition’, her loved ones said. The family will not know the full extent of the damage until she wakes up.
Billionaire Bill Ackman is a top donor rallying behind 15-year-old Kaylee Gain (pictured), who suffered severe brain damage when another teen smashed her head against the concrete during a high school fight
Hedge fund investor Bill Ackman, 57, (pictured in 2017) contributed $10,000 towards a GoFundMe campaign in support of Kaylee Gain, a partner at Pershing Square Capital Management, L.P. confirmed to DailyMail.com
Kaylee Gain was brutally beaten by another teen (pictured) last week. She is ‘fighting hard to stay alive’ after suffering brain damage in the horrific attack
Kaylee Gain suffered a skull fracture and frontal lobe damage when her head was repeatedly smashed into the ground during a brawl (pictured) near her St. Louis high school last Friday
A crowdfunder campaign in support of Gain and her family has raised more than $213,000 in just two days. Pictured is Bill Ackman’s contribution to Kaylee Gain’s GoFundMe
The altercation broke out at about 2.30 pm Friday near Hazelwood East High School in St. Louis.
Video of the incident circulated on social media showing another girl bashing the teen’s head into the concrete after throwing multiple punches and sending her careening to the ground.
Gain appeared to begin to have a seizure as groups of other teens brawled just feet away.
Police found the girl suffering from a serious head injury near the intersection of Norgate Drive and Claudine Drive, roughly a five-minute walk from the high school campus. She was taken to the hospital and remains in critical condition.
‘Kaylee is fighting hard to stay alive and heal but this is only the beginning of a very uphill battle for Kaylee and her family,’ her loved ones shared on a crowdfunding page, adding: ‘the path to recovery will be extremely hard on the family, not only mentally but financially.’
‘In minutes, this family’s life shattered when their only daughter was assaulted outside of a North County high school,’ the GoFundMe campaign states.
‘She was left alone on the ground to convulse before EMTs arrived on the scene. She was admitted to one of the local hospitals in Saint Louis with a skull fracture and frontal lobe damage.’
Gain’s ‘shocked and devastated’ parents have been staying by their daughter’s side ‘day and night’ since he was hospitalized and are ‘hoping to bring her back to the Kaylee they know and love’.
Kaylee Gain (pictured) is fighting for life in critical condition, with a skull fracture and frontal lobe damage
Viral video shows another teen smashing her head into the pavement repeatedly before the victim appears to suffer a seizure
Police found the girl suffering from a serious head injury near the intersection of Norgate Drive and Claudine Drive. The fight broke out just off campus from Hazelwood East High School
A statement attributed to her parents, and published on a second GoFundMe page, said: ‘We are so grateful for the amazing medical staff who have been working tirelessly to give her the best possible chance at a full recovery.
‘We know she has a very long road ahead of her but we remain hopeful. We are so overwhelmed by all the support and love.’
The teen’s grandparents confirmed to KSDK that both crowdfunding pages are legitimate and will be used used to ‘help with costs incurred from Gain’s injuries and the parents’ lost wages’ – as they have stayed be her side at the hospital every day.
A 15-year-old girl was arrested Saturday and charged with assault. She was taken to the St. Louis County Family Court and remained in custody as of Sunday afternoon.
Attorney General Andrew Bailey has called on the ‘evil’ 15-year-old girl who beat Gain’s head into the concrete to be ‘tried as an adult’.
Bailey announced on X: ‘This evil and complete disregard for human life has no place in Missouri, or anywhere. I am praying for the victim.
‘The criminal should be charged and tried as an adult. If the victim dies, that offense should rise to a homicide.’
John O’Sullivan, Director of Communications with St. Louis County Courts, told KSDK it is too soon to determine if the suspect will be tried as an adult.
He says a court hearing is expected to be held in the next few weeks.
The Hazelwood School District issued a statement denouncing bullying and fighting within the community
The teen’s ‘shocked and devastated’ parents have been staying by their daughter’s side ‘day and night’ since he was hospitalized and are ‘hoping to bring her back to the Kaylee they know and love’
The Missouri Attorney General is calling on the 15-year-old girl who beat another teen’s head into concrete to be tried as an adult
After news of the altercation broke, the Hazelwood School District released a statement condemning violence within the community.
‘It is a tragedy anytime children are hurt,’ the statement read. ‘Bullying and fighting in the community is an issue for which we all need to take ownership and work towards a resolution for the sake of our children.
‘The Hazelwood School District offers our sincerest condolences to everyone involved and will offer additional emotional support from our support and crisis team to those in need.’
The statement urged community members to respect the families of those involved and ‘pledge to help work toward the betterment of our entire community.’
The district recently came under fire for disenrolling more than three dozen middle schoolers in late February and early March.
The school district’s public relations director, Jordyn Elston, told STLPR that the students were ejected because of ‘expired residency information.’
Of the 40 students who received letters informing them of the district’s decision, thirty-eight were re-enrolled within a week after providing updated information, the district said.
The St. Louis County Police Department is investigating the incident.