Dustin Miller.Photo:GoFundMe
GoFundMe
A dedicated Kansas City Chiefs fan assured his mom he’d be back home in time to watch the2025 Super Bowlbefore he died in theAmerican Airlines tragedy.
IT professional Dustin Miller, 43, was among the 67 victims ofthe crash, which occurred on the evening of Wednesday, Jan. 29 after American Airlines flight 5342collided with a U.S. Army Black Hawk helicopterin Washington, D.C.
The bodies of all 67 victims have since been recovered following the crash over the Potomac River,authorities have confirmed.
A portion of the American Airlines plane that crashed in Washington D.C. is lifted out of the Potomac River.Chip Somodevilla/Getty
Chip Somodevilla/Getty
The page, set up to help loved ones with unexpected costs following Miller’s tragic death, stated that the victim was on his way to Rochester, N.Y., via D.C. from Wichita, Kan., for a work trip at the time of the crash.
“As his mother was dropping him off at Dwight D. Eisenhower Airport in Wichita, he said he wanted to be sure to make it back home in time watch the Chiefs play in the [Super Bowl],” the description said. “He even purchased a plane ticket for his brother Jon to fly in to Kansas from Arizona so they could all watch the game at home with their mom and dad.”
“Shortly before the plane departed from Wichita, Dustin texted his boss and spoke with a friend, describing the celebratory mood among the crew and fellow passengers since it was the last flight of the day. He also mentioned how cool it was that U.S. and Russian figure skaters were on board,” the page added.
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Twenty-eight members of the figure skating communitywere onboard Flight 5342, according to astatementfrom Samuel Auxier, Interim CEO of U.S. Figure Skating.
Eleven ofthe victimswere young skaters from five different clubs, according to a tribute video shared onthe U.S. Figure Skating Instagram page. The victims also includedformer Russian world champions Evgenia Shishkova and Vadim Naumov.
This weekend, Miller’s “extended family plans to gather along with friends, classmates, coworkers and members of the community to celebrate his life, and ask for all that wish to honor Dustin to help cheer on the Chiefs in his honor” while watching the Super Bowl LIX.
As of Thursday, Feb. 6, the GoFundMe page had raised $11,830.
A portion of the American Airlines plane that crashed in Washington D.C. is lifted out of the waterr.Kayla Bartkowski/Getty
Kayla Bartkowski/Getty
Per13 News, Miller lived in Tucson and Phoenix in Arizona for a while before moving to Wichita to be closer to his parents.
The victim’s sister, Kristen Miller Zahn, said, per the outlet, “I speak for my family when I say Dustin was the funniest guy in the room, he was also the most generous and loving.”
“He had a way of making people feel at home in his presence. He wasn’t just a brother or a son, he was also each of our best friend. We all had a unique and special bond with him. He would do anything for the people he loved, and for people he didn’t even know so well," Miller Zahn added.
“He was a HUGE Chiefs fan so he would want us to watch the Super Bowl game and root for the Chiefs. He was looking forward to that game!” the victim’s sister shared.
“He loved us, he would want us all to love each other and focus on what’s important, Family. My heart goes out to every family member of this tragedy, it does hurt so bad,” her statement, which was also shared on the GoFundMe page, included.
According to amemorial pageset up for Miller, friends and family will gather for a celebration of life event on Saturday, Feb. 8 at the El Dorado Civic Center in Kansas to remember him.
source: people.com
