Website Raising Money for Parkway Central Grad Injured in Boston Bombing

A crowdsourcing website aimed at raising donations is gathering money in the name of a Parkway Central High School alum who was injured in the Boston Marathon bombings.

According to a page in her name on GoFundMe, Caroline Reinsch and a friend Christian Williams were standing near the finish line close to where one of the two bombs exploded. The pair suffered serious injuries in the attack, the site said.

Parkway School District officials have confirmed that Reinsch graduated from Parkway Central High School in 1992. Facebook also has a profile for a Caroline Reinsch who lives in Boston and attended Parkway Central and the University of Missouri. 

The page was started by a friend of Reinsch and is one of many on the website dedicated to victims of the explosions in Boston. So far, it has raised more than $23,000 to help cover the costs of medical bills for Reinsch and Williams.

Patch has reached out to GoFundMe to verify the legitimacy of the fundraising campaign. We're asking anyone who may know Reinsch to contact us with an email at frank.johnson@patch.com.

Reisch's Facebook page also uses the name "Caroline Patsavos." A Jon Patsavos, who shares a Boston address with Reisch according to WhitePages.com, has a Twitter account on which he posted today, "Been in lockdown at hospital all day waiting for Caroline to get out of surgery. What a great staff and team here!"

Jon Patsavos' Twitter page identifies him as "senior advisor for U.S. Sen. John F. Kerry" of Massachusetts, who is now U.S. secretary of state.

The GoFundMe page says both Reisch and Williams suffered serious leg injuries and that Williams suffered a serious hand injury.

An article today on CNN Money notes that similar online fundraising efforts for Boston bombing victims have already raised more than $1 million.

The article specifically mentions sites such as GoFundMe, which "charge transaction fees of about 5 percent" and "employ a variety of safeguards to deter scams and ensure that the funds go to the intended victims. GoFundMe requires organizers to link efforts to a legitimate Facebook profile and has a team that vets any suspicious campaigns."

The page notes that Reinsch and Williams ran the Boston Marathon last year, "raising thousands of dollars for Dana Farber Cancer Institute through their successful campaign, 'Make My Feet Go.'"

ESPN reports that Reinsch finished last year with a time of 4:10:52.

We have reached out on email and social media to the individual who started the donation page as well as the person who shares the same Boston address as Reinsch.