By Jason Powell, ProWrestling.net Editor (@prowrestlingnet)
WWE referee Daphanie LaShaunn (Aja Smith) announced via social media that a house fire claimed the lives of four of her family members late Wednesday night. “My heart aches,” LaShaunn wrote on social media on Thursday. “Last night I lost my grandma, grandpa, uncle, and cousin in a house fire. We were at the scene til the very end. My soul is hollow right now.”
LaShaunn also shared details of a GoFundMe fundraising campaign. “Planning four funerals and rebuilding is gonna be tough,” she wrote. “My cousin, a family of seven with five kids, are now displaced with nothing to their name. Anything helps, even a repost.” Read her full statement below or via Instagram.com.
Powell’s POV: There is a list of immediate needs for clothing and other items for her displaced cousin and her five children, whose ages range from one to eleven. The GoFundMe goal is $90,000, with $50,000 going to funeral and memorial costs. As of this update, over $78,000 has been raised. WWE co-workers Rhea Ripley, Bayley, and Liv Morgan each donated $5,000. Fellow referees Charles Robinson and Shawn Bennett, WWE producer Ken Doane, and former co-workers Shotzi Blackheart and Scarlett Bordeaux are also listed as top contributors. My condolences to LaShaunn and her family, along with my best wishes for her displaced family members.
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(Jason Powell, founder and editor of ProWrestling.net, has covered pro wrestling full-time dating back to 1997. He hosts a weekly podcast, Pro Wrestling Boom, and also appears regularly on the Wade Keller Pro Wrestling Podcast. Reach him via email at dotnetjason@gmail.com and on social media via @prowrestlingnet.bsky.social or x.com/prowrestlingnet. For his full bio and information on this website, click here.)
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