Colorado Springs Club Q shooting victim: Ashley Paugh

Ashley Paugh was a proud mother who loved her family and was committed to her work with a nonprofit that helps find homes for foster children, her husband said.

Paugh, a 35-year-old woman who lived in La Junta, was one of five people killed late Saturday night by a gunman who opened fire inside Club Q, an LGBTQ+ nightclub in Colorado Springs. At least 18 others were wounded.

Paugh’s sister, Stephanie Clark, told NBC News that her sister was in Colorado Springs with a friend and that they went to Club Q to see a stand-up comedian.

Although not a member of the LGBTQ+ community, her husband, Kurt Paugh said in a statement Monday that his wife worked with the community to find welcoming foster placements for children. He said she helped many people through her work at Kids Crossing, which finds homes for the children.

“She would do anything for the kids – traveling all over southeastern Colorado, from Pueblo and Colorado Springs to Fremont County and the Colorado border, working to raise awareness and encourage individuals and families to become foster parents to children in our community,” Kurt Paugh said.

Paugh was in Pueblo and Colorado Springs last week as part of her efforts to line up trees for the holidays for foster children.

Paugh’s 11-year-old daughter, Ryleigh, a championship swimmer, was his wife’s “whole world,” Kurt Paugh said. She was “a loving aunt, with many nieces and nephews who are devastated by her loss,” he added.

In addition to being with her family and her work in the community, Paugh enjoyed being outdoors and liked to hunt, fish and ride four-wheelers.

“Ashley was a loving wife – she was my high school sweetheart – and she was just an amazing mother,” Kurt Paugh said.

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