Kalamazoo Public Safety officers and Kalamazoo County sheriff's deputies searched the house of Jason B. Dalton at 7031 Douglas Ave. in Cooper Township. Dalton, 45, is charged with killing six people and seriously injuring two others in a mass shooting spree Feb. 20 in Kalamazoo County.

KALAMAZOO, MI -- The family of the Cooper Township man accused of shooting eight people, killing six of them, across Kalamazoo County last month are victims, too.

Jason Dalton's wife and children were traumatized by the shootings of Feb. 20 and will be eligible for help from the collaborative community fund established by the Kalamazoo and Battle Creek community foundations and the United Way.

Brenda Hunt, executive director of the Battle Creek Community Foundation, said that's a decision the partner groups made early on in the creation of the HelpNow fund established to provide immediate and long-term help to shooting victims, their families and others in the community traumatized by the deadly mass shooting. All of the donations designation for shooting victims will be used for those victims alone.

Carole Dalton filed for divorce from Jason Dalton in Kalamazoo County Circuit Court Feb. 25. The couple married in 1995. The Daltons have two children, ages 15 and 10.

"We have been asked if we will take donations for that family, and yes, we will," Hunt said. They will be designated as "anonymous" for the purposes of receiving donations, and donors can mail checks with that designation to the fund at Help Now, Battle Creek Community Foundation, 32 W. Michigan, Ste. 1, Battle Creek, MI 49017.

They will not be listed in the online drop-down menu of shooting victims, Hunt said, nor will online donors or those texting donations be able to select them as recipients.

Donors who wish to exclude Dalton's family from their help, making a "negative designation," are asked to call to be talked through what they do and do not want to support, Hunt said. In Kalamazoo, the number is 269-381-4416.

Witnesses to the shootings, too, are victims eligible for assistance.

Click here to read more about the HelpNow fund or to make a donation online, or mail donations to:

A $10 donation can also be made by texting "Support Now" to 20222.

Rosemary Parker is a reporter at MLive. Contact her at rparker3@mlive.com.