Coyotes step up with donation for fan's funeral expenses

When the Coyotes heard that one of their fans was killed on the way to a game last month, they stepped in with some assistance.

On Dec. 19, Arizona State student Jenna Tornese was headed to watch the Coyotes play the Panthers with her father, Douglas, when their car was rear-ended by a pickup truck, causing a chain-reaction crash, on Loop 202 in Phoenix.

Douglas Tornese was taken to a hospital and later died of blunt force head trauma, according to Jenna's GoFundMe page.

Jenna created the page, topped with a photo of her and her father at a Coyotes game, seeking help with her father's funeral and other expenses.

On Monday, she received an email from Lindsay Kray, the Coyotes' senior director of client services and guest experience.

Kray's message: "On behalf of the entire Arizona Coyotes organization, please accept our sincere condolences on the loss of your father. Your dad was a big fan of our team and we thank him for all of his loyalty and support. We can't imagine what you are going through right now but we are thinking about you and your family.

"As a token of our appreciation for you and your father, we have made a donation of $1,000 on your Go Fund Me page to help with the funeral arrangements."

The Coyotes also invited Jenna and her family to attend a game in the future.

With the Coyotes' donation, Jenna's GoFundMe page is more than $1,500 over her goal of $7,000. The page can be found here.