GoDaddy Founder Gives $3.6M To Phoenix First Responders

PHOENIX — The founder of GoDaddy.com and his wife are donating $3.6 million to support police officers and firefighters injured or killed on duty. Gov. Doug Ducey announced the gift from Bob and Renee Parsons to the 100 Club of Arizona during a news conference at the state Capitol on Wednesday.

257 Arizona law enforcement officers have been killed in the line of duty since the 1790s, according to the Officer Down Memorial Page. Deputies with the Maricopa County Sheriffs make up 18 of those deaths. Phoenix Police have seen 39 of their officers killed in the line of duty.

The $3.6 million will be donated to the 100 Club over the next three years, according to the Associated Press.

The 100 Club, founded in 1952, supports fire and police departments and their personnel across the country. CEO and President Angela Harrolle says the gift will allow the organization to more than double the roughly $1 million it spends each year supporting police and firefighters and their families.

The gift comes days before National Police Week, a series of days honoring fallen officers. In 1962, President John F. Kennedy signed a proclamation which designated May 15 as Peace Officers Memorial Day and the week in which that date falls as Police Week. This year, tens of thousands of law enforcement officers from around the world are expected to gather for the occasion on Washington, DC.