'It just rips your heart out': Husband mourns loss of wife killed in Buffalo clinic shooting
Husband of woman killed in Buffalo health clinic shooting speaks out
Donnie Overbay talks about how his young children are handling their mother’s tragic shooting death. He discussed how he spent more than three years in Afghanistan as a marine without a scratch, but that his wife was gunned down as a healthcare worker.
BUFFALO, Minn. (FOX 9) - The husband of the medical assistant killed in the health clinic shooting in Buffalo, Minnesota spoke with FOX 9, sharing his raw emotions as he contends with the sudden loss of his wife.
"There were so many things we never got to do," said Donnie Overbay. "So many things that she left unfinished."
Donnie's world was shattered Tuesday morning. He lost the love of his life and his two young children lost their mother, Lindsay, when she was gunned down inside the Buffalo Allina Health Clinic. Lindsay had worked for Allina Health since 2018 as a medical assistant, caring for others with her enormous heart.
"I don’t know how to convey to my kids that they’re never going to see her again," said Donnie. "She is not just going to magically walk through the door one day. I think it’s going to be hardest on my daughter to understand that because she is so young when she is constantly asking, 'When’s mommy coming home?' It just rips your heart out."
Donnie, a former Marine, and Lindsay were married nearly 10 years. They met in Las Vegas.
"I wish it was me instead of her. I would have gladly taken her place," said Overbay. "There’s no way that kids need to see their mother one last time. And they’re never going to see her again, and I don’t know how to deal with that. I have a lot of people around me that are helping."
According to authorities, the 37-year-old New Ulm native was shot in the torso. The bullet pierced her liver and spine. Donnie told FOX 9 she died on the operating table. No one got to say a final goodbye.
"It makes no sense that I go to Afghanistan for three years as a contractor and I don’t get hurt," said Donnie. "And I come home, my wife has to die because of this. It’s not fair. Life’s not fair, but this is beyond that."
"Of course, there’s anger," he added. "There’s anger on everybody right now. But that anger has to be channeled somewhere other than sheer anger. If there’s a way to try to not allow this situation next time, by all means, it needs to be taken."
As prosecutors charged the alleged gunman Gregory Ulrich with Lindsay’s murder, Donnie lamented he doesn’t know what can be done to prevent the next mass shooting.
He said he is grateful for a community that has wrapped its arms around his family. A GoFundMe for the family has already topped $200,000 in the 48 hours since the deadly rampage.
"At this point, I want to take care of my kids and make them understand how much their mom was loved and to honor that and honor them," said Donnie.