Tara Ann Roe Smith, a 34-year-old woman from Okotoks, Alberta, Canada, tragically lost her life in the devastating mass shooting that occurred on October 1, 2017, at the Route 91 Harvest Festival in Las Vegas, Nevada. Born on September 1, 1983, at the Brandon General Hospital to parents Mark and Brenda Smith, Tara was a vibrant and compassionate individual who left a profound impact on those around her.
She was a mother of two sons, Louis and Lennon, and was married to Zach Roe, with whom she shared a life filled with family, friends, and various activities such as boating, hiking, and camping in the Rockies.
On the fateful evening of October 1, 2017, Tara and her husband Zach were among the approximately 22,000 people attending the Route 91 Harvest Festival when a gunman opened fire from the 32nd floor of the Mandalay Bay Hotel and Casino. The shooter, identified as Stephen Paddock, a 64-year-old man from Mesquite, Nevada, unleashed a barrage of gunfire that resulted in one of the deadliest mass shootings in U.S. history. Tara was one of the 59 people who lost their lives in this horrific attack, along with over 500 others who were injured.
Stephen Paddock, the perpetrator of the massacre, acted alone in the shooting. He had checked into the Mandalay Bay Hotel and Casino several days prior to the event and had amassed a large arsenal of firearms in his hotel room. The investigation by the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department revealed that Paddock had no clear motive for the attack, and he took his own life before police could apprehend him. The LVMPD's comprehensive report detailed the events leading up to and during the shooting, but it did not uncover any evidence of accomplices or a specific reason behind Paddock's actions.
Tara's death was met with immense grief from her family, friends, and the community. She was an educational assistant with the Foothills School Division in High River, Alberta, and her colleagues and students remembered her for her caring spirit and dedication to her work. A GoFundMe page was set up to support her family, which quickly raised over $50,000 to help with the financial obligations following her death. The community also came together to celebrate her life, with a memorial service held at the Victoria Inn in Brandon, Manitoba, on October 13, 2017.
In the aftermath of the tragedy, there were no arrests made other than the confirmation that Stephen Paddock was the sole perpetrator. The investigation was extensive, involving multiple law enforcement agencies, but it concluded that Paddock acted alone in planning and executing the attack. The case remains one of the most significant and tragic incidents in recent U.S. history, with ongoing efforts to understand the motivations behind such acts of violence.
