One year ago, Clark County officials created a fundraising campaign to build a permanent memorial to honor victims of the 1 October shooting with the goal of opening by 2027, the 10-year anniversary of the tragedy.

Now eight years after the deadliest mass shooting in American history, Vegas Memorial Fund chairperson and former Las Vegas Mayor Jan Jones Blackhurst says things are on the right track.

So far the fund has raised $4 million, and the current budget for the Forever One Memorial is around $40 million, with fund organizers hoping to secure more money from state and federal grants, as well as from private donors. Jones Blackhurst said two of the fund’s board members work in real estate development and worked with architects to bring the budget for the project from $70 million to “the very low 40s.”

“We're still looking for ways to cost engineer it so that it's as affordable as possible without losing the integrity, not just of the design, but the heart and the intent that went into the design,” Jones Blackhurst said.

On the eighth anniversary of the shooting, the Las Vegas Golden Knights presented the Vegas Memorial Fund with a $1 million check, the first major private contribution to the project. The shooting happened as the team was about to begin its inaugural season; it went on to play in the Stanley Cup finals months later.

“The Golden Knights were so instrumental in bringing this community together, in rallying us beyond the events of that night … getting everyone inspired and engaged around helping the survivors,” Jones Blackhurst said. “Having a lead gift from the Vegas Golden Knights is just another proof point of how important they are to this community and the heart that they've shown and how they helped all of us be stronger.”

Clark County previously donated $1 million in operating capital to the memorial, according to the fund.

Jones Blackhurst said that more than 70 community members — EMTs, law enforcement and survivors from 1 October — went to Carson City in May to lobby the Legislature to be a funding source for the memorial. Though they were ultimately unsuccessful, Jones Blackhurst said, “Like our memorial, we’re ever resilient.” 

After the loss at the Legislature, Blackhurst says the fund is now focused on beginning a nationwide campaign to raise the rest of the money needed to make the memorial a reality.

The memorial will be on the same grounds where the shooting took place, something that Jones Blackhurst said was very important to survivors and their families. The 2 acres of land was donated by MGM Resorts International once the design for the memorial was approved last year.

The memorial will include a 58-foot tower of light that Jones Blackhurst says is meant as “a symbol of hope, always being able to rise up, even beyond the most horrific circumstances.”

It also will include 58 candles to remember the 58 people who died immediately after the shooting, a convening area where people can sit and reflect, an infinity path and a remembrance wall — Jones Blackhurst says this is one of her favorite features — that uses terms such as “mother” and “husband” to talk about who the people lost were to their loved ones.

Jones Blackhurst said that the public is able to get involved by purchasing pavers to  memorialize their loved ones into the space on the path of remembrance.

Community members can buy pavers of different sizes, priced at $500 and $1,000 and may include a name or a message in support of community, healing and mental health.

The memorial is scheduled to break ground in the middle of 2026.