On April 13, 2014, Mindy Corporon’s 14-year-old-son, Reat Griffin Lloyd Underwood, and her father, Dr. Bill Corporon, were at the wrong place for a split second. Dr. Corporon and Reat were in the Jewish Community Center’s parking lot before Reat’s audition for the Kansas City Superstar competition. A gunman ambushed them and they became the first two victims of a hate crime intended to harm members of the Kansas City Jewish community.
Mindy spoke to the press about the event, explaining that it was “about us who are living and it’s about loving and caring for one another.” At the time of the event, she didn’t know exactly what good what come out of such a tragedy, but she knew something would.
The Reat Griffin Underwood Memorial Fund is “the something good” that has stemmed from that tragedy. The Fund celebrates her son and father’s legacy by financially supporting causes in faith and the performing arts, two areas very near and dear to Reat and Dr. Corporon’s hearts.
Reat lived life fully
Reat was born on May 21, 1999 in Norman, Oklahoma to parents Mindy Corporon and Gary Underwood. For the first ten months of his life, he was his grandfather’s, Dr. William Corporon, first priority. Reat moved with Mindy to Overland Park, Kansas in 2000. As an infant he met Len Losen, who would become his father figure, mentor, and biggest fan. Reat was a precocious toddler who loved performing.
Reat’s love of theater came naturally. When he would stay with his grandparents, Dr. Bill and Melinda Corporon (“Popeye” and “YeaYea”), he attended many theatrical rehearsals and productions with them. Reat began his theatre career at age four. He auditioned for and received roles in more than 10 stage productions. As a high school freshman, he was accepted to the Kansas City Starlight Theatre Program, “Starlight Stars.” He was also selected for a part in The Theatre in the Park’s 2014 production of “Tom Sawyer”. Although Reat played baseball, basketball and football, he loved to SING!
Reat’s successes are a testament not only to his personal drive but are also due in large part to the love, kindness and support provided by his parents and grandparents.
Dr. Corporon lived for his family and community
Dr. William Corporon spent his medical career in family practice and emergency medicine, most recently in Missouri with Midwest Emergency Physicians. His career included several professional directorships, including mental health centers, nursing care facilities and day treatments centers in Oklahoma. He served on the Board of Directors of Oklahoma Foundation for Peer Review, was chairman of its Medical Education and Intervention Committee, and he sat on the Board of Directors of Duncan Regional Hospital.
Dr. Corporon and his wife, Melinda Ann, raised three children and were blessed with ten grandchildren, including Reat Griffin Lloyd Underwood. Dr. Corporon and his wife moved to the Kansas City metro area to be closer to their children and grandchildren.
Beyond medicine and family, Dr. Corporon enjoyed a wide variety of hobbies. Reading, shooting, hunting, SCUBA, swimming, writing, and especially the theater, which he shared a passion for with his grandson, Reat. He played roles in several theater productions and directed and wrote his own work. Dr. Corporon’s community involvement, particularly in arts and theater projects, was honored when he and his wife was awarded the Oklahoma Governor’s Award for Community Service in the Arts in 2002.
About the Memorial Fund
The Reat Griffin Underwood Memorial Fund honors the legacies of both, Reat Griffin Underwood and Dr. Bill Corporon. The fund is intended to provide financial support in the following areas:
Faith Wins
- Proverbs 10:12 “Hatred stirs up dissension, but love covers over all wrongs.”
- Romans 12:21 “Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.”
- Hebrews 11:1 “Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.”
Our approach to Faith Wins will keep these three verses in the forefront. Faith, love and hope give us courage and strength; faith that Heaven exists and is there for us as our time on earth ends, faith that our purpose in life is to love thy neighbor, faith that our love will overcome evil, faith that God walks with us daily if only we allow him.
The Fund’s board will accept grants from organizations that offer programs that assist with or offer:
- Religious education
- Medical initiatives
- Random acts of kindness
- Grief assistance for children and families
Performing Arts
Our board will accept grants from organizations that offer programs of the following nature:
- Productions that involve persons 21 and younger
- Programs involving audition education and training for persons 21 and younger
We invite you to join us in celebrating the legacies of Reat and Dr. Bill Corporon by making a donation to the Reat Griffin Underwood Memorial Fund. If you’d like to learn more or make a contribution, please click here.
A Word of Thanks from Mindy
“Each day the sun rises, I thank God for my time with my Dad and Reat. I am thankful for the laughter, songs, smiles, hugs, kisses, stories and the love. I am thankful for the years they were with us. I am thankful I feel them near me and I am thankful I will see them again.
The words “thank you” do not scratch the surface for what my family and I would like to say to you, our dear friends. However, these are the words we have and are hopeful they fill your heart as you have filled ours. What happened to our family and that of the Teresa LaManno family is unimaginable. Yet, here we are in June 2014 continuing to live and beginning to heal. Your prayers not only lifted us, they carried us through the first heartbreaking months. While we were not aware our faith was so strong, we are thankful that you and our faith are sustaining us. Your prayers, cards, emails, hugs, virtual hugs and gifts continue to lift us up each and every day. You are bringing good into our lives when we need it most. In fact, the good things coming from this tragedy began trickling in on April 13th. Thank you, with love and gratitude.
We are keeping the spirit and the legacies of Bill and Reat alive through charitable funding and two social media sites. We initially asked for donations to be made to 5 separate charities and are happy we did so. These charities have significant meaning to us and will continue to help us heal through their work with donations made in memory of Bill and Reat.
However, after several weeks we realized the need for our own foundation, thus the creation of the Reat Griffin Underwood Memorial Fund to honor their legacy.
We would love for you to follow the good things happening through our website and our Facebook page.
You are welcome to post good things happening that are making a difference in your lives, too.
Faith Wins!”
This information is provided for general information purposes only and should not be construed as investment, tax, or legal advice. Past performance of any market results is no assurance of future performance. The information contained herein has been obtained from sources deemed reliable but is not guaranteed.