One of the Annunciation Catholic School children wounded during Mass on Wednesday was shot in the head while trying to protect her “little buddy,” with whom she had been paired at the start of school, friends said.

Lydia Kaiser underwent an “unimaginable surgery” and was in a “very serious” condition, according to an online fundraiser set up to support her and her family.

“Her story parallels the other injured students in the community,” according to a post on the GoFundMe fundraising site (gofund.me/f386fa83). “We are praying for her recovery and asking for help as the family navigates all that is to come.”

Lydia, a student at the Minneapolis school, was one of 18 people wounded when a shooter opened fire Wednesday morning through the windows of Annunciation Catholic Church in Minneapolis; two children, Harper Moyski, 10, and Fletcher Merkel, 8, were killed in the attack.

Lydia’s father, Harry Kaiser, is a gym teacher at Annunciation Catholic School, which enrolls children in preschool through eighth grade, according to the post.

Harry Kaiser, “our community’s beloved gym teacher,” was also at the Mass and helped secure the room, the post states. “He helped … to keep children safe, and stuck with them all until they were reunited with their families, even while his daughter was entering the emergency room.”

Harry Kaiser works as a part-time bartender at Porterhouse Steak & Seafood Restaurant in Lakeville, according to the restaurant’s Facebook page.

Restaurant officials said Lydia Kaiser “was severely injured due to being grazed by a bullet on her head leaving several bullet fragments in her skull during the attack and was rushed to Children’s Hospital for surgery,” according to the restaurant’s post on Facebook.

“Thankfully the surgery was successful, but we would be eternally grateful for your help,” the post states. “There will be mounting medical bills for Lydia. Please keep all the victims and their families in your thoughts and prayers during this difficult time. Anything helps!”

Lydia Kaiser was injured in the shooting at Annunciation Catholic Church. (Courtesy of GoFundMe)

As of Friday morning, the fundraiser had raised more than $170,000 of its $270,000 goal.

“Lydia and Harry are two heroes in our midst,” according to the GoFundMe post. “Please consider supporting the family with donations. All money received will go directly to the family to cover medical expenses, ongoing care, trauma counseling, lost income, and the countless unknowns that lie ahead. And please PRAY for her recovery; pray for all of the students and teachers touched by this tragedy; and pray for the first responders and community members that were there to help.”

The donation platform GoFundMe has verified other donation pages where readers can support families of victims. Links to those pages are online at tinyurl.com/GoFundMeMPLS2025.

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