Less than a month after a gunman opened fire at a high school in Kentucky, the nation is grappling with yet another school shooting. 
 
 Wednesday’s massacre at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, killed at least 17 people and wounded over a dozen others. The suspected gunman, 19-year-old Nikolas Cruz, set off fire alarms to lure hundreds of students out of their classrooms so he could open fire with a semi-automatic AR-15 assault rifle. 
 
 Cruz was captured about an hour later in Coral Springs, roughly a mile away from the school. The following day, Cruz told authorities he shot "students that he saw in the hallways and on school grounds," according to an arrest affidavit. 
 
 “There really are no words,” Broward Sheriff Scott Israel said the day of the shooting. 
 
 But in wake of the tragedy, the deadliest school shooting since Sandy Hook in 2012, the Broward community has received an outpouring of support. 
 
 Read on to see what’s being done to help the shooting victims, their families, the local community and beyond. 
 
 Comfort dogs arrive in Broward County 
 
 At least 18 “comfort” dogs and 33 handlers arrived in Broward County from across the country, Tim Hetzner, the president and CEO of the nonprofit ministry Lutheran Church Charities (LCC), told Fox News. 
 
 Jacob, a doe-eyed Golden Retriever, was first on the scene. He spent the day comforting students and faculty at the high school. 
 
 “Dogs are good listeners and have a unique way of knowing when people are hurting,” he said. 
 
 Like Jacob, all dogs used in LCC’s comfort dog program are Golden Retrievers – a breed chosen by the organization because “goldens are lovers by nature,” Hetzner said. LCC trains the dogs for 16 to 18 months and then places them in affiliated churches, schools and other ministries across the country. 
 
 The dogs, which are trained to the level of a service dog, travel across the U.S. with their handlers whenever there is a crisis. 
 
 While the dogs are there to comfort the students and faculty at the high school, their services are also available to parents, first responders and anyone in the Broward community “struggling with what took place.” 
 
 “We go where we’re invited," Hetzner said. “We’re there to serve people and show mercy and compassion.” 
 
 To help offset transportation costs, you can donate here. 
 
 Donate to the victims' fund 
 
 The Broward Education Foundation, a nonprofit that raises money for the public schools in Broward County, has set up an official GoFundMe donation page for the victims of the Stoneman Douglas shooting. 
 
 As of Monday morning, the fund received more than $1.5 million of its $2 million goal – a significant increase from its initial goal of $300,000. The foundation will continue to increase the goal each time it's met, PeJay Ryan, the director of marketing at the Broward Education Foundation, told Fox News. 
 
 All of the proceeds will go to those affected by the tragedy, Ryan said, as well as anyone who may need grief counseling. 
 
 “We’ve all cried a lot - first in horror, but then because of the outpouring generosity and compassion.” - PeJay Ryan 
 
 Memorial bracelets to honor the victims are also being created. And the foundation worked with Bank of America to set up a text-to-donate option as well, she said. To donate to the Stoneman Douglas fund, text PARKLAND to 20222. 
 
 “We are in a unique position here, no one expected this to happen,” said Ryan. “We’ve all cried a lot – first in horror, but then because of the outpouring generosity and compassion.” 
 
 You can donate to the GoFundMe campaign here. 
 
 Additionally, at least one scholarship fund has been set up in the name of one of Wednesday's shooting victims. 
 
 If you live in Florida, consider donating blood 
 
 If you live in Florida, a local blood center is asking for your help, especially if your blood type is O negative. 
 
 “While the immediate blood needs have been met, there is a need to replenish the area's O negative blood supply. O negative is the universal blood type and is used to treat trauma patients,” OneBlood said in a statement. 
 
 As of Feb. 19, at least four shooting victims were still being treated at local hospitals. 
 
 To donate, find a location here. 
 
 Florida attorney general vows to cover funeral expenses 
 
 Florida Attorney General Pamela Bondi announced Wednesday that her office would pay for the funeral expenses of the 17 victims who died as a result of the shooting. 
 
 "We will pay for the funeral expenses of these poor victims," Bondi said. "We will take care of it." 
 
 Free transportation for victims’ families 
 
 JetBlue Airways is providing free transportation for family members of victims who are traveling to Florida, the airline announced in a blog post. 
 
 “This week’s events are felt by all of our 21,000 crewmembers, many of whom live in, work from and travel through the Broward County area, home to our Focus City, Fort Lauderdale," JetBlue said. "We want to do our part to help the community, and support South Florida through this difficult time." 
 
 Volunteers in the Family Assistance Center will help people book the free travel, the airline said. 
 
 Once the families have arrived in Florida, ride-sharing service Lyft will provide free ground transportation in partnership with JetBlue, spokesperson Campbell Matthews confirmed to Fox News, adding the company is "heartbroken by the tragedy." 
 
 JetBlue is also partnering with the Florida Panthers hockey team to hold a blood drive on Feb. 22. 
 
 Fox News' Kaitlyn Schallhorn and Shira Bush contributed to this report. ||||| PARKLAND, Florida — The U.S. Army has given medals to three Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps cadets killed in the Parkland school shooting last week, a spokesperson told The Daily Beast on Tuesday. 
 
 The Medal of Heroism was presented to the family of Alaina Petty at a memorial service on Monday, the Army said, and will be given to the family of Peter Wang during his memorial service today. Martin Duque’s family will be given the medal on Saturday, the Army added. The medal recognizes cadets whose performance “involved the acceptance of danger and extraordinary responsibilities.” 
 
 All three students were allegedly killed by a fellow JROTC member, Nikolas Cruz, at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School on Wednesday. 
 
 During the shooting, Wang, 15, held open a door to allow his fellow classmates to escape to safety. Students told the South Florida Sun Sentinel, “He is so funny, caring and selfless.’’ Wang’s older cousin added, “He is so brave.” 
 
 Petty, 14, was “excited to be part of the female color guard team and every day she would come home and tell me all the fun things she had learned,” Petty's mother told the Sun Sentinel. Duque, also 14, was remembered by family members as a football fan and a regular churchgoer, the Miami Herald reported. “He was sweet, affectionate and loved by his entire family. But above all else, he was my little brother,” Duque's brother Miguel wrote on a GoFundMe page to help cover additional funeral expenses. 
 
 Military veterans are expected to attend Wang’s funeral on Tuesday. 
 
 —Elisha Brown contributed to this report ||||| Image copyright Getty Images Image caption Peter Wang was one of 17 killed in February's mass school shooting 
 
 A junior cadet who died helping other students escape a Florida school shooting has been posthumously accepted into a prestigious US military school. 
 
 Peter Wang, 15, one of 17 killed in the 14 February attack, was admitted to the class of 2025 at his dream school, West Point Academy. 
 
 He was a member of the US Army Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps (JROTC), a school programme for potential US military officers. 
 
 His funeral took place on Tuesday. 
 
 The school will confer a letter of admission and honorarium tokens to his family, local West Point alumnus Chad Maxey told the Sun Sentinel newspaper. 
 
 Florida Governor Rick Scott also reportedly directed the state's National Guard to honour Peter and two other members of the JROTC at their funerals. 
 
 Image copyright BBC (supplied) Image caption Peter Wang was reportedly wearing his JROTC uniform when he died 
 
 The US Army bestowed the Medal of Heroism on three students who were killed, including Peter, according to US media. 
 
 The Cadet Command also approved Junior ROTC Heroism Medals for 14-year-old cadets Alaina Petty and Martin Duque, an army spokesman told US media. 
 
 Peter was in uniform when he was fatally shot while holding the door for others fleeing a gunman at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, witnesses say. 
 
 Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption Students staged an anti-gun 'lie-in' 
 
 The recognition comes after an online petition called for him to be laid to rest with military honours, saying he "deserves" to be buried as a hero, because "his selfless and heroic actions have led to the survival of dozens in the area". 
 
 Peter, who had spent part of his childhood in his parents' native China, had dreamed of attending the West Point military academy, friends say. 
 
 Jesse Pan, a neighbour and longstanding friend of Peter's family, told the BBC Chinese Service he had tried to support the teenager's parents as they struggled to cope with the loss. 
 
 "I was there with his parents, helping translating and finding a funeral home," he said. 
 
 "His parents fainted as soon as they saw his body. He had got multiple shots in front… So horrible." 
 
 Meanwhile, about 100 students from Stoneman Douglas have travelled by bus to the Florida state capitol, where they plan to hold a rally against gun violence on Wednesday. 
 
 Some of them arrived on Tuesday in time to see the Republican-controlled state legislature reject a proposed ban on assault weapons and large capacity magazines. 
 
 State lawmakers voted down the measure after opening their session with a prayer for the victims of the Parkland high school shooting. 
 
 Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption As a gunman opened fire in a Florida high school, students inside reached for their phones. 
 
 The students, whose school is shut until 27 February, are hoping their march inspires others across the US. 
 
 A larger protest is being planned for Washington DC on 24 March. 
 
 US President Donald Trump on Tuesday called for a ban on rapid-fire "bump stock" devices, which were used last October's Las Vegas massacre, but not in the Florida high school attack. 
 
 The Parkland school was the scene of a deadly rampage last week, when an ex-student allegedly opened fire with an AR-15 assault rifle. 
 
 The suspect, Nikolas Cruz, had moved in with a friend, who also attended the school, after his adoptive mother died in 2017. 
 
 The parents who hosted Mr Cruz, James and Kimberly Snead, told CBS News the teenager was depressed but they did not realise how troubled he was. 
 
 Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption Emma Gonzalez told a rally that the massacre was not only a mental health issue 
 
 "The Nik we knew was not the Nik that everybody else seemed to know," James Snead told CBS. 
 
 "He pulled one over on us. As well as a lot of people," Mrs Snead said. 
 
 Mr Snead, a US army veteran, said he knew Mr Cruz had guns but believed he had the only key to the safe where they were located. 
 
 He added that it was Mr Cruz's right to have guns. 
 
 Image copyright ABC Image caption James and Kimberly Snead told ABC about how they took in the troubled teenager after his adopted mum died 
 
 Law enforcement officials say that Mr Cruz legally purchased seven rifles in the last year, despite several mental health warnings. 
 
 The couple also told ABC News that Mr Cruz had texted their son only three minutes before the attack began in Parkland, Florida, to say he was "going to the movies". 
 
 When they first saw him at the police station after he was arrested, he "mumbled" an apology to the parents. 
 
 Documents obtained by CBS show that Mr Cruz and his late adoptive mother, Lynda Cruz, were visited by Florida's Department of Children and Families (DCF) after allegations of medical neglect in September 2016. 
 
 The investigator reportedly determined that Mr Cruz suffered from depression, ADHD and autism, had cut his arms in a post on social media and once plastered a racist message on his school backpack. 
 
 Officials closed the investigation after deciding he was not being mistreated, according to CBS News.
– He might not get a full military funeral, but Parkland school shooting victim Peter Wang will get a nod from the US Army. The 15-year-old old Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps member who held doors open for students and staff fleeing bullets at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School last week will be honored with a Medal of Heroism, presented to his family at a memorial service Tuesday, reports the Daily Beast, which notes the medal is given to those whose actions "involved the acceptance of danger and extraordinary responsibilities." A medal was presented to relatives of 14-year-old JROTC member Alaina Petty at a memorial service Monday—the Florida Attorney General's Office is covering funeral costs for all 17 shooting victims—and will be given to 14-year-old Martin Duque's family on Saturday, the Army says. Alex Schachter, another 14-year-old killed in the shooting, is being honored with a scholarship fund totaling more than $125,000 as of this writing. It's designed to "fund increased security at schools" and help students "experience the joys of music," according to a GoFundMe page. Another arranged by the Broward Education Foundation has raised $1.7 million to be used "to provide relief and financial support" to victims and family members, who've received free transportation from JetBlue Airways. "We've all cried a lot—first in horror, but then because of the outpouring (of) generosity and compassion," BEF marketing director PeJay Ryan tells Fox News. Some 18 comfort dogs trained by Lutheran Church Charities are also providing relief. They "are good listeners and have a unique way of knowing when people are hurting," says CEO Tim Hetzner.