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These are the victims of the California Thousand Oaks shooting

A 22-year-old who dreamed of joining the military, a hero officer, a student and a recent college grad. These are the first victims identified from the California bar shooting.

Twelve people were killed after a Marine combat veteran opened fire during college night at a country music bar in Southern California.

Investigators are still working to identify all of the victims and notify their families. As more names are released publicly they will be added below.

Sgt. Ron Helus

Ventura County Sheriff's Sgt. Ron Helus was shot late Wednesday when he entered the Borderline Bar & Grill in Thousand Oaks, Calif., after reports of a shooting.

He is being described as a "cop's cop" that would take on some of the toughest assignments and was on the SWAT team, according to a friend, Sgt. Eric Buschow.

The Ventura County Sheriff said the report of the shooting came as Helus was on the phone with his wife. The sheriff said Helus told her, "Hey I gotta go handle a call. I love you. I'll talk to you later."

Credit: DC Police Department
Ventura County Sheriff's Sergeant Ron Helus was killed when he confronted a gunman at a Southern California bar late Wednesday.

Colleagues of Helus described him as a friend and an exceptional man and officer.

Helus was married with a grown son and took up fly fishing a few years ago, Buschow said. He loved fishing in the Sierra Nevada mountains with his son.

Cody Coffman

According to his father, 22-year-old Cody Coffman is among the 12 people who died in the shooting. Jason Coffman told reporters the last thing he told his son Cody was "I love you."

"I've been here fighting for him all morning long, and we did just get the news that he was one of the 11 killed last night. He was Cody Coffman, my first-born son," Jason Coffman tearfully described.

He added that Cody Coffman had dreams of joining the military and had been talking to Army recruiters.

Before authorities told him Cody was one of the victims Jason Coffman had said he was afraid his son "went toward the action" because he was the type of person who would stand up for others.

Credit: FREDERIC J. BROWN/AFP/Getty Images
Jason Coffman displays a photo of his son Cody outside the Thousands Oaks Teene Center where he came hoping to find his son who was at the Borderline Bar and Grill in Thousand Oaks, California, on November 8, 2018.

Justin Meek

23-year-old Justin Meek was killed in Wednesday night's shooting, according to a statement on Thursday from California Lutheran University. The statement said Meek was a recent graduate of the university, which is located a few miles from the Borderline Bar & Grill.

"Meek heroically saved lives in the incident," the statement said. The university planned on holding several memorials and gatherings throughout the day to remember the victims.

Cal Lutheran President Chris Kimball said in a statement that Meek was among the dead and had "heroically saved lives" in the attack, without giving details.

He worked as a respite caregiver supporting families with children with special needs, said Sharon Francis, chief executive of Channel Island Social Services. He was hired last summer and mostly worked with kids with developmental disabilities.

"Parents just adored him. He was able to bond with their kids," she said. "He was just an all-around guy."

Alaina Housley

Alaina Housley, a freshman at Pepperdine University, was killed during the attack at the Borderline Bar & Grill on Wednesday night, her aunt and "The Real" host Tamera Mowry-Housley said in a statement.

A statement issued to USA TODAY on behalf of Mowry-Housley and her husband, former Fox News correspondent Adam Housley, confirmed their niece was a victim in the mass shooting.

"Our hearts are broken. We just learned that our niece Alaina was one of the victims of last night’s shooting at Borderline bar in Thousand Oaks," the couple stated via their joint representative, Chantal Artur. "Alaina was an incredible young woman with so much life ahead of her and we are devastated that her life was cut short in this manner. We thank everyone for your prayers and ask for privacy at this time."

Earlier Thursday, the couple took to social media to frantically look for Alaina.

Mowry-Housley gushed over her niece on Instagram in March of last year.

View this post on Instagram

My niece Alaina Housley. I can't believe I met her when she was five. She now is a Junior in high school doing a photo shoot with a 70's theme. Kill it beauty. Good luck in all your future endeavors.

A post shared by tameramowrytwo (@tameramowrytwo) on

Noel Sparks

Noel Sparks was among the victims of the Thousand Oaks shooting, according to a post by the United Methodist Church Westlake Village. The Orange County Register said Sparks was a 21-year-old Moorpark college student.

Sean Adler

Sean Adler, was a bouncer at the Borderline Bar & Grill and recently opened a coffee shop, according to the Ventura County Star. He previously served as a strength coach at Royal Wrestling, the group explained in a post. They described him as positive, motivational, and always wanted "the best for the people around him."

This story will be updated as more victims are identified.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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