NEWTOWN, CT (WFSB) -
Newtown residents are holding an event this weekend to help support local businesses in the Sandy Hook section of town.
While donations for the victims and their families have poured in from all over the world, businesses told Eyewitness News that they feel like they have been forgotten about. Some have even been forced to shut down because of poor sales.
"I do know for a few, it's definitely make or break," said Tamara Doherty, who owns the Wishing Well.
On Dec. 14, Adam Lanza had two pistols and an AR-15 when he entered Sandy Hook Elementary School and in just a matter of minutes, he fired multiple rounds, killing 20 children and six adults. Before the school shooting, he shot his mother four times.
"As soon as I turn onto the road, I get a little anxious still, remembering that morning," Doherty said.
After the tragedy, Church Hill Street where the Wishing Well is located was full of foot traffic.
"It was not really business activity," Doherty said. "It was reporters, it was a lot of people coming to visit the memorial."
Many of those people weren't interested in buying locally made gifts from shops such as the Wishing Well. The shootings happened so close to Christmas didn't help these local businesses either.
"A lot of people a lot of the businesses here rely on sales from that to sustain them through most of the year," Doherty said.
So this Saturday, small business owners are hosting the I (heart) Sandy Hook Cash Mob. The event runs from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
People
are being asked to spend $20 at any one of the local merchants in Sandy
Hook.
Anyone wishing to support the town and aren't able to make it to
the event can call one of the businesses in town and make a purchase or
donate over the phone.
For more information, click here.
In the end, residents and small business owners alike are hoping a bustling downtown will not only help their bottom line, but also their hearts.
"We don't want to be darkened by everything that happened," Doherty said. "We want this to go back to being our town."
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