Friday marked one week since a Tops supermarket in Buffalo, New York, reopened after a mass shooting there two months ago. The response from the community, so far, has been a mix of emotions. One East Side resident told 7 News going into the store makes them "a little nervous." Another said they "love the feeling when I walk in there." The parking lot was full Friday afternoon, but community leaders said there are many others who still aren't ready to shop inside.
"We have members in our own team, in our own organization are yet still hesitant about going to the store," said Leonard Lane, president of the Buffalo F.A.T.H.E.R.S. "So it is a slow process for everyone. We're not sure when they might decide to go in."
"Being right in this parking lot is a start," said LeCandice Durham, a program volunteer.
Durham said the parking lot was as far as she was ready to go for now.
"Eventually we'll all be back in, hopefully we all go in together," said Durham.
Tops, Mayor Byron Brown and the Buffalo F.A.T.H.E.R.S are partnering with Instacart to provide an alternative to residents who have chosen not to return to the store.
In an effort to bring awareness to this partnership, Tops and local community leaders gave out free bags of groceries to the first 300 people who came by Friday afternoon.
As part of the partnership, Instacart is waiving fees on up to 10 deliveries per customer account on orders over $35, and is providing options for store pickup or home delivery.
Shoppers can access Instacart by downloading the Tops Market app or the Instacart app to their phone.
This story was originally published by Sydni Eure on www.wkbw.com.
