By Lauren Young
Staff Writer
After a vandalism attack last month left Barker’s Pet Supply Co. with $10,000 in damages, it reopened its doors last weekend for its grand reopening.
With donations made on a GoFundMe page exceeding $5,000, owner Shannon Liddell was able to open her shop back up while her insurance claim is pending. “We’re so beyond thankful,” said Liddell. “We really would not have been able to reopen if it wasn’t for the community.”
The community donations — which included over $600 was raised at a woman’s tea event held at the “Hillcrest” Jephson Estate —helped go toward the overall rejuvenation of the store, from restocking inventory to a new security system. Overall, cleanup from the vandalism attack took about a week, but the incident’s timing proved unfortunate due to delayed holiday shipments and processing, Liddell said.
In regard to the outpouring of support from the community, Liddell said she had “no clue” she would receive as much support as she did. “We just really want to say thank you to everybody and all of the community support,” she said.
The power of Facebook was another factor in the store’s success, after the store’s first post about the vandalism garnered nearly 500 likes on the site. “It was a really good feeling. I had people calling me from Texas and California who saw it on Facebook,” Liddell said.
For the grand reopening, a raffle with prizes, ranging from private dog training sessions to dog washes and t-shirts, was held. The store also supplied coffee for visitors, with cookies and scones donated by Cazenovia Bagel Co.
