“Who did this, why they did is of no consequence to me — we are just really focused on the future and trying to figure out how to come back bigger and stronger,” said Randy Smoot, owner of the business.
Smoot opened the barber shop in the 1800 block of South Limestone Street two years ago. He envisioned the store not just as a place for the community to come for haircuts, but also for mentoring, he said.
“The barbershop was a place for kids to come and be safe,” Smoot said.
“We had chess being taught up here, we had checkers being taught up here, we did fundraisers for the community,” he said.
Springfield police are investigating if a stolen vehicle was used in an attempted smash-and-grab Thursday at the barber shop and the cell phone store next door. Both stores went up in flames and were destroyed after a van smashed into the building, firefighters said.
A van was found in the rubble but the driver ran from the scene, said Sgt. Brian Peabody with the Springfield Police Division.
No one has been arrested in the case, police said, and investigators are still interviewing witnesses.
Insurance adjusters at the remains of the two businesses Tuesday morning said the damage well exceeds $100,000.
Smoot lost nearly $30,000 in the fire, he said.
Neighboring shops in the strip mall suffered smoke damage, fire investigators said.
“This was a shame, what happened up here,” said Wanda Roberts, of Springfield, who knew many children who spent time at the barber shop. “The owner encouraged kids to stay in school and follow their dreams of doing something.”
People in the community Smoot worked to serve are now working to help him rebuild his mission.
An online fundraiser has collected almost $3,500 for the business. A community event for fellowship was held in the parking lot of the burned business last Saturday and donations collected topped $800, Smoot said.
“It’s just not the end of it for us — this is not the end of our story,” he said.
Four barbers who worked in the shop are now out of business and Smoot said he needs to re-open for those men, too.
“They all have families, they all have to feed their kids,” he said.
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