Downtown community members have rallied around Lawn Gnome Publishing following a Thursday night robbery of approximately $1,500 worth of equipment and employee paychecks.
Store owner Aaron Hopkins-Johnson posted to Facebook about the event on Friday, and 40 minutes later community member Layal Rabat started a “cash mob” event on Facebook. The cash mob is scheduled for Tuesday from 3-8 p.m. and attendees are encouraged to purchase as many items as possible from the store.
While the cash mob was being organized, Jamie Sanderson and Steve Marek of S&M Comedy converted their show “Goodbye Cruel World!” into a fundraiser for Lawn Gnome, which generated more than $220.
Hopkins-Johnson said he was overwhelmed by the community’s response.
“I’m blown away by it,” he said. “The fact that so many people went on their own to create events and fundraising drives without me asking for it just blows my mind. It overwhelmingly blows my mind.”
Hopkins-Johnson said the equipment is covered by insurance, but employee pay is not and he does not know when he will receive the money from his claim.
Community members Eli Kluger and Jonathan Cisneros said they both planned on participating in the cash mob.
“It hurts him more than if they robbed a Barnes and Noble,” Kluger said. “It’s harder for him to recover, but in a way it’s good because it shows how the community will gather together.”
“That’s the thing about this community,” Cisneros said. “We’ve been hanging out here for years and it’s not like we’re just friends anymore. Your friends are like the family that you choose, so if something happens to him, it really hurts.”
In addition to the cash and electronics, the store’s window was stolen.
“Because (they removed the window), their hands were really dirty, they touched a lot of stuff and the police took a lot of prints. So there’s a good chance that if they’re repeat offenders that they’ll be caught,” Hopkins-Johnson said.
Adrian Fontes, owner of Bodega 420, said that Fifth Street is generally a safe place for businesses. But this incident has caused the community to be a little more wary of security. Fontes said he is taking steps to better secure Bodega 420.
“Everybody’s a little bit more alert after what’s happened,” he said. “I mean, what jackass breaks into a bookstore? If you’ve gotta have your Gulliver’s Travels fix, or whatever, it just doesn’t make sense to me. That’s why everyone is so weirded out by it all.”
Community members took to Facebook to express their sadness after hearing about the robbery. Some of the stories that were shared showed the impact Lawn Gnome has on the community.
“I cried several times reading people’s posts,” he said. “Stories like that, that I didn’t know about and made me realize that I actually have a role in the community other than just a guy who runs poetry slams, were overwhelmingly beautiful.”
Lawn Gnome’s website includes a donation page to help the business recover.
Editor’s Note: Downtown Devil staff reporter Becky Brisley works for Lawn Gnome Publishing. She did not contribute to the reporting or editing of this story.
Contact the reporter at travis.arbon@asu.edu
