MARYSVILLE, Wash. — Since 2014, The Living Room Coffee House has been a place to gather in Marysville. It became a gathering spot after a school shooting in 2014.
With rising costs of operation, owner Kim Reynolds said Saturday would be the shop’s final day.
“[Saturday] has mostly been good. It’s been really awesome to see people who have been here every week,” said Reynolds.
Reynolds said she opened The Living Room five years ago, to give the community a ‘place of hope.’ She believes it has served a purpose larger than she could have imagined.
“I think people love The Living Room because it’s been a place people could give to the kids,” said Reynolds.
The coffee shop opened just two weeks before a student shot and killed four classmates and then himself at Marysville-Pilchuck High School.
Reynolds said after the shooting, The Living Room instantly became a place for healing.
“The kids were out of school for a whole week after the shooting, so we just offered breakfast, lunch and dinner,” said Reynolds. “It was just a place for people to take care.”
Reynolds said the weeks after the shooting showed the best in people, and that energy stayed within the shop’s walls.
“It’s been a cool place to gather,” said Reynolds. “You just walk through the halls and see life happening. That, to me, has been the best gift.”
Reynolds isn’t calling this goodbye. She hopes to work with parents in Marysville to find another space where kids and adults can get together.