COLUMBIA, S.C. — After a shooting at Columbiana Centre over the weekend, shoppers are thanking some mall employees for keeping them safe during the Saturday shooting.
"They saved a lot of lives," said Jennifer Mauldin, who was in the mall during the shooting. "And they’re the heroes of the day."
Mauldin said she was at Bath and Body Works in the mall when multiple gunshots were fired.
"The employees could’ve said 'Y'all get out, go in the mall' and closed the doors ... but they really stood—I will never forget the young gentleman that was standing there who was yelling ‘Come on y'all, we got the door open, we got the door open!'"
Mauldin said mall staff reacted quickly and became heroes in seconds, protecting everyone and rushing them to safety through a back door that led outside.
"All we knew was run," Mauldin said. "And the only thing I know to do now is say thank you and highlight them being heroic and doing what they did. We should all say thank you to them and be appreciative of them. I don’t know if we’d be standing here today if things were different."
To say thank you to employees, shoppers and local residents donated money to purchase two dozen cupcakes from Lita's Treats for mall employees.
On Thursday, Mauldin delivered them, along with cards, to businesses like Bath and Body Works and Gap in the mall.
Theresa Thames is an employee at Lita's Treats. She told News 19 it's great to be able to spread community love to those impacted by the shooting.
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"To be able to have a little upbeat in a situation even though it’s still a little nerve racking for certain individuals, it feels good that we can deliver that to those around," Thames said.
"In such an evil thing that happened, such a bad thing, we really want to highlight the good and say thank you to them as much as we can," Mauldin said. "Because there's a lot of us that we may not be here today. We may have not been here today but we are because of their quick thinking and care to help the other people."