Owner Bob Woody said his staff wanted to reopen and donate 100% of this weekend’s sales towards the victims and families impacted by the mass shooting.
AUSTIN, Texas — The doors are open again at Buford’s Bar — the West Sixth Street bar where a deadly mass shooting unfolded last weekend.
Staff and patrons returned Friday night, turning what might’ve normally been a night out, into a night of support for the victims and their families.
Some may say it’s too soon for the popular beer garden to reopen after Sunday’s tragedy, but owner Bob Woody said he and his staff have a purpose: to help those affected by the shooting.
Woody said 100% of sales from the bar this weekend will be donated to victims and families impacted by the tragedy.
“I appreciate the community,” Woody said. “We have a great city, so we do better as we get further away from it.”
The bar has been a fixture along West Sixth Street since 1996. Woody said he never expected the longtime neighborhood watering hole to become the scene of a mass shooting.
During the first few hours after reopening, the bar was relatively quiet. But some Austinites stopped by to show support.
South Austin resident Charles Rayos said he wanted to stand with fellow bartenders and pay his respects at the public memorial outside the bar.
“I care about what they think. I care about what the parents think,” Rayos said. “I was just scanning the GoFundMe for everybody that’s been affected.”
Support for the victims has extended beyond Buford’s.
Victory Lap West Campus, a bar located in the University of Texas at Austin area, announced that it will donate a portion of its Friday sales to help Buford’s and those impacted by the shooting.
“We were all really shocked by what happened last weekend,” said bar lead Hugh McCarthy. “It was really a unanimous decision that everyone thought we had to do something.”
Their sister location, Victory Lap Rainy, also plans to donate a portion of their sales, but on Saturday instead.
Woody said the bar has already seen an outpouring of support from the community.
“We’ve really done some good this past week, even through the wake of this tragedy,” Woody said.
In the days since the shooting, new safety measures have also been put in place along the entertainment district.
Barricades will block traffic along Rio Grande Street between 10 p.m. and 4 a.m., and officers will be present in the area when the closures begin.
Woody said Buford’s also plans to install safety glass along the bar’s outdoor perimeter as part of additional efforts to protect customers moving forward.