Community Mourns Victims Of Chesapeake Walmart Mass Shooting

CHESAPEAKE, VA — A makeshift memorial reportedly dedicated to one of the six victims who were shot to death by a disgruntled manager was fashioned beneath a tree tied with balloons outside of the Chesapeake, Virginia, Walmart they worked in — just outside of the crime scene perimeter — on Thanksgiving morning.

Members of the Chesapeake community have been gathering at the site to leave candles and small tokens of affection honoring the workers whose lives were taken during the overnight shift in what has been described as a senseless massacre on Tuesday.

Others are wearing black ribbons and urging residents to "pray for Chesapeake."

Chesapeake police released the names of five of the six workers who were slain on Wednesday night, leaving out the name of a 16-year-old boy due to his status as a minor. The victims included Tyneka Johnson, Lorenzo Gamble, Kellie Pyle, Brian Pendleton, and Randall Blevins.

The shooter, 31-year-old Andre Bing opened fire in the store's break room, then turned his gun on himself, authorities said.

The ages of the slain ranged from the youngest at 16 to the eldest at 70, including two custodians, a grandmother, and a young woman with dreams of attending college, The Associated Press reported.

Johnson, 22, of Portsmouth, was one of the youngest workers killed.

She was remembered on the makeshift memorial outside of the store with a heart inscribed with the words, “Our Hearts are with you” and a basket of flowers, according to AP.

Casheba Cannon, who tutored Johnson for her first two years at Western Branch High School, recalled she was a fashionista who dreamed of going to college and worked hard through her academic weaknesses, putting her education at the forefront, The Washington Post reported.

“She was that kid. When she came to tutoring, she was very well-put-together,” Cannon told the outlet. “Tyneka was a light in a dim room.”

Gamble, 43, of Chesapeake, was a custodian who worked for Walmart for 15 years, according to The Washington Post.

His mother, Linda Gamble told the outlet that he kept to himself and did his job.

“He was the quiet one of the family," she said.

The family had planned to spend time together on Thanksgiving playing games, Gamble told the outlet.

In a Facebook post Wednesday, Gamble urged an end to gun violence, adding, "Too much killing in this land."

Pyle, 52, of Chesapeake, was a grandmother who had reconnected with her childhood sweetheart who she planned to marry next year, AP reported.

“We love her,” Gwendolyn Bowe Baker Spencer told the outlet. “She was going to marry my son next year. She was an awesome, kind individual — yes she was.”

Her cousin, Billy Pillar-Gibson, told The Washington Post that she had moved back to the area in May and called him her best friend.

“We always said we were going to grow old together,” he said. “None of this makes sense. In the whole scheme of things, we’re still young.”

Pillar-Gibson, who broke down during his interview, told the outlet that Pyle, known as "Grannie Catherine," had two grown children and a two-year-old granddaughter and that she hoped to spend the holidays with family in Norfolk.

“It was going to be her first Thanksgiving here,” he added.

Like Gamble, Pendleton, a 38-year-old Chesapeake resident, was also a custodian on the night shift, having worked at the store for 10 years and was described by his mother, Michelle Johnson, as a punctual employee who would arrive at his job early to ensure he was on time, AP reported.

Pendleton has a congenital brain disorder and Johnson would always have him check in with her after he got home safe.

Johnson did not get that call though.

Instead, a family friend called to tell her that there had been a shooting at the Walmart her son worked in, she told AP.

Pendleton was a happy-go-lucky guy who loved his family and friends, and telling jokes, Johnson said.

“We’re going to miss him," she added.

Blevins, a 70-year-old from Chesapeake, was the eldest of the workers killed. He was a longtime member of the store’s team who set prices and arranged merchandise, according to The New York Times.

Shaundrayia Reese, a former co-worker for several years, spoke fondly of Blevins to the outlet, remembering him as “Mr. Randy.”

She called her co-workers “a family," saying that employees stuck together and relied on one another.

Tuesday's gun violence was the second mass shooting in Virginia in 10 days and a matter of days after five people were shot to death at an LGBTQ+ club in Colorado.

Chesapeake police received the first 911 call for the shooting at about 10:12 p.m. on Tuesday and officers had entered the store around 10:16 p.m. where they found three people and Bing in the store's break room, authorities said. Another person was found near the front of the store, and an additional three people died from their injuries at a local hospital, according to authorities.

Six other people were taken to a hospital for treatment, and one person remained in critical condition, authorities said.

Police told Fox News that at least 50 people are believed to have been inside the store at the time of the shooting.

Briana Tyler, who works at the store, told Fox that the overnight stocking team, which has about 15 or 20 people, was gathering in the break room to review the morning plan when Bing started firing.

Bing told the group: "All right, guys, we have a light night ahead of us," and then turned around and began shooting, she told the outlet.

"He was just shooting all throughout the room," she said. "It didn’t matter who he hit. He didn’t say anything. He didn’t look at anybody in any specific type of way."

Another witness also told WAVY that she heard Bing laughing at one point and believes the shooting was premeditated.

Jessie Wilczewski, who was also in the break room during the shooting, told CNN she saw Bing in the doorway pointing a gun and it did not feel real for her until she felt the vibration from the shots.

She hid under a table and ended up staying because she didn’t want to leave her coworkers alone in their final moments, but Bing told her to leave, CNN reported.

She told the outlet that in the aftermath she had to touch the door which was covered in blood.

“I just remember gripping my bag and thinking, ‘If he’s going to shoot me in the back – well, he’s going to have to try really hard cause I’m running,’ and I booked it. … and I didn’t stop until I got to my car and then I had a meltdown.”

She told the outlet that she will never be able to forget the sound of blood dropping on the floor.

Fox reported that investigators believe Bing was armed with one handgun and had multiple magazines, but he was not wearing any type of armor or a ballistic vest.

In a video message posted to the City of Chesapeake's Twitter, Mayor Rick West said no one ever would have thought that a shooting would take place in the community, noting he has seen great support from people.

"I know this community and I know it well," he said. "And I know that we will come together and lend a helping hand to the victims' families. We will share the burden together and we will be stronger for now."

West said law enforcement officials will do what they can, and he promised more information would follow.

"Until then, please know that we will get through this together and we will never forget those we have lost," he said.

In the wake of the shootings, community members urged prayers for the city and started a thread on Twitter.

One tweeted: "This is so Tragic!!! Innocent people working, grabbing last minute items for Thanksgiving; shopping for Christmas," adding, "Prayers for the victims.

A man wrote, "Thoughts and prayers for Chesapeake right now. Terrifying world. No other words."

A woman wrote that she was sad for her state, adding, "And, to happen two days before Thanksgiving just breaks my heart."

But the outpouring did not stop on Twitter.

Several houses of worship held vigils on Wednesday night to pray for the victims families, including Deep Creek United Methodist Church where six candles for the six victims were placed on the alter, The Virginian Pilot reported.

The church's pastor told the outlet his flock is weary.

"We are tired, exhausted," he said. "Many of us perhaps feel we are lacking the words. But tonight is not about getting a definitive answer. Tonight we hold a vigil so our sadness, anger, concern, frustration, and uncertainty can percolate.”

Congregation member Betty Figg-Cartwright told the outlet that the timing of the tragedy right before Thanksgiving makes it even harder to bear.

“Not only are these people going to have an empty chair at Thanksgiving, but they probably won’t even have a Thanksgiving table because they are planning a funeral,” she said.

In the meantime, the Federal Bureau of Investigation in Norfolk has set up a tip hotline to gather information related to the shooting. Anyone with information can call 1-800-CALL-FBI.