From the ashes: Ferguson, Mo., boutique reopens

FERGUSON, Mo. — Thanks to generous donors and the STLTogether fund, Fashions R. Boutique has reopened. The clothing store was one of several businesses set on fire after the St. Louis County grand jury announced there would be no charges filed against white Ferguson police officer Darren Wilson for shooting unarmed black teenager Michael Brown.

"Look at it, it's beautiful," said customer Luceter Blackmon.

Owner Juanita Morris has been looking forward to the reopening for months.

"This is more than just a store," Morris said. It's the place for styles and smiles.

"If they want to look like nobody else and look like a million but not spend a million, this is where they come," she said.

Morris started the business in her home with just $135 in the bank. She was shocked to watch 28 years of her hard work burn to the ground on live television when protests got out of hand after the grand jury announcement on Nov. 24.

"So it's like, 'Oh, my God.' It's like something hits you in the pit of your stomach," Morris said. She was "devastated, but not angry. I just caught up in someone else's anger."

But now a few months and miles from that setback, Morris is making a comeback — helped by her customers and employees.

"She's a beautiful person. We love her spirit," Blackmon said.

"She got a great attitude and you know if you've got a problem or something you can talk to her," employee Sylvia Eckford said.

Thanks to some 600 donors, the boutique raised enough money on a GoFundMe page to reopen and more recently Morris received $5,000 from the STLTogether Fund.

"It was overwhelming," Morris said. "When they called an told me how much I was getting I was like (screams!)."

As part of the STLTogether community initiative, KSDK-TV and the St. Louis Regional Chamber have partnered in the STLTogether Fund to help rebuild small businesses in the hard-hit St. Louis suburb.