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Ferguson bakery vandalized by looters receives more than $220K in donations

Ferguson bakery vandalized by looters receives more than $220K in donations

Following the rioting in Ferguson on Monday night, a photo of 32-year-old Natalie DuBose, in tears, went viral.

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Looters had smashed the windows and damaged some equipment in her small shop, Natalie’s Cakes and More. Dubose, a single mother of two, had just opened the store earlier this summer, after having finally saved enough to turn her passion for baking and cake-decorating into a full-time job.

"Everything that I invested, it came from me saving money through bake sales. Sometimes I couldn’t buy a pair of tennis shoes because I wanted to make sure I had enough money to buy a bucket of icing," she told NBC News.

"It was an investment all around. I always had to work at least two jobs. I never just had just one job because my dream was always to have my own bakery."

When DuBose saw the damage to her shop, she was heartbroken — but determined to keep her store open in Ferguson.

"Hurt is the only word I could really describe," she said. “I was like, ‘Wow, you guys really just didn’t care, you didn’t care, and this affects whether I can feed my children or not, and you just bust through the window with a chair.’”

"I am a single mom, a mother of two," she told CNNMoney. “This is everything that I own. I can’t walk away from it. I just got to start up and start baking again.”

Unsure where she was going to find the money to repair her bakery, DuBose took a friend’s suggestion and asked for donations online through a crowdfunding site.

By Thursday morning, she had raised more than $220,000 on GoFundMe, thanks, in part, to the vocal support of celebrities like actresses Patricia Heaton and Brandi Glanville.

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Another crowdfunding page has raised more than $10,000 so far.

Her story didn’t just move people to donate — they’re putting in orders, too. DuBose received 50 Thanksgiving orders and has more customers than ever.

One supporter offered to build DuBose a website for free. Others offered to help her take calls and fill orders, the Washington Post reported.

"I am so grateful and appreciate it. I just cant express it," she told NBC News of the outpouring of support. “People have been showing love through the phone, leaving prayers, leaving songs — it’s been absolutely amazing.”

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The Ferguson Municipal Public Library also benefited from a social media campaign asking for donations. The library stayed open as a safe place for schoolchildren to go and learn when schools were closed.

"Update: OVERWHELMED by generosity from around the country. We have received donations from more than 7,000 folks! Amazing and humbling!" the library posted on Facebook.