Willowdale community reminded of van attack following Danforth shooting

By Maleeha Sheikh

A community still grieving the van attack that left 10 people dead and 16 others injured were shocked to hear the news of another tragic event almost three months to the day.

Mahin Shani works in Willowdale near where the van attack took place, but now she’s thinking about her daughter, who lives near the area where the Danforth shooting happened Sunday.

“People are a little bit tense especially with what’s happening over the last three, four months,” says Mahin Shani.

Shani said it’s happening everywhere and so she wouldn’t think of telling her daughter to move. She said, “What can you do other than hoping for the best?”

Sarath Reddy moved to Canada five years ago from India and also works in Willowdale. He said, “When I came here I never hear [sic] about these types of incidents and nowadays it’s every week every other week, we hear something like this.”

Reddy said, “We have to be safe and look around at what’s happening when you’re going anywhere.”

Lily Cheng, the co-founder of ‘We Love Willowdale’, a group created to help the community heal says she understands what the Danforth community is going through.

“The first step was to just gather. When you’re in pain you need to know you’re not alone in that pain,” said Cheng.

Cheng also stressed the importance community leaders getting involved. She said prayer walks and vigils helped deal with the emotions.

For those who find they are struggling, Cheng encourages them to reach out to Toronto Victim Services, faith groups and counselling services.

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