SEIBERT, Colo. (KDVR) – Residents of a small town on the eastern plains of Colorado fear living in a food desert after their only grocery store closes.
Seibert Supers had a sign on Friday saying the store was closing permanently due to circumstances beyond his control.
“We literally went there to get some milk to make breakfast and there was a sign on the door and we were stunned,” Seibert resident Civvy Ornellas told FOX31.
The nearest small grocery store is in Flagler, 19 km away. The nearest Safeway is 55 km away in Burlington. The nearest King Soopers is over an hour away in Bennett.
“Some people will be fine, some people won’t,” Ornellas said.
According to Ornellas, the city has around 200 inhabitants. Some are elderly, some do not have a vehicle, some do not drive and some cannot afford to go to nearby towns for shopping.
“We just have to think ahead and buy what we want and make sure we have lists when we go to make the trip to one of these places,” said resident Loyd Hoskins.
However, Ornellas is concerned that not having a grocery store will negatively impact residents and the city in the long run.
She and her husband Joe started a GoFund Me campaign in an attempt to raise funds to reopen the store.
“We don’t want to own a grocery store per se, we just want to do whatever we can to help reopen it,” Ornellas said.
According to Ornellas, several members of the community have offered to participate and help launch the project if they can raise funds. They’ve already arranged a meeting to start discussing logistics.
“We appreciate this place and we want to see it survive,” she said.