ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. — It's been one year since five people lost their lives at an Orlando business when a former employee walked in and opened fire.
The business, Fiamma, which made awnings for recreational vehicles, remains dark and empty because it never reopened.
But the daughter of Bob Snyder, a manager who was killed, said the company has taken incredible care of her family, the same way Snyder took care of the company for so long.
Snyder worked at Fiamma for 20 years and was just months away from retirement when he died.
His daughter, Karen Nichols, said Fiamma was his home away from home until it turned into a horrific crime scene.
"It seems like I'm going to go over and he's going to be sitting there on the couch or something. It just seems like he's not really gone," said Nichols.
It's hard for Nichols to believe it's been a whole year since a gunman took her father's life in a mass shooting.
"We were just numb. No one could really say anything. My mother couldn't even walk. She couldn't even take steps. It was sad for everyone,” said Nichols.
The former employee killed five people that day and then killed himself.
Nichols said her father had kept the man on board longer than he should have.
"He had concerns with the guy but he was compassionate and he felt sorry for the guy. He would ride a bike to work every day. And he (Snyder) really just wanted to help him,” said Nichols.
The other victims were Brenda Crespo, Jeff Roberts, Kevin Clark and Kevin Lawson. All four were Snyder's employees.
Nichols said her father treated his employees like family.
"He just really was totally dedicated to work and family, completely dedicated to his job," she said.
Karen said the pain has not faded and her family members will never understand why the shooting happened, but their strong faith carried them through the last 365 days and they're confident it will for years to come.
Mass Shootings in Florida
There have been six mass shootings in Florida like the one at Fiamma since June 12, 2016, when the country saw, at the time, its worst mass shooting at Pulse nightclub.
After Pulse, in November of that year, three were killed and two injured in Jacksonville.
Then in January 2017, a shooter killed five and injured six at the Fort Lauderdale airport.
The shooting at Fiamma took five lives on June 5, 2017 and then six people were shot in Lake Worth in February.
A week later, 17 died and 17 others were injured in a mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland.
Cox Media Group
