Wife of Accent Signage owner vows to rebuild and overcome

For the first time, members of the Accent Signage family spoke publicly about the mass shooting that left six of their coworkers and the gunman dead.

“To honor their memory, in a show of great strength and resilience, our employees returned to work two weeks ago. We are grateful to our customers, vendors and suppliers for all their encouragement and assistance during this very difficult time,” said Wendy Khabie, spokesperson for Accent Signage Systems.

“We could not be more proud of our employees, who have shown unbelievable resolve in the face of unspeakable events. We are doing everything we can to support them and with their help, and yours, we will rebuild, and we will overcome,” said Shereen Rahamim, wife of company owner Reuven Rahamim who was killed during the shooting.

Shereen Rahamim spoke outside the business Monday morning, standing with employees and Minneapolis Mayor R.T. Rybak.

“Their loss has taken a tremendous toll on our company and had an unimaginable impact on our families. We lost fathers and husbands and sons, and we feel their loss in every aspect of our lives,” Rahamim said.

“Before this, the company was an incredibly important business in the city. Today, they are even more important. And today, every person in Minneapolis has a stake in Accent,” Rybak said.

Rahamim said countless people have asked how they could help in recent weeks. It was also a time when family members and employees attended six funerals for those who died.

“A eulogy at one funeral concluded with the following line: I will never get over this, and I don’t have to. That is exactly how we feel. But while we will never ever get over this, together we will get through it,” Rahamim said.

John Souter, the company’s Director of Operations was also injured during the shooting. He has been released from the hospital and is recovering. Khabie says the company fully expects him to recover and return to work.

For now, Accent Signage is being managed by a senior executive team including Shereen Rahamim and a CFO.