From The Seattle Times:
The Richland florist who refused to provide flowers to a gay couple for their wedding has netted more than $80,000 from an online crowdfunding page dedicated to “protect her and her livelihood.”
A GoFundMe page set up for Baronelle Stutzman, the owner of Arlene’s Flowers, had raised $80,225 from 1,884 donors by 7:30 p.m. Saturday. While the page was set up in February, nearly half the money has been donated in the past 24 hours.
Supporters likened the benefit page to one set up for Memories Pizza, the Indiana pizza shop that closed after its owner said it wouldn’t cater a gay wedding in the wake of the state’s “religious freedom” law, which has since been revised. A page for the restaurant raised more than $842,000 in two days.
Stutzman was fined $1,000, plus $1 for court costs and fees in late March for refusing to serve a gay couple when they tried to buy wedding flowers in 2013. Stutzman, 70, said that though one of the men who wanted the flowers was her friend and she would continue to provide flowers for other occasions, providing flowers for his marriage went against her beliefs as a Southern Baptist.
And today we celebrate...