Bookstore helps Denver employee paralyzed in violent home invasion

A Denver woman was recently left paralyzed after a random, violent attack inside her and her partner’s home in Denver. A man fired a gun during the home invasion and the woman suffered multiple bullet wounds.  

Both victims — Denie “Helene” Orr and Joanne Weiss — work for a Denver bookstore. Now they’re getting a huge outpouring of support from the bookstore’s customers as well as the community.

On the night of Dec. 1, Orr saw a man standing outside her and Weiss’ home in the Overland neighborhood. She then shut the door and ran to call 911.

“He shot out an interior door, a glass door, and shot Joanne multiple times,” said Orr.

Weiss was shot in the lung two times and still has bullets in her spine, leaving her paralyzed from the sternum down. They are injuries that will change her life forever.

“The damage to her spine was life altering,” said Orr.

The two have been in the book industry for decades and work at The Hermitage Bookshop in the Cherry Creek neighborhood.

Sam Butler, the bookshop’s general manager, said Weiss has worked at the bookshop as a researcher and bookseller for nearly 30 years, while Orr worked at the bookshop as a bookseller and cataloger for about five years.

“They really do bring the vast amount of knowledge to this place, as well as for me, personally,” said Sam Butler, the shop’s general manager. “The two of them have been professional and personal mentors in this world.”

After learning about the terrifying crime, Butler couldn’t believe what happened.

“I’m just trying to convince myself that this was a story out of fiction, that this these things don’t happen,” said Butler.

Butler wanted to help and called on the community for support. He started an online fundraising effort to help with Weiss’ hospital costs and the two’s overall recovery.

“Knowing how many people love them and have been impacted by them and the work at The Hermitage, it was the easiest thing in the world to create a link for people to go and give,” said Butler, “So they could focus on one another, focus on recovery and and regaining the joy of their home and the joy of their neighborhood and the joy of their work.”

Support is already pouring in from all over, and at last check, online fundraising efforts had reached more than $41,000 in about 24 hours.

“To see the outpouring from all these different facets of life — in the midst of a truly unknown, truly dark and wicked encounter — is the thing that gives hope,” said Butler.

 “We’ve had so much support from our neighborhood, and we’ve lived in this neighborhood for 40 years,” said Orr. “Everybody has been so supportive everywhere where we work or we live.”

Orr says while it was a traumatic experience, her and Weiss’ spirits remain bright.

“That’s not to minimize the truly horrific nature of what happened and the trauma that we’ll no doubt be dealing with for many years,” said Orr. “We’re just trying to keep things moving forward.”

Orr said Weiss is now recovering at Denver Health with a long road to recovery ahead.

“She’s doing great. She is so full of spirit and courage and brightness and positivity,” said Orr. “I’m trying to match her resilience best I can, because she’s an inspiration.”

Denver police say the case is still under investigation. No arrests have been made and there are no other updates at this time.

Anyone with information that they think might be helpful to the investigation is asked to call Metro Denver Crime Stoppers at 720.913.STOP (7867).