Neighbors are remembering a beloved member of the Loring Park community who was brutally killed in an attack early Friday afternoon while working at a grocery store.

A memorial for Robert Skafte, 66, continues to grow outside of Oak Grove Grocery. Mourners are gathering there to share memories of Skafte and paying tribute to him on social media.

Skafte was "a shining light in the neighborhood," Jana Metge, executive director of Citizens for a Loring Park Community, said in a Facebook post.

Another post from neighbor Bill Holmes reads: “Throughout the darkest moments of police and community violence, the civil uprising and the pandemic, Robert remained a beacon of glowing community and stability at Oak Grove Grocery. He was there when I needed a soda, a social interaction, and someone to remind me of the power of goodness in the world. Though times were dark, the world was still good and Robert was living proof of that goodness with the most subtle yet powerful gestures.”

Skafte was widely known as the friendly Oak Grove Grocery clerk who wrote often-uplifting messages on a chalkboard at the store’s entrance. He worked there for at least 18 years, according to the research of residents, who found a first-hire mention from 2005.

Ward 7 Councilmember-elect Katie Cashman shared neighbors' photos of Skafte's chalk art in this thread on X, formerly known as Twitter.

Skafte was a longtime Minneapolis resident who was heavily involved in local farmers markets, including the Stevens Square Farmer's Market, which he started near the corner of Nicollet and Franklin avenues in 2008. The Stevens Square Community Garden coordinator for many years, he also helped start the Overlook Garden and maintained it daily.

Skafte, a professional dancer, could often be found on stage, too. He performed with eclectic Minneapolis-based troupe Ballet of the Dolls, as well as other dance companies over several decades, MPR News reported.

A typed note posted at the memorial describes Skafte as "selfless, a gentle soul," who in his job at Oak Grove Grocery "provided not only things we all needed, but provided things we didn't know we needed ... a smile, a laugh, a warm hug, and words of advice to those going through hard times."

Photos of Robert Skafte, candles, flowers and other items comprised the memorial outside of the store on Sunday (Dec. 10) evening. Photo by Melody Hoffmann

Police arrived at Oak Grove Grocery around 1 p.m. Friday and found Skafte behind the counter “with a golf club impaled through his torso,” according to a Minneapolis Police Department news release.

First responders performed immediate live-saving efforts on Skafte at the scene, and then transported him to Hennepin County Medical Center, where he ultimately died.

After a six-hour standoff at a nearby apartment, police arrested a 44-year-old suspect "without incident" on suspicion of murder. Charges have since been filed in Skafte's killing against Taylor Justin Schulz, according to a criminal complaint filed Monday.

The suspect has a history of mental illness but no criminal history other than a drunken-driving arrest, the Star Tribune reported.

Police said they will attempt to identify a motive.

Additional reporting by Melody Hoffmann