The Newburgh community is trying to give back to an art store that has become a staple of the city.

Gerardo Castro, who ran Newburgh Art Supply for 16 years, passed away this March. His death left his partner, Michael Gabor, operating the store they founded together, now on his own. Gabor says that Castro will be remembered not just for helping artists while running the shop but for his own artistic vision. 

"His paints made a lot of people uncomfortable and introduced issues like gender, colonialism, race," Gabor said. "There were many things he dealt with in his paintings. If you see them, they're very rich in not only culture, but message." 

Since Castro’s death, Gabor says he’s been overwhelmed by the support of the community which has set up a fundraiser to help. So far, more than $24,000 has been raised. Gabor says it’ll go a long way to making sure Newburgh Art Supply keeps running. 

“You know, the interesting part is, I look at the names of people who have contributed and I don't know a lot of these people," he said. "So it's really a testament to what we built here, that people appreciate what we've done.”