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Update: Man shot by police after drawing weapon at US Capitol

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St. Robert Bellarmine’s Parish holds successful diaper drive

<p>EDWARDSVILLE &#8212; A spacious tent once flooded with a wall-to-wall cache of pink, white and red flowers was decimated to a scant selection of plants as the few last-minute shoppers plucked away the remaining holiday staples on Easter Sunday outside the West Side Mall.</p><p>For Lisa Donlan and Jeff Bradley, Sunday&#8217;s steady foot traffic likely ensured the brother/sister Flower Tent franchisees would sell out their stock of Easter lilies, mums and tulips &#8212; each a popular purchase since the pair unfurled their tent, set up shop and started selling March 19.</p><p>Cooler temperatures crept in, however, and sales got off to a sluggish start.</p><p>&#8220;We sat in the car most of the time,&#8221; Bradley, 37, said in between a regular stream of customers Sunday morning.</p><p>But toward the tail end of Holy Week, the sun shined through and the sales began to sprout.</p><p>Though the slow start to the week can often lead him to wonder whether it will be a down year, Bradley said the immediate days leading up to Easter spur the most customers.</p><p>And the customers came through.</p><p>Bradley and Donlan, who named their business Late Bloomers, estimated bringing in about $18,000 in sales in a little over a week at their high-traffic haunt nestled between Price Chopper, McDonald&#8217;s and a Little Caesars Pizza restaurant. It was the pair&#8217;s second year in that location after moving from across the street at the Gateway Shopping Center two years ago, Donlan said.</p><p>This year was even better than expected.</p><p>&#8220;It was a good year,&#8221; Donlan, 47, said with a smile. &#8220;It was a very good year.&#8221;</p><p>For some, the convenience &#8212; and quality &#8212; of a Flower Tent and its products are factors that often prompt them to pass on plants or flowers found at supermarkets or florists.</p><p>&#8220;I think they like the quality of the Flower Tent,&#8221; Donlan said. &#8220;I think they know what they&#8217;re getting.&#8221;</p><p>For Forty Fort resident Dave Jones, a commercial truck driver with a frenzied schedule, the ease of shopping at a Flower Tent is preferred. Jones said he spends much of the week driving or caring for members of his family. The Flower Tent, he said, is a quick one-stop shop.</p><p>&#8220;They&#8217;re out in the air, they&#8217;re fresh,&#8221; he said of his newly-purchased hyacinth and tulip plants. &#8220;You know you&#8217;re going to get something good.&#8221;</p><p>Bradley spoke highly of the plants, which he said came from New Jersey and parts of Canada. He received three deliveries since March 19 and needed each and every one of them due to the high demand and heavy volume he encountered as the week went on, he said.</p><p>Donlan and Bradley, of Kingston, said they don&#8217;t mind spending the holiday under the cover of a tent and were expecting a family member to drop by with some Easter dinner items before the end of the day.</p><p>Meanwhile, the siblings are already planning ahead for their next &#8212; and biggest &#8212; holiday: Mother&#8217;s Day.</p><p>&#8220;We&#8217;ll open the beginning of May,&#8221; Bradley said, &#8220;and we&#8217;ll do it all again.&#8221;</p><style>
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<div class="neCaption">Dave Jones, of Forty Fort, looks for flowers for his daughter at a Flower Tent in Edwardsville on Easter Sunday. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo0>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/web1_TTL032816flower-tent1.jpg</photo0><caption0>Dave Jones, of Forty Fort, looks for flowers for his daughter at a Flower Tent in Edwardsville on Easter Sunday. </caption0><photoCredit0>Aimee Dilger | Times Leader </photoCredit0></div><div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/web1_TTL032816flower-tent2.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">Jim Moore and his son, Joshua, 11, carry flowers to their car for Joshua&#8217;s mother on Sunday in Edwardsville. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo1>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/web1_TTL032816flower-tent2.jpg</photo1><caption1>Jim Moore and his son, Joshua, 11, carry flowers to their car for Joshua&#8217;s mother on Sunday in Edwardsville. </caption1><photoCredit1>Aimee Dilger | Times Leader </photoCredit1></div></div>
<div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta><p>By Joe Dolinsky</p><p>jdolinsky@www.timesleader.com</p></bylineMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><shirttailMeta><p>Reach Joe Dolinsky at 570-991-6110 or on Twitter @JoeDolinskyTL.</p></shirttailMeta></div>

Sibling Flower Tent franchisees thankful for Easter sales growth