Charles Village said goodbye to a cherished member of its community on the night of March 12. About thirty friends and lovers of Video Americain gathered with candles, sparklers and picked flowers from early blooming trees to say goodbye to the beloved video rental store that occupied a subterranean spot on the 3100 block of Saint Paul since 1994.

At 10 p.m. the store officially closed due to a decline in business and the health of owner Barry Solan. The vigil, organized by the store’s staff, was short and sweet. One woman took a bus from New York just to say goodbye. Those gathered shared memories and stories from the store, while Barry moved through the crowd shaking hands and exchanging hugs.

One attendee looked at his toddler saying, “[My son] has been to this store most of the days of his life, but he will not remember it.”

Another told of the time he took over the store to shoot a horror film. Video Americain didn’t charge them for the use of the space and put the flick in their local section for rent.

Barry’s wife, Annie, said that nothing had given her more joy than matching customers with movies.

“Our first love and first heart is here in the Baltimore community,” said Annie.

Two weeks ago, Barry, who said he may need a second open heart surgery, made the decision to close the Charles Village store, but will continue to operate his store on Cold Spring Lane, which was famously featured in Johns Water’s “Serial Mom.”

Barry planned to sell the store’s stock piecemeal over the next two months. But just before the vigil, Barry learned of two potential buyers interested in the collection as a whole. He said that it is too early to say whether either deal will go through, but that it would be a great honor to keep the collection together.

If the deals do fall through, Barry said he will return to his original plan, selling as much of the collection as possible. According to a post published on the store’s Facebook page last Friday, the sale of individual movies is postponed to March 23.

“Making a lot of money was never my objective in any of these stores,” said Barry. He was touched by the vigil, saying it made him “realize the grander world that this store lives in.”

“There are not many places that bring people together,” said Barry’s daughter Danielle. “[Video American] brought together people that have the same spirit.”