PRINCETON — At the center of town, a white, right-footed, dirtied Wilson shoe rests beside a pair of purple and lime-green New Balance running shoes with a rosary draped over them.

The withered flowers scattered around the shoes reflect the time that has passed. A container of bubbles. A heart that says “Love & Be Loved.”

The items sit at a memorial at the gazebo on the Town Green in Princeton, the only physical reminders of the murder of Vanessa Marcotte three weeks ago.

Gone are the police tape, the news crews and the state police vehicles parked and cruising through the rural town of just under 3,500 people.

But still with them are the fear, insecurity and plea for resolution. But also an abiding sense of community the town has exercised for decades.

Those feelings aren’t going anywhere.

Marcotte, a former Leominster resident who lived in New York, was murdered on Aug. 7 while going on a run in Princeton while visiting her mother.

When she was killed, Marcotte was doing what the people of Princeton typically do: enjoying the outdoors.

“It is a very, very outdoors-oriented, fitness-oriented town,” said Ed Carlson, a 22-year resident. “This kind of incident, that hits us where we are. It’s like a bomb in our church. That’s our church. We feel safe when we are out on a Sunday afternoon run. And that’s where we got hit. It is really unsettling.”

Marcotte was found about a half-mile from her mother’s home in a wooded area at about 8:30 p.m. on Brooks Station Road. She was last seen about 1 p.m. that day.

Terry Nichols, who has lived in Princeton for 11 years, exercises on that very road. She said Marcotte was “jogging in a comfortable area.”

The area, at least for Nichols, is no longer comfortable. Stepping out on her porch, in a wooded area, where the road is nowhere in sight, is also no longer comfortable for Nichols.

“We feel different,” she said. “This was our beautiful town, and now we feel like it has been tainted. We all move here to get away from stuff. We live in the woods for a reason. We love the beauty. I personally don’t feel the beauty right now, because I can’t walk outside anymore. I don’t feel safe at all.”

Nezeen Girgis, owner of Princeton House of Pizza, said her 12-year-old daughter, Sarah Michael, used to ride a bike up and down Hubbardston Road where the shop is and around town.

But not anymore.

“I got scared, too,” said Girgis, who has owned the pizza shop for seven years. “My daughter comes to work with me. She usually rides her bike around here. Now I tell her no more riding or going outside.”

The latest public update from the Worcester County District Attorney’s Office, which is leading the investigation along with state police, is that Marcotte fought back against her attacker, most likely leaving the killer with scratches, scrapes and bruises.

The lack of information about what happened has left some in the town uneasy.

“People want resolution,” said Karen Specht, a 25-year Princeton resident and a librarian at the Princeton Public Library. “It will make the community feel better. People are not doing the activities they usually do.”

The agencies involved are continuing to actively investigate the murder.

“The investigation into Ms. Marcotte’s homicide remains extremely active on multiple fronts,” said Dave Procopio, a spokesman for state police. “Detectives are working tirelessly to follow up on the tips and other leads. In order to protect the integrity of the investigation, I cannot discuss specifics.”

There have been nearly 1,000 tips regarding the case submitted, he said.

Because of the uncertainty, Specht has begun to carry pepper spray on her walk. Nichols has added a small switchblade to her repertoire of safety devices that include pepper spray, her cellphone and her German shepherd.

“I have noticed women are pairing up a lot,” Specht said. “Runners are going with other people. People are being more careful.”

People are not just being careful on the roads or the back trails only Princeton residents know about.

People visiting Mount Wachusett, the popular hiking area in Princeton, have become more cautious since the Marcotte murder.

Maria Reidy said she hiked the mountain alone last month, but she would not be doing it again after hearing what happened. Last week, she “buddied” up with Emily Steen to hike the mountain. Both are Worcester residents.

“I came up here alone last time,” Reidy said. “Finding out what happened, I was really surprised. I wouldn’t expect that to happen here.”

Steen agreed, but also said she wouldn’t let it dictate her life.

“It makes you especially uneasy, but that is not a reason to not go outside anymore,” she said.

Residents are grappling with the idea of a singular horrific crime that occurred in a town where crime is rarely a factor.

“If you read the police logs it is, ‘Oh, there is a raccoon in my yard. A chicken ran across the road,'” Nichols said. “It is things like that. That is what people complain about or calling 911 about here.”

Specht said the only concerns are “the occasional break-in.”

Carlson remembers the last major crime in the town. A local dentist was charged with manslaughter after his wife died in 2011.

“It was horrible, but it didn’t terrify everyone,” he said. “You kind of thought you knew what happened. Like I said, it was terrible and sad, but it didn’t put the fear into our town like this has done.”

Town Administrator Nina Nazarian, members of the Board of Selectmen and Police Chief Michele Powers all declined to comment.

Maureen Lynch, the administrative assistant for the Princeton Police Department, said Powers “has been declining the requests for interviews as the DA’s office and Massachusetts State Police have requested all media correspondence is handled through/by them.”

However, Lynch said: “The department is deeply affected. It is very difficult when we lose a member of the community, especially through an act of violence. Vanessa could have easily been a daughter or sister of one of our families, and that is how everyone here approaches the investigation.”

People like Carlson, who has a daughter in her 20s who is an avid runner, want the town to examine their public-safety policies and tactics once the investigation is completed.

“I hope this is an opportunity to asses our public-safety system and make sure we adjust them however we need to to make sure we feel as safe as possible,” Carlson said.

Lynch said a continued priority of the department will be to keep Princeton as safe as possible.

“I have worked for the Princeton Police Department for 18 years and know firsthand how much the chief and officers on this department care for the residents and their safety,” Lynch said.

Carlson said he, his family and others in town are all dealing with the tragedy differently. He described it as being similar to how people mourn differently when they lose a loved one.

“Some people are locking their doors. Some people want to take back the streets. Some people want to get out there. Some people want to hide. People are mad. Some people are sad. But it has changed everyone,” he said.

Specht has tried her best to not let the slaying alter her walking routine. Nichols isn’t sure if she will ever feel safe in the town again.

“Will I be protected with a knife, pepper spray and a German shepherd?” Nichols wondered. “I just don’t feel it.”

“I don’t know if it is going to happen for me,” she continued. “I am tainted. The town feels tainted. It’s like there is a bruise that won’t go away. I don’t want to live like this.”

The atmosphere in the town is different than it was three weeks ago.

“Everyone’s perspective has changed,” Specht said. “Your illusion of the town is shattered.”