Born and raised in Springfield, it's always sad to see a
local business close after providing years of service to the community. Unfortunately this is all too common here in
Illinois, especially the Capitol City.
We are not saying we don’t frequent chain stores or restaurants because
we're all guilty of this.
But for us, supporting local businesses is not only about trying to help
the local economy, it is also quite nostalgic.
Our childhoods were spent running around town with Misty’s
dad, who drove a city bus, or walking to the local convenient store for a soda and candy while Kendra’s mom taught piano lessons. It wasn’t unusual for Chuck (Misty’s Dad) to
make several stops at local grocers during the week. His stops were usually Mr. B’s or Humphrey’s
Market. Humphrey’s Market is still in
town in the same place and owned by the same family. For years, Misty’s annual family Thanksgiving ham has come from Humphrey’s.
Before Krispy Kreme and Dunkin Doughnuts, a Saturday morning
was spent going to Mel-O-Cream getting their signature yellow and white box
filled full of a dozen donuts, or eating a donut there, served on a brown tray
with a carton of chocolate milk while the parents drank coffee from the shop’s
plastic brown coffee cups. As we got older most of our time was spent in
Recycled Records buying used CD’s or Penny Lane getting the latest T-shirt of
our favorite band or a brightly colored poncho.
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| They had the best deals on music! |
It’s the familiarity of places and as cliché as it sounds
the friendly faces that make you continue going back to local businesses. They are the ones that live in the community
and truly care about their customers, who may just happen to be their neighbor
or their friend. For us these local
businesses are doing a favor by keeping some favorite childhood memories
relevant and alive.
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| Gone but certainly not forgotten! |
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