Rogers closes
I learned today that Rogers Department Store is closing. Rogers has been an icon for many years in Wyoming, MI where I grew up. My mom took us there when we were growing up to purchase much of our school clothes. I feel as though I practically grew up there. I have a lot of great memories from going there with my Mom, as small children, we looked forward to picking a plastic ring out of a wooden bunny box when done with our purchases, and we would go there to visit Santa at Christmas time. The store owner, Mr. Berkowitz would often walk around the store, passing out Russel Stover chocolates to shoppers before he died. I remember Mr. Berk (as he was referred to) giving me a chocolate one evening as I shopped there. The clerks there were the kind of clerks who really cared about how something fit you and had been working at the store forever. Rogers was also a great coprorate citizen and would sponsor events like a handicapped fishing derby and host a special shopping day for senior citizens. They would also have special events during their anniversaies, one year they brought in the gentleman who played Mr. Mac Feely from the Mister Rogers television show. I think they may have even brought in Scotty from Star Trek another time. We bought many of my pairs of shoes at the onsite Muller's shoe store. My mom still buys my kids clothes there.

I haven't been there in a while as I live on the other side of town, except when I went looking for a swimsuit last summer. There was a new mall that went into Grandville, with national chain department stores, which funneled a lot of business away from Rogers and a new highway that took a lot of traffic from 28th street, which the owners cite as the reason for closing.

I feel like I'm losing an old friend that I thought would be around forever.
- posted by Kristen @ 4/13/2005 12:40:00 PM