[at-l] Wal-Mart & Vermont

[lbooher at pure.net (Leslie Booher)]

*1.  How come no one bought the place since it appeared to be making money.

Someone did buy the place, but it's a caterer who wanted a catering kitchen and a fancy restaurant.  

*It sounds like there is a place across the road where people go. 

It's not the cozy kind of place where different tables interact, and it's not open for breakfast, when folks come in with the newspapers and discuss what's going on.

* 3.  A minister's association could bridge the gap between the churches so, isn't that a way to learn about other churches?

There is a ministers' association, but it meets only once a month, and the Baptists don't belong.  They have their own.  And this area is heavily Baptist.

*4.  Do the parishioners play "Catch me if you can?  I mean, they might try to get in and out of the hospital before the minister finds out and then they can say: "See, the minister doesn't visit in the hospitals."  

I don't know if you're familiar with HIPPA, but it's the new privacy act that makes it almost impossible for clergy and others to know that someone's in the hospital unless a family member of the sick person calls.  The essence of HIPPA is good.  The practice of it is insane.  If a nurse, for instance, walks by a room and sees the name of one of her/his friends on the door, she can't go in and visit because she's not supposed to know that they're there.  The hospital won't tell me what my husband's bills are for (they bill by numbers, rather than by saying what procedure you've had), even though we've asked to have all our bills put into one account.  That sort of thing.  David can no longer go to the desk at the hospital and ask who from our congregation is sick.  He has to already know their names.  

* isn't there an opportunity for someone (perhaps some in one of the churches) to help those who cannot travel "across the road" to get there and back safely? 

He doesn't want that kind of constant help.  He liked being independent.  He doesn't even use a cane.  He's in his 70s, and he's always been independent to the maximum of his abilities.  He knew how many steps to take, what the front of the building felt like, where all the furniture was, what was on the menu, etc.  In turn, the servers all knew how to set his plate for him, where to put his coffee, how to make sure that his tie was OK for court that afternoon <G>, that sort of thing.

*6.  Did no one see the inevitability of this restaurant closing?

Not a clue.  Not even the manager knew.  It's connected to the pharmacy next door, and it was owned by the pharmacist.  The pharmacy is still going strong, although he's announced since he sold the cafe that he's moving the pharmacy to the next town south.  If we didn't have the county courthouse here, we'd dry up and blow away.

*9.  If a church is in a central location can a daily "drop in" center be established (serving coffee, tea, and conversation) to meet the need (perceived or real) of the local populace?

Actually, we're getting an internet cafe, of all things.  We're waiting to see how that goes.  They won't have hot food, though, only fancy coffees, pastries, and cold sandwiches.

*10.  Can and should we blame efficient "big stores" for the lack of loyalty to smaller shops in a community. 

Yes.  In the same way, air conditioning caused people to go inside their homes and not sit on the porches visiting their neighbors in the evenings.  Things do change, but there are usually discernable reasons.  Besides, the big stores have the advertising dollars to let us know what they have.  Mom and Pop aren't that fortunate.  

anklebear