Deli Does Good

At my house we sometimes have what's known as a "Lunch Box Uh-Oh Moment." That's when you open the fridge and realize you forgot to go grocery shopping and that no amount of maternal magic will conjure up an acceptable school lunch. On those mornings, it's off to the Neon.

Neon Deli is an independent little convenience store and delicatessan just off the Wesleyan campus at the intersection of Cross & Vine. You can pick up a sandwich, potato salad, some animal crackers or a pint of Ben & Jerry's.

But that could be said of any number of stores, some independent and some chain-owned, around town. What makes the Neon special is the sense that the store is just a vehicle for expressing the community spirit of its owners, Fran and Cynthia Galle.

The walls are lined with postcards and photos from former employees (more than one local teenager has gotten their first job at the Neon) and the entrance has a chalkboard that lists all the relevant news of the day - politics, sports, entertainment, or just plain weird. While they wrap your sandwich and ring you up, Fran and Cynthia keep up a steady stream of banter about family, the weather, or the times. It's the kind of place where you get to know the other customers, just waiting in line.

Today, while my kid picked a sticker out of the box they keep at the counter, I noticed a cup labeled "Collection for Middlesex County Coalition for Children -- Goal $300". (I wrote about Betsy Morgan's group back in January.) It turns out that the Neon picks a different local charity each month and encourages their customers to donate their excess change. Last month it was the county community foundation, and before that it was fuel assistance. This adds up to real dough, and I asked Fran why they do it.

It turns out that Fran's dad was in the general store business too, in South Jersey. Without even knowing it, Fran was learning a style of entrepreneurship where customers are people you know, not just potential profit. When times were hard, his dad extended credit, surely knowing that some of those debts would still be on the books when he retired decades later. But Fran also told me how one of those "credit" customers -- a certain Charlie Mosley, if I have the name right -- kept showing up to do free snow plowing and other chores for his dad for years after the bill had been paid. That's how Fran learned to measure success, and you can tell the formula is working at the Neon Deli.

I mentioned that Oddfellows Playhouse is trying to raise more money for scholarships to meet the increasing requests, and Cynthia offered to put them on the counter for April. We have a lot of small non-profits in town that work with kids or help people in need -- I bet a lot of them could use a few hundred extra dollars in these days of funding cutbacks. We're lucky to have businesses in town that are willing to pitch in -- and customers who know that deciding where to stop for a sandwich can make a difference in the community.

So next time it's "Honey, can you pick up some milk", make it Neon. You'll be glad you did.