What It’s Like to Run the Only Grocery Store in a Remote Mountain Town in Colorado
Rocky Mountain PBS visited Darlene and Mark Watson, the proprietors of Silverton Grocery, to learn what its like to run only grocery store in the remote mountain town of Silverton, Colorado.
Darlene and Mark, a married couple, have owned and operated the Silverton Grocery Store for 34 years. It has been the town's sole grocery store since 2000. Both are lifelong Silverton residents.
The couple decided to open the store after the Silverton Mines closed down. Mark had lost his job and left town, but came back because the opportunity was there.
When the mining industry shut down in the 1980s, Mark lost his job. The town's population shrank from 900 year-round residents to about 600 as the jobs dried up. The Watsons were among those who left. But Silverton called them back. Determined to make a living without relying on mining, Darlene had an idea: Why don't we open a grocery store?"
A couple of customers talked about how the store contributes to directly to the small community, particularly in times of need.
I'm just remembering you know going into that grocery store when my refrigerator broke down...I'm buying all this ice and Charlie, who is one of the people who worked there - Darlene's sister said, Why are you buying all this ice?" When I told her that I had no freezer and no refrigerator, she said, You don't need to buy all this. Just bring your stuff from the freezer to me. We'll put it in our freezer here at the grocery store".