Mystery man clears debts at Village Variety

Santa came early this year for credit account holders at Village Variety. Those with outstanding balances at the general store no longer have to worry about settling their debts there, after a local came in saying he wanted to do something to pay it forward.

The man, who wants to remain anonymous, came one day in late September, telling a cashier he wanted to make a donation to pay off money still owed there by community members.

“I went out and I spoke to him, and he was dead serious,” said Elna Stacey, the manager there. “He said, ‘I’ve been wanting to do something like this for a while now.’”

The donation only went to individual customers - businesses and organizations in town were excluded from the deal.

“It was to help individuals that owed money here,” the manager said.

With that Stacey hunkered down in her office and got to work compiling a list of all the balances.

“The next day, I called him and my first question to him was, ‘Can I ask you, did you win the lottery?’ He said no, that he wants to do this. He’s been thinking about it.”

When she presented the figure to him, he told her, “That’s exactly what I was thinking,” Stacey said. He had been inspired by another woman last December who came in then to pay off ten layaway orders held in the back of the shop.

The IOU credit system at Village Variety isn’t as popular as it used to be, the manager said, but it’s still used by many parents and elders. Customers are asked to pay within 30 days but aren’t penalized if they can’t.

The manager wouldn’t confirm the precise donation given, but said it figures in the “thousands.” It’s not just a boost for her customers, but also one for her family business too, she said.

A notice informing customers about the cleared credit balances has since been posted at their cash register.

“This selfless act has touched us deeply,” it reads in part. “In these challenging times, it is gestures like this that remind us of the strength and kindness in our community.”

The response from regulars since then has been overwhelming.

“My cashiers told me more than one person was crying from disbelief,” Stacey said.

Cashier Zari Hakimelahi was there at the shop when The Eastern Door stopped by for a visit Tuesday, and said it’s been heartwarming to be able to break the news to customers.

“(A woman) was so happy when she could see there was zero on her account. I thought she was going to have a heart attack because she was so happy. ‘I can’t believe it,’” the cashier said. “They were all so appreciative when they came and I told them. ‘We need it,’ they said.”

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