05/03/2025
RETIREMENT ANNOUNCEMENT
4974 days from beginning to end. 10/15/2011-5/31/2025. Almost a full 14 years combined run as Pitstop Shoppe and Jersey John's Deli serving our communities. It is bittersweet to officially announce we have decided to end our journey here at our home away from home to turn the page in our book to the next chapter called " retirement".
We cherish the sentiments and memories of our early days as fresh transplants from New Jersey bringing a simple product of frozen yogurt to new lands, gradually adding additional food items. Our four children (two older ones left up north) started new lives here, made new friends at new schools and adapted to the slower southern culture of North Carolina, quickly picking up "y'alls, yes Ma'am, yes Sir and do what?". Fast forward to present time now, they are all grown up, spreading their wings and successfully building their own lives which makes us so very proud of them.
As a small Mom-and-Pop business, we have strived over the years to adapt to the times, changing products and navigating the economy with all its ups and downs. We survived COVID, inflation, food trends and continued to gain our customer base while fulfilling demands, most importantly, achieving a work-life balance.
In recent weeks, as Murphy's Law would have it, new customers discovered us daily. I had to inform them that unfortunately, their newfound happy place will be closing for business on May 31st. While disappointment followed , many added kind words: " Best wishes, spend time with your family and five grandchildren, you had a long successful run".
Over the years, we had the pleasure of working with many young employees, most of whom had their first job here. I have stayed in touch with many and am so proud of the adults that they have become today. Many customers have walked through our red doors. Some are our loyal regulars, you know who you are. Other got busy with life but returned and it's always good to see a familiar face. And then some, are brand new. We appreciate everyone for their patronage throughout the years and especially those who showed us unwavering support when we faced the greatest challenge any parents can endure, the loss of our beloved son, Phillip, one and a half years ago.
We hope we had been a positive addition to this community by our offering of goods and services. We are sad to soon face the day where we will turn the key for the final time. It will be a difficult change to our routine but with any significant change, we will adapt and embrace what lies ahead. More time with family, more focus on a new venture and more AD-ventures to come! We will certainly miss the business and the people that supported us.
We invite you to spend the next four weeks with us. Please redeem any gift cards you may have and bring your little ones or the big kids to enjoy their favorite frozen treats or sandwiches. In a flash, Jersey John's will no longer be in existence, gone forever. Our lease ends June 30th and although we requested to finish out the summer until September, our landlord, Westridge Village Properties, was unable to accommodate us. While unfortunate, we are genuinely at peace with it and ready to move on. They likely already have a replacement tenent which we hope will bring a nice change to the shopping center.
We wish everyone, our customers and neighbors, the very best and may you continue your own success. We will be visiting in town, so please say hello my friends as we cross paths. Best of luck to the new business who will eventually occupy this space. We are forever grateful for the opportunity to be a part of this community and for the many friendships made along the way. We leave with many good memories at our true home away from home that will never fade. It will truly be an exciting time for us after almost 14 years to embrace our new future and chapter in life. Please keep updated on this page for any additional news as we wrap up our final days this month. Our time here as a small business servicing you all has really left a lasting imprint in our lives. Much thanks from the bottom of our hearts.
With fondness,
Linda and John Ward
