As many of you know by now, Mervyn’s is going to close its doors. That makes me sad for a number of reasons. 1) I bought my daughter’s baby things there 30 years ago; 2) there are 3 stores in our city and that means a lot of people out of work; 3) one of my best ever students is a buyer for Mervyn’s and will now be out of a career he really enjoyed; 4) just another sign of our bad economic times.
I never worked for Mervyn’s but long ago, when I was buying baby clothes there, I had a Mervyn’s credit card. That morphed into a Target credit card which morphed into a Target Visa. I use that card, almost exclusively, so as to get money for the very poor school in which I teach. My wonderful student who worked for our local business partner while in high school and college, has worked his way up at Mervyn’s headquarters and was just named a head buyer. I don’t know what he will do next, but he is very talented so I know he will land on his feet.
Now, for companies I have worked, except for the school district where I am currently employed: they are all gone, kaput, out of business, no record of some of them. Payless Drug Stores, Levitz Furniture, Munford Publications, Ranchers Cotton Oil. None of them folded while I was working there, but I could see the writing on the wall for Ranchers so left to get my teaching credential. It was also the place where I spent the most time before I became a teacher, 11 years. I still have dreams (or nightmares) of returning to work there and nothing has changed in the 20+ years I’ve been gone.
Time rolls on, companies come and go. Jobs change. My view of the work I have done, am doing, and will do in the future has all changed, too. Those company closings would have scared me 30 years ago, when I had a baby for whom to buy clothes, but now I see that we are a resilient bunch and will figure out a way to work through this economic downturn. Although concerned for what will happen to my students, I know that if I give them skills and a can-do attitude, they will make their way.
4 responses so far ↓
Kathy G // October 20, 2008 at 3:02 am |
It’s a scary time.
Son #1 called earlier in the week to tell us that a good portion of his plant had been laid off. However, he still has a job, for which I’m grateful.
wendy // October 27, 2008 at 5:30 pm |
I work at mervyns in southern CA and where closing in 2 weeks, how am i going to feed my kids. This is all a Bad Dream……………
It’s final time « Dkzody’s Weblog // December 16, 2008 at 5:31 pm |
[...] students has come home and will sit in and give his opinions of their work. This young man has just lost his job as a head buyer at Mervyn’s so he brings with him a whole repertoire of information about running a [...]
Thriving businesses « Dkzody’s Weblog // January 4, 2009 at 6:01 pm |
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