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Terri Lynn's -- a bit of Osage history
What would later be known as Terri Lynn's Olde Friends, a staple on Main Street for almost 25 years that attracted customers from far and wide, started out as a clothing consignment shop in Wayne Mills auto garage, located where Kratchmer and Kloberdanz now sits, before ending as an antique mall in the old Daylight store.
Terri took over April Nicol's business and opened up under the name Terri Lynn's Budget Boutique in the fall of 1977 in an old auto garage owned by Wayne Mills.
She turned the job of making a sign for her new shop over to her brother-in-law, Curt Younker, who was a pretty talented painter, even if he did specialize in exotic art.
Curt's idea was to attract attention so he painted a huge, garish eyeball Terri said with a laugh. It attracted attention all right, in fact she got phone calls from the ladies in the bank across the street all the time.
From clothing consignments she started accepting antiques and a salesman from Forest City kept her supplied with pottery.
Almost a year later, "It was going pretty good," Terri said, "but I knew I wanted out of this building. It wasn't conducive to retail business."
She moved her shop two blocks east to the Brink's Grocery (now A.J.'s Attic) location. Terri said it still amazes her that there was still a family-owned grocery on Main Street as late as 1978. She recalled Brinks was the favorite place for kids to buy candy.
Curt was once again put in charge of designing the store front and creating the signage. Terri said he painted the front a bright red with yellow vines all over it and painted the words "Exotica" and "Enter and Enjoy" above her logo Terri Lynn's Antiques and Gifts.
She laughed when she talked about the rumors that were flying around as people speculated on the type of place she was really running.
But she didn't let the rumors bother her and inside it was business as usual, although she now had so many antiques she had to give up the clothing consignments.
Her husband Ric had always been interested in antiques, but for her the antique business was something she learned about as she went along. "When it comes from your pocketbook, you learn fast," she said, "and through trial and error and tons of auctions." Plus she read everything she could on the subject and took a few classes through North Iowa Area Community College.
Terri was in that location from 1978 to 1988 before things grew so large, literally, that she needed to consider a bigger store. The Lancaster's had their first son and Terri didn't want to quit work so she brought Gabe to the store with her everyday. However, with so much stuff piled up around her and a bassinet crammed in between she said she felt claustrophobic.
Around this time the Lancasters heard the Daylight Store was going out of business and they were able to negotiate a rental agreement with the new owner, Sam Holcomb's son Steve Holcomb of Grundy Center. Terri knew this would be a great place for her shop. There would be plenty of room to spread out and she had office space upstairs where first book keeper Nettie Peterson, then Ellen Wagner used to sit and make change for the customers. A store clerk would send money upstairs through the chute and the change would be returned the same way. This was a very state-of-the-art system for this time.
Sam Holcomb said there used to be four money chutes, called cash carriers, that went from the main floor up to the office. The cash carriers were replaced in 1953 with cash registers when the National Cash Register Company convinced the owners it would be the best thing for their business. Holcomb said he felt they paid an exorbitant price for the machines, but since they replaced the bookkeeper he and his partner were able to have the machines paid off in three years.
The money chute had been removed many years prior to Terri renting the store, but the hole was still there and for some reason Terri said she never got around to covering it up. She grinned when she said her kids, Gabe and Isaiah, used to get a kick out of dropping toys attached to strings through the hole and cringed as she recalled the countless pots of coffee that she sat down, forgetting the hole was there.
All of Terri's dealers were people she had established relationships with over the first 10 years she was in business and Terri Lynn's Olde Friends was born. "Curt did this sign too, but it was very quaint," Terri said with a reminiscent smile. She had dealers from all over the Midwest and the shop specialized in antique oak and walnut Victorian furniture. "We had very experienced honest dealers from all over. That's what is special," Terri said. "It was them and their knowledge and this building was perfect for it."
The business was very successful. She said she still misses the customers that liked to stop in to chat about the good old days and the now-grown-up kids who recalled buying their Bart Star shoes in the Daylight Store basement. But, as much as she enjoyed the business she said she was beginning to get restless.
Terri and Ric had been business partners from the very beginning and her mother Joyce Buehrer also played a very big role. She helped Terri in her store with the book work and accounting right up until the time she was diagnosed with cancer. "When I found out it was the end of the month and I had to learn to do the books and sales tax and everything overnight," Terri said.
So between the rent and high utilities, the unfamiliar accounting, time spent away from her children and worrying about her mom Terri said everything just got too stressful. She said in her mind and heart she had already started to move on. She had dreams of becoming a "picker" for other dealers and doing some wholesale selling from her home. "I had two kids, my interests were different," she said. "I felt it was time to move on." She said she looked at boxes and all she could think about was how she was ever going to get it all moved out of there.
Then in October of 2001 the decision was made for her. A fire which broke out in Mick's Tavern in the early morning hours quickly spread to Godfather's Pizza next door before Osage firemen arrived on the scene.
As she stood across the street and watched the fire whoosh as the wall of Godfather's caved in she was sure her store, which was next in line, was a goner for sure.
She said she rested her head against the Home Trust Bank and bitterly thought, "All this for what?" So much of her life and her families lives were tied up in that building. She said she also thought, "What about my dealers - are they insured? Will we loose the whole block? What about the firemen - will they be okay?"
"After all was said and done I didn't have any choice but to quit," Terri said. "God had saved everything but it was my time to move on."
Now she helps out quite a bit with J & J Auctions, which Ric manages. She said she thought about going back into business last year when the old store went up for sale again, but knew she couldn't do it financially and her heart wasn't really in it. Terri's mom passed away in September 2002 and she also knew she couldn't do it without her.
"I've lived out my dream," Terri said. "Now I've been doing appraising." With Ric's busy schedule Terri has taken over more at J & J and, "I really, really enjoy it," she said with a grin. "I'm using my talents and not putting out money."
Even though Terri Lynn's moved out the old Daylight Store lived on. After all, it had already survived one fire in 1924 that totally gutted the place, what was a little smoke and water.
By now the building's ownership had changed hands once again. Steve Holcomb eventually sold the building to Jim Hayden, of Osage.
After the rubble from Mick's Place and Godfather's Pizza was removed and the Daylight store remodeled Shirley Rieken and Don Rieken bought the building. They moved their businesses, Shirley's Variety Store and Don's Bike Shop, from the corner of Main and Seventh St. (where LeaBrian's Hairstyling Barber-ing & Spa is now) to the Daylight Store location. Shirley's Variety went out of business in 2005 the old store was sold to Lee and Donna Bird and is currently Alliance of Independent Tae Kwon Do Schools (AITS).
But no matter how many times the building changes hands, for most seasoned Osage citizens it will always be referred to as the old Daylight Store.
Story created Jul 18, 2006 - 11:38:18 CDT.
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