Dallas store owners thankful for recovery after large fire
The owners of Ye Olde Clock and Gift Shoppe in Dallas have a message for local firefighters: “Thanks for saving our shop.”
The store was one of about 16 businesses affected by the fire that rippled through the roof of the Dallas Shopping Center just a few days before Christmas on Dec. 21. While the majority of businesses have reopened, some remained closed Saturday, including Gertrude Hawk Chocolates, Hallmark, Sprint and They Grow So Fast, a consignment shop.
“We were very, very fortunate,” said Melissa Quinn of Ye Olde Clock and Gift Shoppe. “We feel very blessed.”
The store, which moved to the center after the flood caused by Hurricane Agnes in 1972, sustained minimal damage, and none of the merchandise was affected, Quinn said. The concern from the community after the fire was heart-warming, she said.
“We had such an outpouring of customers coming in and wishing us well,” she said.
Quinn, who owns the clock and gift shop along with her husband, Tom, and son, Tom Jr., said they worked through the day and night after the fire to reopen before Christmas and make sure customers had time to pick up their orders.
“Time is important to us in a clock shop,” she said.
The interiors and merchandise in several businesses were saved by a concrete roof over the center. Carol Sorber, manager of Wild Birds Unlimited, said that store was only affected by a lingering smell of smoke, which dissipated after the first day.
“The firemen did a fantastic job,” she said.
She said the store received numerous phone calls from regular customers checking on the welfare of the store and asking how they could help.
