Ten years in, on December 7, 2015, the unthinkable happened. A freak electrical malfunction in the phone company’ s side of the building sparked a fire, dealing a devastating blow to the Lintz family as they watched their livelihood go up in flames.“[ The phone company ] just happened to be working on some equipment, so there was fuel, opportunity, and bad luck, and all three came at the same time,” Brian said.
“ I got down to the pizza place when it was still fully involved,” Brian remembered.“ I called Bruce immediately, and he flew into Rapid City [ from Minnesota ] before the fire was even put out.” When Brian said he wasn’ t ready to call it quits on Lintz Bros. Pizza,
Bruce said,“ Well, then, we’ ll build it up again, and we’ ll build it up better than what it was before.”
And they did exactly that. The current building is an expansion on the previous footprint, with loft seating and patio seating, allowing them to serve more customers. Navigating insurance coverage was something akin to a nightmare, but they providentially had the opportunity to replace certain pieces of equipment with more suitable ones that would serve them better long term. It was a leap of faith, as they were forced to take a lot more debt in rebuilding, and to trust that God would continue to provide, not just in the rebuilding itself but that He would also provide the employees and the business to pay for the rebuild.
And He did. As they set about rehiring new staff, they approached each position they wanted to hire with prayer. Sometimes, Brian said, while they were praying over a certain position they needed to fill, the very person for the job would walk in the door.
“ It was amazing. What we’ d just prayed on, that person showed up and we filled that position. It was the coolest thing you’ d ever seen.”
Finally,“ We got opened up almost seven months to the day after the fire,” Brian said.
They’ ve had other challenges thrown at them over their 20 years in business, and in the last 10 years, from a franchise endeavor that went sour and almost broke them, to the Covid pandemic which almost broke everyone, to the challenges of finding quality staff, and through everything they have seen God working and the power of prayer.
“ It is amazing the things that have happened in my 20 years at the pizza place,” Brian said.“ There are some things that are just all God. It is pretty cool.”
Lintz Bros. Pizza is located south of Hermosa on Hwy 36, and they are open Thursday-Monday from 3-8pm, with dine-in and take-out both available. Check out their menu at www. lintzbrospizza. com or find them on Facebook, and make Lintz Bros. your next favorite restaurant! They’ re soon to be world famous! myblackshillscountry. com Down Country Roads
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