Helmsburg General Store
~ by Paige Langenderfer
For more than a century, the Helmsburg General Store has been an anchor in the Helmsburg community. The rusted freezer out front houses the minnows that have been the bait for countless prized fish and the booth inside has been a gathering place for friends to catch up.
The previous owner, Karen Sooy, ran the store for 27 years. She loved to talk to tourists as well as the locals and would often kid about giving“ good directions and bad advice.” Ready to retire, Karen put the store up for sale.
When Leonard Richey saw the“ for sale” sign, he knew almost instantly that he had to buy the store. Richey and his wife, Sharon, had been customers of the store for more than 20 years and knew how important it was to the community.
“ The people really rely on it,” Leonard said.“ They need a place that’ s open in their community.”
Sharon said she originally thought the idea was crazy, but quickly realized what a great opportunity this would be to serve the community.
“ I’ ve been coming to this area since I was a kid and love everything about it. It’ s just gorgeous. We love
38 Our Brown County • Nov./ Dec. 2017
Open for Business photos by Paige Langenderfer
coming here to hike and fish and camp,” Sharon said.“ We plan to retire here, so we want to help this community in any way we can.”