Day twenty-six, - Hoping my van will make it

After the fiasco with the tire blowout in Baton Rouge, I was wondering if I’d ever make it over to School Aids. I even thought about canceling my visit. But boy, was I happy someone from the mechanic’s place offered to drive me over there to meet with Bart Todd, Celeste the general manager, and Jamey Finberg.

What an enormous place! This building is the ‘headquarters’ and main School Aids store. They also have five other locations located throughout Louisiana, Florida and Missouri.

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Bart with Celeste [top left], Jamey [top right], inside [bottom left] and outside [bottom right] of School Aids.

Climbing into my van (complete with a new back tire), I crossed my fingers that I’d have no more problems. I had one more retailer to visit and was running about two hours late. When I arrived at J & R School Supplies Inc, in Lafayette, LA, the sun was just going down. As you can see from the photo, the J & R building is so big it won’t fit into one picture!

Jean and his wife Rosemarie opened their first school supply store 33 years ago. The business has grown so big that it now encompasses 33,000 square feet. I was surprised to see so many resources there, but Marie explained that there are many ‘French Immersion’ programs in Lafayette. Jean and Rosemarie’s first language is French and they still speak French at home.

J & R is a family-run business. I had the chance to meet Marie’s daughter Nicole and her brother Randall. After school, Nicole comes to the store, where she likes to help with sales.

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Marie with her daughter Nicole [top left], Marie with her father Jean [top right], and the inside of their store [bottom].

Hope everybody had a nice VALENTINE’S DAY!!!