Montauk Pioneer - July 4, 2008 - A Tribute To The IGA

It is very possible that among Montauk's many fascinating and unique attractions it has the only full service grocery store within two hundred yards of the ocean in the USA. How unusual is that? To park your vehicle and walk a few feet to the store entrance with the cool summer sea breezes or the biting cold winter winds fanning or stinging you while the familiar roar of the ocean beats to the tune of your shopping list is a scenario only known to Montauk IGA customers.

Standing at the helm of our grocery store is owner Bill Clark who was persuaded in 1996 by his friend Robert Stark to join him and operate Montauk's sole full grocery chain. Bill, who had risked changes in his previous successful ventures, accepted the new challenge since his years of sales expertise led him to recognize the immense potential here and he confidently relished the new demands. Hard work, drive, compassion, a genuine care for others, humbleness and charm are the words that describe Bill Clark. For a young Marine in 1967-1970 to have achieved the rank of E-5 in twenty two months, (a record) tells a great deal about the young man stationed at Charleston Navy Base and Quantico, Virginia, giving a pretty good indication of what was to come.

With a combination of tenacity, talent and vitality even the grueling six days a week and four hour commute from Port Jefferson to Montauk and back is just a necessary part of the commitment which Bill takes in stride. After each long day, Bill relaxes after dinner with a cup of coffee and a cigarette watching his forty or so koi fish swim in their beautiful, immaculate pond. Bill and his wife of thirty-eight years, pretty, blond Laureen have lived in their comfortable Port Jefferson house for thirty-four years. Their very talented and pretty daughter, Kerri Ann, lives next door. "I could never leave this area," Bill explained, "our friends and family live close by," the devoted husband, father and friend to many told me. On Sundays, it's the golf course for the avid golfer, and vacations in Las Vegas, Pebble Beach and San Francisco are the places Laureen and Bill love the most.

During his eight years Bill has given the Montauk community an ongoing upgraded shopping experience. New products, gourmet delicacies, organic foods and special requests are readily available.

"The customers are always on my mind," Bill affirmed. "We strive to give them more of a full supermarket and our prices are in line with the big guys. Above all we want to keep the people of Montauk in Montauk." Faced with the horrific, escalating fuel increases and the grain and corn shortage, Clark reluctantly has had to raise prices, and as he confirmed, his increments in the recent months have been astronomical. Senior Discount Wednesdays, weekly specials circulars, this year's Christmas Basket raffle and ongoing yearly donations to several Montauk civic organizations are more ways in which Bill Clark has reached out to the community.

A stand up guy; Bill, tall, muscular, good-looking with silver hair, mustache and beard as well, seems to be always standing or moving. Most certainly a presence, Bill covers the store, chatting with shoppers, working with staff, taking phone calls, arranging products, straightening shelves, checking deliveries, etc.; he is a whirlwind of action. Bill's visibility is tantamount to his well operated IGA.

Mary Tyler, our local marvel, has worked for the IGA for over twenty eight years, beginning as a cashier, then Produce Manager and now General Manager. Praising her boss, Mary said, "He is the best owner I have ever worked for." Like Bill, Mary is a people person and together their goals for their customers are evident. The admiration is mutual for it is obvious that Bill feels "that Mary is the best Manager he has ever worked with." Fortunate to have a fine staff; eighteen all year round and thirty five in the summer, Bill's arduous job runs more easily. It is also apparent that the ongoing maintenance, the new wagons and the cleanliness of the store is as important as the genuine interest in the customers.

When Bill generously agreed to provide space to sell the new Montauk novel, Montauk The Disappearances, last summer, he never would have guessed the amazing outcome. When he brought his copy home to read, his daughter Kerri Ann, by chance, opened it to the acknowledgement page and saw my name. "Mrs. Bartell was my third grade teacher." she screamed. Of course, we all had a wonderful, nostalgic reunion at Gurney's Inn two weeks later on Labor Day Weekend. The world does get smaller in Montauk. You'll never know the surprises "in store" for you at the Montauk IGA until you are actually there.