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Joan McCracken: a friendly face at Lakefield IGA

by Anita Locke

A long-time employee at the Lakefield IGA retired last week.

Joan McCracken spent the past 45 years working at the IGA and enjoyed a send-off party organized by management and staff at the store on Thursday. Many customers came out to help her celebrate.

Joan began her career in the IGA’s meat department where she worked for 25 years. Following that, she worked the deli counter for six years and snack bar for five years.

Ultimately, she worked the cash register.

“I met a lot of wonderful people over the years, and the staff became like a second family,” she said. There are lots of fond memories of working in the meat department. “We had a lot of fun,” she added.

Up until a few years ago, she lived in Lakefield but moved to Bridgenorth a few years ago with her husband Allan Dicker.

In those early years, she worked for Gord Blake’s father who owned the store at the time. There has been a lot of renovation and expansion to the store over the years. The IGA opened two years before she started.

Gord took over from his father, and then ten years ago Ross Bletsoe purchased the grocery operation.

After being widowed for a number of years, Joan married her current husband two years ago.

Ross told The Herald, “Joanie, as we call her, has just been a wonderful person to work with. She was always reliable, and we could call her to come in to work any time if there was an emergency, and she’d be there rain or shine. We’ll certainly miss her. We wish her and Allan all the best in their retirement.”

Ross knows Allan well; they grew up on the same street in Scarborough.

What are her retirement plans? She and her husband will work around the house, or travel to Bancroft to help her brother with some renovations to his home. She’ll enjoy spending more time in her garden tending to her flowers, play bingo and spend time with her family.

She has two children – Wayne and Sheila, six grandchildren and two great grandchildren.

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