LIMA —There are two quotes about retirement that are most appropriate for Phil Osmon. Confucius said, “Choose a work that you love and you won’t have to work another day.” Fred Rogers — more commonly recognized by the name Mister Rogers — said, “often when you’re at the end of something, you’re at the beginning of something else.”
These quotes certainly apply to the fifty-five years that Phil Osmon has been at Hofeller, Hiatt & Clark. Those working days ended with a small celebration with family and friends on his last day of work. “Fifty-five years and they have been fifty-five great years. They have been good for me and good for my family. There’s just been absolutely no regrets. It’s been a pleasure to be here, taking care of all our customers for all these years. It’s been a lot of fun. A lot of fun.”
Osmon’s plan now is to spend a little time with his grand kids, play a little golf and take it easy.
There have been changes throughout the years. Osmon shares that the “biggest change is that things are much more casual today. There’s not as many events that require dress clothing. Peoples’ attitudes toward dressing these days is different than it was. There used to be a sign in back that said, ‘You do your best, when you look your best.’”
Coming to the end of working in the same place for fifty-five years, there are obviously some mixed emotions. Osmon says, “It’s been a great ride. I’ve had a wonderful time working here with so many really, really nice people that have been our customers, people that I have worked with, salesmen that have worked with us over the years. All the things that we’ve gotten to do because of the store, people that I’ve met. It’s just been wonderful. I wouldn’t have done anything else, and I can’t imagine anything else that I would change or that I would have done. If it wasn’t for the store I wouldn’t have met my wife, the family would be different. That’s the very best thing about it. It’s just been a great ride.
Osmon shared the secret of longevity. “The secret is that I had the pleasure of coming to work every day and doing something that I enjoyed. Some people never find that or never get there, so I’ve been very well blessed that I got to come to work and I got to do something I enjoyed every day.”
He’s leaving things as well as can be expected. “The store’s in good shape. I expect that these gentlemen will continue as we have. They’ll be the guardians of it for a while and then somebody else gets a chance. We just watch over the business for a while and then let somebody else move in. Chris Garlock will be the general manager of the store. Extra staff has been hired. They’ll take over and keep things running. I’m sure they’ll do a good job.”
Osmon has seen downtown Lima evolve over the fifty-five years. “There’s been a lot of changes downtown over fifty-five years, but I think the way things are going it’s gonna just continue to get better and better and more and more vibrant and it will be good.” — a glowing report from somebody who has experienced downtown in both its decline and its regrowth.
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