A TRIP TO THE PAST
travel around the bookstore in its prime |
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Alpha Book Center photo gallery
click on each photo to enlarge it |
In 1967, the store began as an aisle inside Al's Family Book
Store, 1454 E. Van Buren
In 1979 the store moved to its
own building at 1928 E. McDowell |
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Store volunteer Willie Worth at
the 1928 E. McDowell store around 1996 |
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These photos
were taken in the summer of 2001 and show manager Joy Rodgers,
psychic Dominique Shilling and volunteer Willie Worth
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After 25 years of growth and
expansion the store burned down in 2006.
One night about 11 pm the alarm went off. Police
responding noticed smoke but could not reach storeso they
had to break in next door, climb up through the attic and
smash through the ceiling. When they got inside, the fire
was almost out and the store was thick with smoke. Until all
the smoke was gone, they could not tell if there was still a
blaze or not. They smashed open the front door to let the
smoke out and knocked a hole in the roof to hasten the
process.
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Dr. John sorting through rubble
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Firemen probe the ceiling door
where it is
believed
the arsonist threw a torch. |
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Damage to the building was estimated at over $200,000.
Loss to the store itself was more than $60,000. The
primary destruction was limited to a 25-foot square area
located at the rear of the store. The cause of the fire
was labeled an accident. Thousands saw the fire on the
TV news Friday morning. Many offered their help. Some
have even sent money to help the store get on its feet
again.
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Joy Rodgers, manager of the store, saw the inside of the
store for the first time the following Monday. She
went down the aisles and looked at shelves. When she
went outside, looked at the pile of rubble on the front
sidewalk and burst into tears. "These are my
children," she said, pointing to the pile of dirty rubble.
The volunteers who gave of their time and efforts in
cleaning out the store were Mike & Shari Crowley,
Hansart Aloeman, Alex Pierson, John Key, Sue MacKay and
Adam. Their efforts were necessary to completely clean
out the store so rebuilding could begin. And everythong had
to be rebuilt, the floor, walls and ceiling. The entire
interior needed repainting, new electric lines installed,
new ductwork, a new bathroom, new lighting, new
refrigeration. All this had to be done before the power
could be restored
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took about four months to get the bulilding reconstructed.
then we had to construct new shelving, paint, etc
Then any supplies and racks that had been saved had to
be moved back to the store, sorted and shelved.And the
hundreds of boxed of newly purchased books and merchandise
had to be shelved.
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The
photos above show volunteers building shelves and counters.
The volunteers who helped were:
Bill and Lisa Wallace, Karen and Sharon Knight, Nicola
Parise, Carlos Nandin, Laura Smith-Whaley, Cathy Kaiser and
others.
"At long last we are going
to get a thorough cleaning and a new coat of paint," said
Dr. Rodgers. "I have seen a vision of a bright new Alpha
Book Center, like the Phoenix, rising from the ashes of the
past. We have 38 years of experience now and we will apply
that to making the re-newed store everything you could want
it to be.". |
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We rebuilt the store and it was better than ever. But
less than two years later, the landlord broke our lease and
kicked us out .
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We found a
new location and started building all over again. |
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The store opens at new location in 2008
Dr. John diligently at work in new store |
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Dr. John Rodgers, around
1970
at an open house at the
store. |
