Mary Tennant Celebrates 65 Years Working at Moundsville Kroger
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MOUNDSVILLE -- For the last 65 years, Mary Tennant has clocked into work nearly every day at the Kroger grocery store in Moundsville.
Tennant, who recently celebrated her 85th birthday, said she doesn't plan to stop working anytime soon. She enjoys her job, the people she works with and the customers, too.
Tennant began her career there in 1957 and has worked every job in the store except for cutting meat, she said. She is the longest-serving Kroger employee in the 140-year-old company's entire chain of stores that has 400,000 workers across the United States.
Tennant's milestone was celebrated Thursday with a luncheon, gift basket and visits from friends, family and past co-workers who have retired.
Tennant, a 1956 graduate of Union High School, said she first got a job at the G.C. Murphy store. Then Kroger came into the city and she decided to get a job there instead.
"They were new in town and they said that's the place to go," she said.
Tennant said she does not remember if the interview to get the position was difficult, but there were some math problems that had to be solved involving canned goods and shelf space.
Tennant worked in the meat department for about 37 years, though not as a meat cutter. After that she worked in every other department. Now she is a file clerk and she helps take care of signage and price tags in the store.
"When we started out it was just eight aisles and now we've doubled that to 16," she said, adding some of the larger stores have more than 30 aisles. "The people have been great. It's been good to me."
Tennant said most of the people she worked with for decades have since retired. She planned to retire in 2003 but her husband, Kenneth, got sick and passed away.
"The manager said, 'Mary, what are you going to do?' I said, 'I have no idea.' He said, 'I do; you're going to stay here with us. We're your Kroger family so we'll take care of you,'" Tennant said, adding the manager at that time was Chuck Seabright.
Tennant said she has not set a date for retirement.
"You know, as long as God gives me the energy, I will probably be here," she said. "It's nice seeing all my friends and all my customers. All my schoolmates shop here. And I've seen probably four generations shop here. It's really been interesting.
"Every day is interesting. When those doors open, you never know what's coming in the door. But we've handled it. We've had injuries and falls just because of their age, and we've taken care of that.
"We've celebrated birthdays here for customers, and of our workers we've had birthday parties here that the customers can enjoy. Every day is a different day. That's why it never gets boring."
Tennant said she and other employees make an effort to find out a little about customers' lives, like their birthdays and anniversaries, so they can wish them happiness on those dates.
Tennant said she did not expect there to be such a party in her honor. She noted such a gathering takes a lot of work.
"I want to thank everybody not only in my store, but all over the Kroger land. I want to say thank you so much," she said.
During the celebration, Kroger's president, Dana Zurcher, thanked Tennant for all her hard work and dedication to the company for 65 years.
"We're so proud of you and so proud to have you be part of our family," Zurcher said. "We're so proud of and grateful for you."
Amy McCormick, Kroger corporate affairs manager, also thanked Tennant, noting that her hard work and excellent customer service skills have allowed all other employees to succeed as well.
Also on hand for the event was one of Tennant's nephews, Carl Gunto of Moundsville. Gunto said he was glad to see a celebration happening for Tennant.
"She's worked 65 hard years and she enjoys her job. She's so pleasant when you come in here," Gunto said. "She really enjoys seeing the people. ... She's always been pretty special. She's raised two kids and has a lot of grandkids."
Tennant, who was born in McMechen and now lives in Moundsville, has two sons, John Tennant and Roger Tennant.
Roger Brown, a retired Kroger employee and former co-worker of Tennant's, also was on hand for the celebration. He and others enjoyed sharing stories and laughs with her on Thursday.
"She's a class act," Brown said. "I worked with her for 45 years."
April Edwards said she enjoys coming to shop at Kroger and to see Tennant.
"Mary is a very caring individual," Edwards said. "She has excellent values. ... She's a delight to speak with."
Bonnie Henderson, another former co-worker who has since retired, described Tennant as a hard worker.
"She's as sharp as a tack. I want to be Mary," Henderson said.