King of Kroger calls it quits

PERKINS TWP. — After a 34-year-long grocery career, split between two Sandusky-area stores, one man checked out of the career. "I just would like to move on to a new challenge," said John McQueen, who, for the past 20 years, worked as a courtesy clerk for Kroger on Perkins Avenue: the former store near KFC and now its marketplace by Big Lots. McQueen represents one of Kroger's longest-tenured and most respected employees, colleagues said. He came to Kroger after putting in 14 years at the now-defunct Foodtown Sandusky, now part of Save A Lot, further down on West Perkins Avenue. "April 3, 2003, was a sad day and a good day," McQueen said. "The sad part was I was closing Foodtown grocery store. The good news was that was the same day I walked across the street and worked for Kroger." McQueen almost retired in 2016 when Kroger relocated and opened a bigger marketplace. "I thought about it, and I had a desire and determination to walk in here, take care of business and, most importantly, take care of customers," McQueen said. "I had to accept a new challenge." Customers often associated McQueen as the person who would happily fetch shopping carts scattered across Kroger's massive parking lot. Often performing the task at night, amid the blistering cold or thunderous rain, he never protested, placing them in a tidy stack within the grocery store's main corral. "The lot was always empty at the end of his shift," said Jessica Brushaber, who worked with McQueen for several years and helped coordinate a going-away party for him. "John is a great guy and a great worker." McQueen shared a secret about why he opted to serve as a courtesy clerk instead of working elsewhere within the store. "It was nice to be outside, and it was even nicer that I didn't have to hear people gossiping or hear people complaining," McQueen said. McQueen then revealed even more hidden details about his job. "I was Kroger's mystery shopper," he said. "I went to other stores and checked on the prices to compare them." McQueen thanked several people for giving him guidance in his grocery store career, namely his former manager Ken Koch. "I remember he took me to the office one day, and he corrected me for something that I did," McQueen said about Koch. "But, for me, it was a good wake-up call. He helped me be a better person." He also took time to express much appreciation for his most recent supervisors, such as manager Aaron Manwich, and co-workers at the pharmacy, coffeeshop, fuel center, liquor store, meat department, among others. "Everyone I work with, they deserve a gold star," he said. In retirement, McQueen still plans on helping out his neighbors. At his Sandusky residence, he lives near many widowed, elderly women who can't shovel their driveways or mow their lawns, so McQueen assists them at no charge. The 1977 Sandusky High School graduate also transitioned to a not-so-new career "I'm working at Castaway Bay in the kitchen," McQueen, 65, said. "When I was 16, I always liked working in the kitchen, so I thought it was time to go back into a kitchen and do some hard labor. It was time for me to move on to another challenge." Though he'll always fondly remember the many shoppers he encountered at Foodtown and Kroger. "Taking care of the customers was always the No. 1 priority," McQueen said. "I knew they thought a lot of me, and that made me feel good." Less than two weeks after his retirement, and many, from shoppers to employees, already feel his void. "I am excited for him and his new journey, but he will be missed by many," Brushaber said.