More in store for landmark Ted's

For more than six decades, Ted's Store was a landmark in the Crooked Lake neighborhood of Coon Rapids -- a place to get cheese, candy or a "Millie dog," or to share local news.

Then last year, proprietor Millie Buzzelli -- whose late husband, Ted, had built the store with his father, Antonio, in 1946 -- died at age 76, and the tiny grocery closed.

Residents and friends mourned the loss of the beloved clerk who was like a second mom to many, and they hoped that Ted's would some day reopen.

This spring, they got their wish.

Buzzelli's daughter, Toni Jett, took over the store, which is about the size of a one-room apartment with low ceilings but stocked with all the necessities of life, plus a bit of old-time charm.

When Ted's closed, "It was a big bummer because everybody would come here," said Brady Anderson, 19, who stopped in on a recent Thursday to buy one of the store's signature 35-cent Freezie pops. "It was a big part of the community."

It was neighborhood residents who persuaded Jett and her boyfriend, Bryan Peterson, to turn the lights back on at the place at 13120 NW. Crooked Lake Blvd. that many affectionately called "Millie's."

With Crooked Lake right outside the back door, they've even added a new commodity -- live bait.

All the old favorites are still there, too: The Toledo scale used to weigh blocks of cheese cooled in the vintage freezer, giant Pixy Stix, a large selection of candy, and the customer-favorite Millie dogs (actually Ambassador hot dogs).

"It looks great," said Lisa Olson, an Anoka resident who grew up in the Crooked Lake neighborhood and stopped at Ted's to get a Freezie pop as she biked to the beach. "This is my first time back. I couldn't wait to see it. It brings back good memories."

Jett recalled some of her own childhood memories, when she'd sit behind the counter where her grandfather taught her how to make change. She reminisced about the many years that customers have come to Ted's, and specifically to see Millie, to get sage advice about their problems, share recipes and talk about milestones in their lives.

She recalled random acts of kindness -- such as when customers were short on cash, and Buzzelli would put an IOU in the drawer. Others who had extra change would leave it behind in the penny tray, sometimes a dollar or more at a time, to be tapped on such occasions.

Those memories helped Jett decide to keep the store going.

She plans to have an official grand opening Aug. 3 and will carry on the tradition of helping organizations in the neighborhood.

"I'm grateful to the neighborhood, and this is just a way to pay the neighborhood back," Jett said.