When you’ve worked at a small town hardware store for a quarter-century, you’re more than just an employee, you’re a member of a family.
That’s exactly what Ortonville resident Debbie Tyler is to the Grove family, who owns the Oxford Ace Hardware, along with five other stores.
‘Debbie has always been like one of my own children,? said Marianne Grove, co-owner of the local hardware chain.
Tyler, a 44-year-old former Oxford resident, is celebrating her 25th year of employment at the Oxford hardware store.
‘I really love the job,? said Tyler, who’s worked her way up the company ladder from cashier to office manager. ‘I enjoy the people. I’ve found the work pretty interesting.?
Tyler originally got to know the Groves through her mother, Carol Hauxwell, who worked at the family’s Five and Dime Store in downtown Oxford years ago and is currently employed at Marianne’s Hallmark shop in Holly.
During her years at Oxford High School, Tyler baby-sat Marianne and Sonny Groves? two children, Nathan and Marnie.
Tyler had originally planned to pursue a career in child care. After graduating OHS in 1977, she worked at Children’s Garden Montessori until deciding to leave there in the spring of 1978.
That same year she was shopping at the Groves? hardware store, then called the Oxford Pro Mart Home Center, when Sonny asked her, ‘When are you gonna come to work for me??
‘I said, ‘Any time I guess,?? Tyler said. ‘That’s how I started working at the hardware store.?
Although she was only a cashier, Tyler committed herself to learning every aspect of the hardware business.
‘I would follow Sonny or one of the other employees around as they waited on customers and that’s how I learned,? Tyler said. ‘I could mix paint, cut glass, do merchandizing. I learned it all from the bottom up.?
Despite all her knowledge of the hardware business, Tyler said she’s still sometimes discriminated against because she’s a woman, not by men, but by female customers.
‘They’ll say, ‘Can you get one of the men to help me?? and I would say, ‘Why don’t you try me???
Nowadays, Tyler doesn’t spend much time on the store floor helping customers because she’s busy in her office processing orders and doing other work for five of the Groves? Ace stores.
The Grove family considers Tyler an asset to their business and has nothing but praise for their loyal employee.
‘There’s just so many wonderful qualities about Debbie, it’s hard to say which is her best,? said Marianne Grove. ‘She’s always respectful and has a good positive attitude. She works well with our customers and employees. She knows how to do all the jobs. She’s good management material. She’s outstanding.?
‘I don’t know what we’d do without her,? she added.
‘She’s a good, conscientious, hard worker,? Sonny Grove said. ‘She really thinks of the business.?
Tyler was equally complimentary of the Groves.
‘I’ve always liked how they’ve operated a nice, family-based store,? she said. ‘They’re always very respectful of their employees.?
Tyler is particularly grateful that the Groves not only made it possible for her to earn a living, they made it possible for her to spend time with her two daughters, Tanya, 18, and Stephanie, 15.
Prior to her first pregnancy, Tyler said she worked 50 to 60 hours a week, ‘whenever (the Groves) needed me.?
‘I was basically Sonny’s right-hand person,? she said.
‘When I got pregnant with my first daughter, Sonny told me, ‘You’ve given me all these years, done so much for me, including helping raise my kids, that I want you to always know that you can take whatever time you need with your kids. They’ve got field trips, they’re sick, whatever, you take the time off and be with them.??
?(The Groves) were always so good and supportive when it came to my family. They were sensitive to my being a working mother,? Tyler added.
The hardware business has certainly given a lot to Tyler including a husband.
In July 2001, she married Tim Tyler, who manages the Groves? Ace Hardware in Ortonville.
Although she’d known him for several years through operating the business, it wasn’t until Tim came to Oxford to open and manage the new Ace location that Tyler got to ‘know him even better.?
‘We started dating and that was it,? she said. ‘He’s probably one of the best things hardware’s ever done for me.?