WWW.QNS.COM RIDGEWOOD TIMES JULY 19, 2018 17
BUZZ
Glendale pharmacy honors owner for community service
BY RYAN KELLEY
RKELLEY@RIDGEWOODTIMES.COM
TWITTER @R_KELLEY6
The front of the Rx Plus Pharmacy
on Myrtle Avenue in Glendale
has a brand-new look that was
complete with balloons, a blue ribbon
and a giant pair of scissors emblazoned
with the company’s logo on July 18 to
celebrate the store’s grand reopening.
Dozens of loyal customers, employees
of the pharmacy and elected offi -
cials came to see the newly installed
sign on the building and to congratulate
owner Louise Gatti, who has run
the store for the past 12 years.
State Senator Joseph Addabbo,
Assemblyman Mike Miller and a
representative from City Councilman
Robert Holden’s offi ce all presented
Gatti with citations to thank her for her
dedicated service to the neighborhood.
Yet, the honors were a complete surprise
to Gatti aft er one of her cashiers,
Jessica Alejandro, secretly organized
the details of the event with help from
Gatti’s family and other staff members.
“I was very surprised today, I have
an amazing worker and she’s more
like family than she is a worker to me,”
Gatti said of Alejandro. “Most of my
employees are like that … They come
here with the love and they show the
business like it’s their own, and I appreciate
that every day.”
The unveiling of the sign, which
had been in the works since October,
turned out to be the perfect cover up to
honor Gatti for her accomplishments,
Alejandro said. The pharmacy has
hosted free events on Easter, Memorial
Day, Labor Day and other holidays, as
well as giveaways of food and school
supplies for many years.
Aft er working at the store for almost
a year, Alejandro said that she felt like
honoring her boss was something that
simply had to be done.
“The amount of love that she has
shown to me and the other staff and
everybody in the community has been
immense,” Alejandro said. “She never
thinks about how much money she is
going to spend and she has a really big
heart. I felt like she needed to fi nally be
recognized.”
Louise Gatti (center) cuts the ribbon to signify the grand reopening of Rx Plus Pharmacy in Glendale on July
18 alongside Greg Mitchell from Councilman Robert Holden's offi ce, store cashier Jessica Alejandro, Senator
Joseph Addabbo and Assemblyman Mike Miller (from left to right)
The elected offi cials agreed, as Alejandro
said they were immediately on
board with her idea. Addabbo spoke
fi rst and expressed how happy he was
to see such a large crowd of supporters
from the community.
“We go to many ribbon cuttings,
and we don’t get this crowd,” Addabbo
said. “We are so grateful that
you are in the community, and you
are a real positive infl uence in the
community. For the years of activism
and work in the community, we
appreciate that.”
Greg Mitchell, chief of staff for
Holden, stated Gatti’s importance as a
longtime small business owner in the
neighborhood.
“Small businesses are the lifeblood of
the community,” Mitchell said. “It’s even
more special when business owners are
great community partners like Louise.”
Miller pointed out that Gatti joined
the Kiwanis Club of Glendale when she
came to the community and has always
been focused on giving back.
“She got involved in the community
in a tremendous way, and she does it
all the time,” Miller said. “Every time
I pass I see all these big celebrations
outside, and that’s supporting the
community.”
The ceremony concluded with a
countdown to the ribbon cutting, and
Gatti was thanked with a huge round
of applause as she closed the giant
Photos by Ryan Kelley/Ridgewood Times
scissors. Gatti thanked everyone for
their constant support, and she takes
pride in her business being family
owned, she said.
One loyal customer, Alfonso Castelli,
who said he has been coming to the
pharmacy for his medications since it
fi rst opened 12 years ago, explained
that the family atmosphere extends
to everyone who walks through
the door.
“Everybody is so polite, so every day
nobody is grouchy, I come in here and
everybody tells me a big hello,” Castelli
said. “That’s very rare … people don’t
even say good morning anymore to
anybody, but at this store it makes me
feel like they’re a part of my family.”
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