If any of you have a spare moment, me and my family would really appreciate it if you could go to
The Hays Daily News and vote for my grandmas resturant (
EFFIE's in Rush Center) in their weekly poll.
The poll is designed to select the
Top 8 eating places in Northwest Kansas. The restaurants chosen for the list were selected via nominations.
Even though none of you have eaten there, please understand how much this means to my grandma. She opened her resturant 1965 with my grandpa by her side. When he passed away in 1985, she continued on with the business.
Here is a copy of an interview she did back in 2007 that perfectly sums up who my grandmother is, what she stands for, and what her little resturant means to her:
Effie CrowellOn Hatteberg's People, like the old Cheer's Bar, people like to go where everybody knows their name. For some, where the burger and the woman is named "Effie" after it's founder. Let's hit the road….up to Rush Center, Kansas in Rush County and we'll meet at Effie's Place.
"I knew everybody. There is probably a 175 of us who live here in town. People move in and move out and we don't even know who they are any more. I just describe it as the place everybody needs to come to."
This is Effie Crowell. She runs Effie's in Rush Center.
"If it was work I'd quit you know…and it's like I can't stand to stay home, kids didn't want me to work any more…my daughter anyway, my son don't care. He said, you stay at it as long as you want to mom."
"I was 83 in July [2007]. And I'm proud of being an 83 year old who can get up and do what I want to do.
Since 1965 she has owned and been the sole cook for this little place.
"Gravy made like my mom used to make it. It's the people, exactly, if I didn't have the people I wouldn't be working like I do. I wouldn't even care to. It's my people out there.
Effie doesn't open in the summer because it gets too hot, so she opens in the Fall. She never advertises, but doesn't have to. You can smell her burgers cooking for miles away.
This July, my grandma will turn 85 years old and she still is the sole cook at her restaurant Monday through Friday. She cooks and cleans everyday by herself with just the help of one waitress.
Everything she serves is made from scratch.
I can only hope to be even half the woman that my grandma is when I reach her age.
Please, if you have a minute, vote for her! She definitely deserves it!
