Mary Stroebel staying home from grocery job

Most everyone is abiding by Gov. Jay Inslee’s “stay home, stay healthy” order.

None more so than Mary Stroebel.

The beloved longtime Pioneer Market cashier, a fixture at the local store since hiring on with then-owners Lois Coonc and Pam Johnson more than three decades ago, is taking a hiatus from work due to the COVID-19 outbreak.

She has gone home – for the time being.

“I’m 73,” she told the Weekly News in a telephone interview, “and I don’t want to catch it (the coronavirus) or give it to someone.”

It was a tough decision.

“Mom decided it would be best for her to no longer work (at this time) because of COVID-19,” said daughter Jaime Stroebel-Reinstra, the youngest of Mary’s and husband Clint’s three children.

Few, then, are as eager as Mary Stroebel for the coronavirus to run its course. She is hoping to return to Pioneer Market at least a couple days a week once the virus crisis is over.

“I do miss it already,” she said.

Just as Stroebel is missed.

“Jaime put up a post about Mary not working,” Clint Stroebel said, “and right away there were over 80 comments.”

The heartfelt responses came from near and far, shared by a mix of friends, Pioneer Market customers, co-workers, and former colleagues who have always appreciated her quick wit, easy laugh, and caring nature.

Not to mention her free counseling sessions.

“Mary is a total class act,” said Tim Dunlap, a La Conner native now living in the Philippines. “I’ve been missing her for years.”

Washington State Rep. Debra Lekanoff recalled how Stroebel helped her set down roots here when she first moved to the La Conner area.

“Seventeen years ago when I came to Swinomish,” said Lekanoff, “Mary was and continues to be one of the kindest people. She reminded this lost Alaska girl that I could find a place to call home in the Skagit Valley.”

Others variously described Stroebel as a “La Conner institution,” an “icon,” a “second mom,” and “sweet soul.”

The adoration flows two ways.

“I’ve worked with and for so many great people,” Stroebel said, “and I’m really grateful to all the people in La Conner. They’ve been amazing.”

Stroebel has shown her appreciation on several levels over the years. The examples are endless.

For instance, when Chip and Lysa Sherman’s son Caleb was a baby, Stroebel would place him in a basket on her counter and keep watch while the couple shopped.

Once, when La Conner was hit with a driving rainstorm that clogged the store’s gutters, it was Stroebel who braved the nasty weather and slippery footing to climb atop the roof to clear them.

On yet another occasion, she was faced with what at first appeared to be a dire situation.

“Somebody came into the store and said you’ve got a body lying by the store,” Stroebel recalled. “It was face down so I couldn’t see who it was. I just knew I didn’t want to touch it.”

She tried yelling, hoping the person was merely passed out. Despite her best efforts, there was no response.

Stroebel then went inside the store to call the fire department and EMTs. But when they pulled into the store parking lot, the body was gone.

The incident remains a mystery to this day.

Less mysterious is Stroebel’s lofty standing in the community.

“She’s the last original Pioneer Market worker,” Stroebel-Reinstra said of her mom. “She started serving our community over 36 years ago. She’s the cashier everyone knows and loves.”