Employees come back to McDonald's, call it a great first job and for some a great career

LACONIA — In 1971, Laconia got its first McDonald's restaurant. When it opened, it was staffed by a team of young people who wanted a few extra dollars to spend. What they got as well was an education that has lasted for decades, memories and relationships that have endured and for some, a job that has been too good to leave.

Wednesday evening, in anticipation of a soon-to-open new building, currently under construction next door to the present store on Union Avenue, store owners and managers threw a reunion party for all those who spent time working there over the years. Larry Johnston, who was the store manager when it first opened and now is an area supervisor for McDonald's, estimated that about 1,500 individuals have worked at the local restaurant.

Bob Merrill was a member of the first crew to work the store. He had been working at a local Kentucky Fried Chicken and thought he might switch from chicken to burgers when he heard the local McDonald's store would open. He was hired, and worked at the store until 1976, when he started what would be a lasting career with Coca-Cola. Although he now works for Coke, he said "The basics I learned here."

"At the time we did it, it was the first job when we were given serious adult responsibilities." At 16 years old, Merrill was entrusted to take the cash at the end of his shift and deposit it. "That was the transition for me, the responsibility."

"But the deal is, they give you the training to do it," added John Zimmerman, who worked at the Laconia McDonald's in 1971 and 1972. Since then, he's worked in engineering and finance and currently teaches math at Lakes Region Community College. Although it's been decades since then, he remains impressed with the operation. "The thing they've got here is the system. They know how to make it work... They were number one back then and they are number one now, it's a really good success story."

John Switzer had just graduated from high school in 1972 and was unsure of his next step in life. "I came down and applied," he recalled. He worked there for four years, then quit to go to college. He had traded in the restaurant life for the life of a paper pusher, performing calculations at a desk for a local manufacturing company. "It was awful, the days were so long," he said. Soon, he was standing in front of Johnston, asking for his old job back.

"I just think I missed it, all the interactions with the people," he said. McDonald's turned into a lasting habit for Switzer, who became assistant manager in Laconia and has managed the Meredith store since it opened in 1985.

"I've never been laid off, I've never had my hours cut back. It's been a great job and the people I've worked with here always have been fantastic," Switzer said.

Switzer has doubly benefited from the Golden Arches. In addition to providing him with a job, he also met his wife while working there. At least one other married couple present at the reunion – Sam Baker and Kathy Baker Marceau – also met while working at the local McDonald's.

While some might think of McDonald's as a revolving door for teenage employment, the fact is that many employees, especially in management, stick around for decades. Such is the case with Doreen Hawkins, who grew up in Meredith and was hired by Switzer at the Meredith store. She first applied, she said, because she was a young mother who had spent a little too much at Christmas and needed to pay off her credit cards. That debt is gone, but Hawkins has remained. She's been the store manager in Laconia for about 10 years and looks forward to managing the new store.

Not only did Hawkins stick around, one of her daughters also worked at McDonald's for eight years. "They're good people to work for, they've taken good care of me."

Hawkins admits that there's something of a stigma associated with working for McDonald's. She said people assume it's a job that requires no skills and promises nothing but minimum wage. It's untrue, she said. "There's a lot of skills needed, we're running million dollar businesses. The opportunities are there."

McDonald's has fit into the life of Sarah Miles the way no other job has been able to. She started working at the store 15 years ago when she was 16. It was her first job, which she sought because her friends worked there. She's stayed at the store because Hawkins allows her to balance work with the rest of her life. Like Hawkins, when she first started working there, Miles now has young children to care for. "My boss is great. She's flexible, really understanding."

It's not that Miles hasn't had other work opportunities, either. She's held second jobs at times, and she's left those jobs while staying at McDonald's. "I like coming to work every day. I've had other jobs and I can't say that about other jobs."

New store to open soon

When the Laconia McDonald's first opened, Johnston said it hardly resembled the restaurant that currently serves customers. There was no drive-through, no dining area. The only way for patrons to get their food was to order from walk-up windows.

The restaurant has made many changes since then and is undergoing one of its most significant changes since it opened. Sal Napoli, who along with his father Peter owns the store in Laconia and 19 others, noted that the McDonald's menu has evolved in recent years to the point where burgers are being ordered along with smoothies, apple slices, salads and premium coffee drinks. The new store has been designed to give a visual cue that the kitchen can do more than fry.

"Out thought and vision is to give the customers the look that matches up with our premium products," said Napoli. The new store will be better equipped to offer the broader menu and will offer patrons a larger and more upscale dining area in which to enjoy their food. Newer and more attractive materials have been selected by designers and the dining room will feature a 42-inch plasma television.

Another amenity to the new building will be double the drive-through capacity of the old building. It's a significant upgrade considering that as much as two-thirds of the restaurant's customers on a given day won't ever leave their cars.

The new building will make do without a "playplace," said Napoli, something that "customers have overwhelmingly told us is not important."

The new building is expected to be opened around late October. The current building will then be demolished to make way for parking.

CAPTION with MCDONALDS in AA:

In anticipation of the new McDonald's building being constructed on Union Avenue in Laconia, the restaurant hosted a reunion for all those who have worked there since it opened in 1971. Shown here, from left to right, are operations manager Tim Doyle, store manager Doreen Hawkins, owner Sal Napoli and area supervisor Larry Johnston. (Laconia Daily Sun photo/Adam Drapcho)