Admittedly, running a health food store was not Natalie Holmes' original plan, but there is no denying it has become her passion. Natalie’s mother, Inge Englehart, and her partner Eldon Tomlinson were interested in opening a business, and in 1992 The Water Bug Health Food Store came to be. Sadly, Inge passed away in 1995. Some time after Inge’s passing, Eldon decided to sell The Water Bug. “It was an instant decision for me and my long-time friend Germaine Bettridge to take over the store from Eldon, and we’ve been running the store ever since,” shares Natalie. Prior to taking over, Natalie and Germaine had worked at The Water Bug part-time, along with Natalie’s sister and brother-in-law.
Getting up to speed in a new industry took a lot of time and effort, but Natalie says it has been worth it. “The companies we deal with offer learning modules, courses, and training sessions for us to learn about the products,” Natalie says. “There is also a program that the staff is required to take. It helps create a foundation of education and learning.” When the staff is finished with their training, they receive a certificate in Natural Health Fundamentals. That said, staffers at The Water Bug are careful about dispensing information to customers. “Legally, we cannot prescribe to customers. We can talk about how to maintain a healthy body but if they have a medical condition they are looking for treatment for, we often will try and direct them to a Naturopath or someone who can properly assess and treat them.”
The Water Bug has been in its current location since 1994 and has continued to grow as an operation. “We have implemented new technologies so that we can operate more efficiently,” Germaine says. “This past year has definitely been the most challenging because of COVID but nothing beats the amazing group of people that work here at The Bug. We are so fortunate to have an incredible team working with us every day. It makes the job so much more fulfilling. We had to change every aspect of how we do business, but the changes were for the better. We've got accustomed to making quick changes on the fly.” Another thing that has changed is how delicious healthy food has become. “I know many years ago a lot of so-called health foods didn’t taste very good,” Natalie says. “But the industry has come a long way. We try and sample all the things we bring into the store to make sure they taste good. I remember my mom would bring me things from the store many years ago and I was like, ‘Do I have to eat this?’ Now the food is so tasty.”
The Water Bug promotes itself as a community meeting place. “People end up bumping into friends and family while shopping and it's nice to see,” Natalie says. “A friendly comfortable atmosphere is really important to us. It's hard to believe it's been 29 years and The Bug is still working and growing to serve our community."
Davy Jones Quality Meats, located at 1030 Confederation Street, opened its doors in 1994. Five years later, 16-year-old Kyle Deloof dropped his resume off to Jones. Davy said he would give me a call when he had hours to give me. I called him every week for the next four weeks. Finally, he said,
When Nashlea Brogan was 18 years old, she received her first pair of hearing aids. "I lost the majority of my hearing as an adult, so I was interested in studying how people coped with acquired hearing loss. I wanted to understand...
Volunteers and members are at the heart of the Lawrence House Centre for the Arts. The Lawrence House was constructed in 1892 by the Lawrence family. In 1878 Jacob Lawrence had moved to Sarnia and opened a sawmill on the St. Clair River. His son William Lawrence expanded the business by bringing in
The Family Counselling Centre (FCC), established 65 years ago, is a not-for-profit, community-based agency that provides Sarnia-Lambton residents with counselling and support services. "Our mission is to assist, educate and strengthen individuals, families and community through programs, partnership
Matheson’s Glass, Screen, Window & Door was started in 1954 as a hardware business. If you grew up playing hockey in the area, you were probably a customer of theirs. “I remember going there to get my skates sharpened and we w...
Noelle's Gift is a registered, non-profit charitable organization and is run by a volunteer board of 21 people, including teachers, business owners and community members. Noelle's sister Nicole explains that the funds that they raise go to support many different local initiatives, all benefiting
It all started with a beautiful jacket. Sisters-in-law Patti Jo Pumple and Heather Park were attending a boot camp in Brights Grove and when they saw a woman wearing a very stylish, athletic jacket, they had to know where she found it. "I went home and looked up the company, One Tooth," and
In 1988, Judith and Norman Alix learned that Clearwater Arena needed a second ice surface. The township had received a grant from the provincial government, but was struggling to come up with the balance needed for the second rink. Both of our boys played hockey at Clearwater, so we donated the b