Dexter Creamery is approaching their one year anniversary and owner Chris Jones thanks Dexter for their support.
“We are thrilled and very grateful for the reception we’ve received in Dexter,” says Chris. “We opened our doors that first day and had a line going onto the sidewalk. The whole summer was amazing.”
Dexter just hasn’t been good to Dexter Creamery, but Chris has been good to Dexter. In their first year of business, he has been heavily involved in giving back to the community with sponsorship of Dexter’s Summer Concert Series in Monument Park, supporting Girl Scouts, Boy Scouts, Lion’s Club, E4DS, and others.
In fact, sitting down and talking to Chris, I found it hard to steer him back to his business. He likes talking about how the Creamery, located in downtown Dexter, enables him to be a conduit for the blessings he received instead of a reservoir. And now, his patrons can get in on the “giving back” through the Creamery’s Community Rewards Program.
The Community Rewards Program is a charitable effort where patrons can designate 5% of their purchases at Dexter Creamery towards the organization of their choice. It takes only a few minutes to sign up in the shop or online at dextercreamery.com. There are about 20 local organizations listed to choose from.
Dexter Creamery has 75 five-star reviews on Facebook for good reason. If you haven’t been there yet (you must be new to Dexter), I encourage you to pop in. The feature product is a selection of frozen yogurts you pour yourself and then top with your favorite treats chosen from a myriad of choices. I do straight up chocolate fro-yo with chocolate brownie bites. My grandsons take a dollop of fro-yo and then bury it underneath an avalanche of toppings. Good memories with Grandpa and Grandma.
I asked Chris how business was this past, very cold winter.
“We did gingerbread houses from Thanksgiving to Christmas,” he said. “It was super busy and everyone had a good time. We’re going to do it again this year.”
The rest of the winter months have been slow, but Chris expected that and has used the time to think about bringing on new products. Dexter Creamery will be adding several new products including fresh-squeezed lemonade to help cool us off in the summer heat.
“In our first year we purposely did not do drinks,” Chris says. “We wanted to get this operation down. Drinks such as fresh lemonade were a second year strategy. It’s overwhelming when you do something like this because there are so many options.”
Dexter High Students Lucinda Gleespen and Megan Wing were enjoying a quick treat before moving on with their day. I asked them why they came to the Creamery.
“I like how it is such a part of the community,” Lucinda said. “It’s a big part of a small town.”
“They have good frozen yogurt and a good atmosphere to be in,” added Megan.
I had heard Chris was involved in missions and asked him about it.
“I’ve been involved in missions for a few years now, “he told me. “The organization we work with focuses on developing sustainability for people in Haiti.. We don’t want to just give them handouts. We want to help them become self-sustaining giving them life skills that will endure because we’re not going to be there forever.”
Chris’ mission is to be an asset wherever he goes and in whatever he does. “Our goal when we opened Dexter Creamery is to be an asset to the community first, a place where people can come with their families and have a great experience,” he explains. “People creating great memories together. Every day we have people tell us that is their experience here at Dexter Creamery.” Chris then adds, “If we never made a dime and that was the only reward, I’d be happy.”
Chris is going to celebrate the entire week leading up to Dexter Creamery’s 1st anniversary which falls on May 5th. There will be new product roll outs, face painting, balloons and surprises to which I’ve been sworn to secrecy (but it sounds pretty cool).
So get a jump on summer and stop on in. You’re treating yourself and blessing others.
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If you’ve enjoyed Doug’s writing, you can find more on his personal blog intothewilderness.net which is a raw a gritty look at the human predicament.
