Armando and Irma Herrera have opened the A to Z thrift store at 1209 Main, Great Bend. At the grand opening on Feb. 20, the Herreras had a steady flow of first-time customers to browse through a variety of clothing, household items and, “a little bit of everything from A to Z.”
The store is open from Monday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.
The Herreras have lived in Great Bend for well over a decade. Ira worked at Mary’s Kitchen and Armando worked at Great Bend Hydro Test for 15 years. After the price of oil dropped, Armando found his hours reduced and decided now would be the perfect time to pursue his dream of owning a business.
“When I was young I dreamed of having my own store,” he said.
The couple’s oldest son, Israel, 24, lives in Kansas City where he works at the KU Medical Center, but they still have two boys living at home. Julio, who is almost 14, and 12-year-old Alan help out at the new store and they also got to name the store.
The Herreras are members of the Prince of Peace Catholic Church in Great Bend and they both sing at the church. Irma said she likes to listen to music as well as sing, and she enjoys karaoke.