By Xavier Smerdon
WHEN she was 14-years-old Mary DePasquale started sweeping the floors at the Werribee South General Store.
Forty years later she is still behind the register of the same shop.
To celebrate her milestone of smiling service, Mary’s bosses organised a surprise party and decorated the store as a tribute to their hardest worker.
And while Mary obviously loves her job, she said it was the customers that kept her there, despite moving away from Werribee South almost 30 years ago.
“When it’s a small business like this, they take you in like you’re family,” Mary said.
“Every day the customers come in and I talk to them, they like to have a chat.”
Mary said during her 40 years she has seen seven different owners manage the small general store.
“I’ve seen a lot of kids grow up,” she said. “And now I’m seeing their kids grow up.
“The current owners weren’t even born when I started working here.”
As far as people making such a fuss over her, Mary was thankful, but a little bit embarrassed.
“I think they just went a bit overboard,” she said.
“I appreciate it, except for them telling the newspaper.”
