After five decades as an integral part of the community, John’s Pizza in Frazer has closed its doors for good, writes Ginger Rae Dunbar for the Daily Local News.

Chris Hashem, the pizza shop’s owner who has been working at the family business for 49 years, is looking forward to his retirement, even if it feels somewhat bittersweet at the moment.

“It was an adventure,” said Hashem. “It was a dream come true. We were very proud; we had beautiful customers.”

Hashem began working at what was then his father’s pizza shop after school, and continued to work there through college. He then got a job as a CPA, but he still found time to work at the family eatery. In the end, the pizza shop prevailed.

Many of the customers showed up on Sunday to wish the owner the best in retirement. Some offered hugs while some shed tears.

“Our customers would bring their children, and then they grew up and they would bring their children and so on,” said Hashem. “Some as many as four generations.”

Read more about John’s Pizza in the Daily Local News here.

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